A former Presidential Honor Guard member and U.S. military veteran defended former President Donald Trump during his visit to Arlington National Cemetery this week amid reports of an altercation between Arlington National Cemetery officials and the Trump campaign.
Veteran Lucas O'Hara, who said he worked at Arlington Cemetery for three years while in the military, praised Trump for his composure at the ceremony. Meanwhile, the Trump campaign has faced criticism after reports that cemetery staff warned people not to take photos at Monday's ceremony.
“I served as a member of the Presidential Honor Guard for three years and during that time I have witnessed over 75 political wreath-layings and conducted 524 funerals at this cemetery. The ceremony I witnessed yesterday was the most respectful and solemn I have ever witnessed,” O'Hara wrote.
“There were no speeches, no angles, no weird photo ops — just our elected officials and the 45th president respectfully and solemnly remembering our fallen soldiers and their families,” he added.
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A former Presidential Honor Guard member and U.S. military veteran defended former President Donald Trump during his visit to Arlington National Cemetery this week amid reports of an altercation between Arlington National Cemetery officials and the Trump campaign.
Monday's event will commemorate 13 U.S. soldiers who died defending Kabul airport during the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan in 2021. Several parents of the soldiers issued a statement saying they approved of asking a Trump campaign photographer to document the event.
NPR reported that two Trump campaign staffers “yelled abuse and shoved” cemetery officials who tried to stop them from taking pictures and photographs, and a defense official told The Associated Press that cemetery officials had warned the campaign not to take photos at the event.
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“Federal law prohibits political or election-related activity on U.S. Army National Cemetery grounds, including photographers, content creators and others who visit in direct support of the campaigns of political candidates,” cemetery officials said in a statement. “Arlington National Cemetery made sure all attendees were aware of this law and its prohibitions. We can confirm that an incident occurred and have filed a report.”
Members of former President Donald Trump's campaign got into an altercation with officials at Arlington National Cemetery. (Getty Images)
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Chang said the staffer who blocked the photographer appeared to have a “mental illness” and that the campaign had been approved to bring the photographer.
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“The facts are that a private photographer was allowed on the grounds and, for some reason, an anonymous individual who was clearly suffering from a mental illness decided to physically disrupt a member of President Trump's team in the middle of a very solemn ceremony,” he said.
Former President Donald Trump took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery to mark the third anniversary of the Abbey Gate bombing, which killed 13 US soldiers during a withdrawal from Afghanistan. (Pool)
President Trump attended the event at the invitation of the family of a soldier killed in the Kabul bombing.
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“We are deeply grateful that the President took the time to honor our children, stand with us in our grief, and offer his unwavering support during such a difficult time,” five of the families wrote after the ceremony. “His thoughtfulness and respect meant more than words can express.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
