Vice President Kamala Harris condemned former President Donald Trump and his campaign for their actions Monday at Arlington National Cemetery in a new message to X.
Harris accused Trump of “disrespect.”[ing] holy land, all for a political stunt.”
“If there’s one thing we Americans can all agree on, it’s that our veterans, military families and service members should be respected, never disrespected, and treated with our highest respect and gratitude,” he added.
Harris also urged Trump to “never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States” as a result of his actions.
His statement came after the U.S. military said a member of Trump’s campaign staff “abruptly pushed aside” a staff member at the cemetery so Trump and his campaign could take photos and videos with the families of servicemen who died during the U.S. military withdrawal. from Afghanistan in 2021.
The incident happened in section 60, where taking videos and pictures is generally prohibited.
In an interview with NBC News on Thursday, Trump defended his actions, saying that a family “asked me if I would support a picture on the grave of their loved one who should not have died.”
He insisted that he did not ask to take photos and videos, but “When I was there, I did not ask for a picture. When I was there, they said, ‘Sir, could we have a picture at the grave?'”
In X’s message responding to Harris, Trump’s running mate Ohio Sen. JD Vance said: “President Trump was there at the invitation of families whose loved ones died because of incompetence. Why don’t you get off social media and start publishing. Let’s investigate their needless deaths?”
And Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt blasted Harris in her own post, blaming the vice president for the deaths of soldiers during the withdrawal, which took place during the Biden administration.
“Kamala’s stupidity led to one of the most embarrassing events in US history and the killing of 13 brave American soldiers,” Leavitt wrote, adding: “This is precisely why Kamala does not deserve to be elected. Kamala has already proven himself to be a dangerous, incompetent commander.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
