Why Donald Trump's politicking at Arlington National Cemetery should disgust every American

[planosteve]

Former President Trump did something breathtakingly cynical, certainly immoral and probably illegal the other day.

In other words, it was Monday.

Trump used an appearance on the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery, a resting place for many who honorably served their country, to make a campaign video.

Trump was ostensibly at Arlington to commemorate the third anniversary of the killing of 13 American service members by a suicide bomber during the chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan. He said the solidiers' family members, some of whom disparaged President Biden at the Republican National Convention, invited him.

I have no doubt that’s true. But even the grieving families of fallen soldiers do not have a right to trash Arlington's protocols.

The Army, which oversees the cemetery, forbids any sort of political activities on the grounds. It is, as the Trump campaign was informed, against federal law and Defense Department policy. The Washington Post reported that Pentagon officials were “deeply concerned” that Trump would turn the visit into a campaign stop but also wanted to accommodate him.

During the visit, a cemetery official tried to enforce the rules against outside cameras in Section 60, the area devoted chiefly to soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Two Trump staffers physically pushed her out of the way, according to news reports.

The official declined to press charges because she feared retaliation from Trump supporters, according to an Army statement. Trump spokesman Steven Cheung promptly slimed her as “clearly suffering from a mental health episode.”

Trump had smiled broadly and given a jarring thumbs-up as he stood at the grave of Marine Staff Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover, one of those killed in the bombing. He wasn’t there just to pay his respects; he was there to exploit the tragedy that occurred at Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate in 2021 by blaming it on Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who has soared in recent polls.

The frenzied withdrawal and terrible loss of life occurred on Biden’s watch — as did the abandonment of at least 78,000 Afghans who worked for the U.S. government and continue to live there precariously.

Nonetheless, Trump crassly ignores his own role in the debacle. A deal he himself struck with the Taliban locked the United States into a withdrawal timeline. Military intelligence was profoundly mistaken about the Afghan government’s ability to defend Kabul, which fell to the Taliban with lightning speed. There is enough blame to go around.

I called a dear friend whose parents are buried at Arlington. Her father was a Marine colonel and a veteran of World War II, Korea and Vietnam. At his funeral, he was given a 21-gun salute, and his procession included a riderless horse, empty boots in the stirrups facing backward to symbolize a final look back at his troops and his loved ones.

“My father was a conservative guy, but he would have thought Trump was a pig,” my friend told me. “He believed in honor, and if you are buried at Arlington, it is an honor. It is not something that should be ... [messed] with.”

Trump has a history of demeaning military sacrifices and messing with honorable traditions. As president, he turned the White House into his personal political prop, using it as a backdrop for the launch of his failed 2020 reelection campaign.

Poor Ohio Sen. JD Vance, whose awkwardness on the campaign trail has turned him into a meme-worthy punch line. He has once again been put in the sorry position of trying to mop up after his running mate.

At a campaign rally in Wisconsin on Wednesday, an indignant Vance excoriated the media.

“You’re acting like Donald Trump filmed a TV commercial at a grave site,” said Vance, a Marine veteran. “He was there providing emotional support to a lot of brave Americans who lost loved ones they never should have lost, and there happened to be a camera there, and someone gave them permission to have that camera there.”

As they say on social media, who’s gonna tell him?

That very day, the Trump campaign released a video showing the former president at Arlington, laying flowers at a grave and posing for photos with the Gold Star families.

In a voice-over, Trump says, “We didn’t lose one person in 18 months,” a self-regarding and entirely bogus claim he’s been making for the last few years. As Reuters reported in May 2022, if Trump was referring to the time period in which he negotiated the withdrawal agreement, 15 American troops suffered what the Defense Department called “hostile deaths” in Afghanistan. If he was referring to the last 18 months of his presidency, 12 members of the military died in Afghanistan.
LA Times

[Sangersteve]

Trump was invited by the Gold Star families.

Arlington gave them permission for photos exclusive to Trumps team.

Biden and Harris were both invited, even though their actions at Abbey Gate caused these deaths.

Biden and Harris couldn't be bothered to attend.

It is believed that the altercation was caused by uninformed staff at Arlington

[BigTex]

Coach Walz could have handled the situation. But he wasn't there.

