Trump's visit to Arlington National Cemetery angers veterans

WASHINGTON – Some veterans reacted with alarm to reports of an altercation between a member of Donald Trump's entourage and a senior official at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday; a retired Army general called the incident “disgusting.”

Two sources told USA TODAY that a member of Trump's team pushed past the cemetery's public relations director after she tried to stop them from filming in a part of the cemetery known as Section 60, where photography is prohibited.

A video from Section 60, where recently buried U.S. soldiers are buried, later appeared in a Trump campaign TikTok in which he criticizes President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic rival for the presidency.

“Donald Trump has no right to use our most sacred ground for his political goals,” Fred Wellman, a 22-year Army veteran, said Wednesday. “Many of us, and I am not the only one, are rightly angry.”

More:Dispute between Trump staff and Arlington Cemetery officials

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The incident occurred on Monday after Trump laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to commemorate the 13 Americans killed in a suicide bombing at Kabul airport three years ago during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

After laying the wreaths, Trump and members of his team accompanied the family of a slain soldier to his grave in Section 60, where the cemetery's public relations director tried to prevent them from filming.

Nearly 400,000 people are buried in the cemetery, which is maintained by the U.S. Army. The Trump campaign's insistence on using the site for campaign photos is a “new low,” said former Army Undersecretary and Pennsylvania Representative Patrick Murphy.

Wellman said Trump's team should apologize for using the grounds to create a political ad rather than attacking the cemetery official who tried to stop them from violating a federal regulation regulating photography on the grounds.

Trump's spokesman said the group had permission to film in Section 60.

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said a cemetery official “obviously suffered a mental breakdown and decided to physically stop members of President Trump's team.” Arlington National Cemetery confirmed that “an incident” related to photography in Section 60 occurred. No charges have been filed, a police official told USA TODAY.

The campaign's response – an attack on the mental health of a respected cemetery official – only sparked further backlash from veterans and veterans' groups.

Major General (retired) Paul Eaton, a senior adviser to the progressive political action committee VoteVets, called the campaign's actions at the cemetery “sickening.”

Eaton, whose father is buried in Section 60, referred to previous reports, which Trump has repeatedly denied, that the former president had referred to the dead of World War I as “suckers” and “losers.”

“They see no problem in bringing partisan politics there, even if it means getting into physical altercations with cemetery staff,” Eaton said in a statement to USA TODAY. “I really can't think of anything more heinous than starting a political brawl on the land where Gold Star families are grieving. Someone who would do something like that should never be commander in chief.”

Relatives of some of the soldiers killed in the bombing invited Trump to lay a wreath on Monday. On Tuesday, they released a statement thanking the former president and defending him.

“We are deeply grateful to the President for taking the time to honor our children and support us in our grief,” they wrote.

Wellman said Trump's desire to honor the fallen still had to comply with the law. “There is a federal law that says it can't be used for political purposes,” he told USA TODAY. “…The families made a statement saying, 'Oh no, we approved it.' They didn't understand that properly. The families don't have the right to make decisions for the other people buried there.”

Trump has long claimed to be an ally of veterans, but various comments over the years have gotten him into trouble with members of the military community. Earlier this month, he angered veterans when he said the civilian Presidential Medal of Freedom was “much better” than the military Medal of Honor because recipients of the latter are often seriously wounded or dead.

Trump's visit to Arlington National Cemetery angers veterans

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Trump's visit to Arlington National Cemetery angers veterans

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