Trump and Harris spar over Arlington cemetery visit as he posts video messages from Gold Star family members

The war of words over Donald Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery continued over the weekend with his campaign issuing a statement and sharing videos from the Gold Star military families that the former president had joined at the memorial on Monday, when they marked three years since 13 service members were killed during the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

In the statement shared on Sunday, the Gold Star families – who have lost a loved one in military service – defended the Republican presidential nominee and insisted that Vice President Kamala Harris was the candidate politicizing fallen US service members.

Some family members also recorded video messages that the former president posted on Truth Social, saying Trump was honoring their loved ones when he came to Arlington.

The Republican presidential nominee has been facing fierce backlash over Monday’s visit, where campaign staffers allegedly physically shoved a female worker and then disrespected fallen soldiers and veterans’ families by defying the rules to film and take photos in a banned area.

On Saturday, Harris accused Trump of staging a “political stunt” that “disrespected sacred ground” where many Afghanistan war dead are buried when his campaign released images of his visit — including the Republican nominee standing giving thumbs up by the graves of fallen soldiers. Partisan activity is prohibited on cemetery grounds.

The same day, President Joe Biden told reporters when asked about the incident: “I don’t want to answer because I might tell you what I think.”

To deflect from the furor, the former president has ramped up his rhetoric in recent days seeking to directly link Harris to the Biden administration’s handling of the US’s exit from