[Red Oak]

The Harris/Biden Administration behind the Afghanistan gift of billions of dollars worth of military equipment, and America Blood to the Taliban during the collapse of the U.S. backed government should disgust any sane American. Not to mention the continued US aid to the Taliban.

[GFB]

The Harris/Biden Administration behind the Afghanistan gift of billions of dollars worth of military equipment, and America Blood to the Taliban during the collapse of the U.S. backed government should disgust any sane American. Not to mention the continued US aid to the Taliban.

Yes, and now add to that the refusal to honor or even acknowledge the 13 dead Americans from three years ago.

[planosteve]

General Mark Milley told The Atlantic that when he invited a wounded, wheelchair-bound soldier to sing “God Bless America” at Milley’s welcoming ceremony as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of staff, Trump admonished him. “Why do you bring people like that here?” Trump asked, according to Milley. “No one wants to see that, the wounded.”

On a trip to France in 2018, Trump declined a scheduled visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, where more than 2,200 U.S. service members are buried. “Why should I go to that cemetery?” he asked staff members. “It’s filled with losers.” This horrific statement was confirmed by Trump’s then-chief of staff, John Kelly, a former Marine general whose own son was killed in Afghanistan and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Kelly also confirmed that in another conversation on the same trip, Trump called the Marines who died at Belleau Wood “suckers” for getting killed.

And just a few weeks ago, Trump told an audience that the Congressional Medal of Freedom he’d awarded to Republican donor Miriam Adelson was “much better” than the Medal of Honor. Trump said the civilian award was superior because Medal of Honor recipients are “either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets or they are dead.”

These are not one-off statements by a rhetorically reckless buffoon. This man harbors deep resentment toward the military and those who’ve sacrificed in service. Even when he poses with a family — as he did at Arlington this week — he only does so to enhance his campaign or his political prospects. Trump’s use for the military and our dead extends only as far as it suits him.

All Americans should keep this front of mind as we head into the fall. In particular, veterans should remember that Donald Trump’s behavior at Arlington National Cemetery this week epitomizes not only how he is a menace to the United States, but how he is an enemy of everything we fought for.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/i-m-a ... 868d&ei=40

[Mark]

Milley is a political hack and a serial liar. He proved that long ago.

[rusty]

Milley is a political hack and a serial liar. He proved that long ago.

Everybody you disagree with you call a political hack and/or a serial liar.

[planosteve]

Milley is a political hack and a serial liar. He proved that long ago.

Everybody you disagree with you call a political hack and/or a serial liar.

Show us the "proof" that he's a hack and a liar.

[planosteve]

Calling those who were wounded or killed serving in the military "suckers and losers" is just about the sickest thing I have ever heard from anyone. The suckers and losers are people like "old bone spurs" who use their wealth and influence to avoid their military service obligation.

[GFB]

Calling those who were wounded or killed serving in the military "suckers and losers" is just about the sickest thing I have ever heard from anyone. The suckers and losers are people like "old bone spurs" who use their wealth and influence to avoid their military service obligation.

“Suckers and losers”..are the ones that believed he ever said that.

[planosteve]

Calling those who were wounded or killed serving in the military "suckers and losers" is just about the sickest thing I have ever heard from anyone. The suckers and losers are people like "old bone spurs" who use their wealth and influence to avoid their military service obligation.

“Suckers and losers”..are the ones that believed he ever said that.

But, you know for certain that he never did.

[GFB]

Calling those who were wounded or killed serving in the military "suckers and losers" is just about the sickest thing I have ever heard from anyone. The suckers and losers are people like "old bone spurs" who use their wealth and influence to avoid their military service obligation.

“Suckers and losers”..are the ones that believed he ever said that.

But, you know for certain that he never did.

I certainly do..as does anyone that doesn’t suffer from TDS or stupidly believes anything the MSM says about him.

[rusty]

“Suckers and losers”..are the ones that believed he ever said that.

But, you know for certain that he never did.

I certainly do..as does anyone that doesn’t suffer from TDS or stupidly believes anything the MSM says about him.

The MSM were only quoting people who were with Trump when he allegedly said it. Don't blame the reporting. It does sound like something he would say.

He did say McCain wasn't a war hero because he was captured. "He's a war hero because he was captured."

He didn't say that?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zSVYL_4r1KQ