Trump says slain soldiers' families asked for gravesite photos
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Former President Trump on Aug. 30 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Former President Trump on Friday addressed some of the fallout of an encounter at Arlington National Cemetery earlier this week.
The big picture: A contested series of events escalated with the circulation of photos of Trump smiling at gravesites with families of fallen service members.
Zoom in: The former president was there Monday to commemorate the third anniversary of the 2021 Abbey Gate bombing at the invitation of families of U.S. service members killed in the attack.
- Speaking at Friday's campaign rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Trump said families of people killed in Afghanistan asked him to join them at the gravesite.
- "After the ceremony, they said, 'Could you come to the graves? Would that be possible?'" Trump recounted, adding that he said, "I'm going to because those people are the love of our lives."
- "They said a prayer [at] different graves... And they said to me, ... 'Sir, would it be possible for you to have a picture with us by the tombstone of my son?'" Trump continued. "I said absolutely."
The latest: Vice President Harris said in a statement on Instagram Saturday the military cemetery "is not a place for politics."
- She criticized Trump for referring to fallen service members as "suckers" and "losers" and for remarks he made about Medal of Honor recipients.
- "This is a man who is unable to comprehend anything other than service to himself," Harris said in the statement.
What he's saying: Trump accused the White House of making the cemetery incident a political issue, saying that after taking photos with different groups, he heard later in the day "that we were using the graves of those soldiers for public relations purposes."
- He said: "I don't need publicity. I get a lot of publicity. I would like to get a lot less publicity. I'm the only guy who would hire a public relations agent to get less publicity."
Context: A cemetery worker confronted a member of Trump's team to enforce rules that bar using the site for political purposes.
- The Trump campaign has insisted it received permission to have its photographer present at a section of the military cemetery where recent U.S. casualties are buried.
Trump shared video on Truth Social Saturday of Kelly Barnett, mother of Marine Staff Sgt. Darin "Taylor" Hoover, who died in the terrorist attack at Abbey Gate outside Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport.
- "I gave my permission," she earlier told NBC News. "I wanted the memories."
Go deeper:
- "Unfairly attacked": Army says Arlington employee "pushed aside" at cemetery
- Scoop: Dems hunt for info on Trump cemetery incident
- Trump's Arlington Cemetery dispute escalates
Editor's note: This story has been updated with Harris' statement and a Truth Social post from Trump.
