Arlington cemetery controversy shines spotlight on Utah Gov Spencer Cox’s sudden embrace of Trump

A few months ago, Utah Gov Spencer Cox was one of the few prominent Republicans consistently keeping his distance from Donald Trump, whose brash style seemed to be the antithesis of a brand of politics Cox had carefully cultivated that centered on unity and respect.

Cox did not vote for Trump in 2016 or 2020, and told CNN in July that he would not vote for him this year. The governor said the then-president’s role in inciting the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol went too far.

Days later, after an assassination attempt on Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, Cox changed his mind.

Cox sent a letter to Trump explaining that his defiant response at the moment of the shooting had spurred a sudden reassessment and switch for Cox.

His turnabout bewildered political observers who, for the past decade, have watched Cox methodically build a persona as a moderate in the manner of Mitt Romney, the Utah senator who was the Republican presidential nominee in 2012, while climbing the ranks of state leadership.

Cox, 49, said in his note that he believed Trump could save the country “by emphasizing unity rather than hate.”

“You probably don’t like me much,” Cox wrote. “But I want you to know that I pledge my support.”

Trump has not in turn endorsed Cox for reelection.

The pair’s puzzling relationship was thrust into the spotlight again this past week when they put themselves at the center of a controversy at Arlington National Cemetery. After Trump’s staff had an altercation with a cemetery official, Cox broke rules — and likely federal law — in using a graveside photo with Trump in a campaign fundraising email.

Federal law prohibits campaign or election-related activities within the Army’s national cemeteries, and officials at