Trump faces fresh backlash as he posts campaign video from controversial Arlington National Cemetery visit
Donald Trump is facing a fresh wave of backlash over his controversial incident at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday, after he posted a campaign video on TikTok featuring footage from the visit.
This week, the former president has sparked fury from veterans, military groups, and soldiers’ families after he was, firstly, captured posing with his thumbs up and smiling at a soldier’s grave and, secondly, two of his campaign staffers were accused of verbally abusing and pushing a cemetery official.
Now, Trump is under fire for turning the anniversary of the deaths of fallen American servicemen into a campaign video with social media users branding it “disgusting.”
The video shows clips of Trump walking past graves and through the cemetery, holding his hand to his heart in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where he also lay a wreath.
He is also seen laying flowers on the graves of the 13 service members killed in the 2021 terror attack at Abbey Gate outside Kabul Airport, posing with their family members for photos.
The video, complete with viral, solemn music, has a voiceover of the former president describing the tragic loss of the 13 American lives.
“We lost 13 great, great people. What a horrible day it was,” he says, before turning on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, blaming them for the chaotic withdrawal.
“We didn’t lose one person in 18 months,” he says. “And then they took over that disaster – the leaving of Afghanistan.”
Trump instantly sparked backlash over his visit after he was pictured smiling and flashing a thumbs up next to the graves of fallen soldiers.
His campaign then faced further controversy when NPR first reported that two of his staffers had got into a physical