Democratic presidential candidate and US Vice President Kamala Harris reacts during a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia. | Photo credit: Reuters
Vice President Kamala Harris said former President Donald Trump “desecrated sacred ground” during his recent appearance at Arlington National Cemetery, where the Republican candidate took and distributed photographs despite a federal ban on campaign activity at that location.
Ms Harris, in a statement posted on the social media platform X on Saturday, cited reports that Mr Trump’s campaign aides quarrelled with a cemetery employee and began taking photographs and video of the former president’s graves, including those of Afghanistan war veterans, after being warned about rules at the site.
“Let me be clear: The former president desecrated sacred ground for a political stunt,” Ms Harris said, calling Arlington “a sacred place where we gather to honor American heroes … it is not a place for politics.”
The original incident stemmed from Mr Trump and Republicans’ continued criticism of President Joe Biden and now Ms Harris for the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan. At the invitation of some family members of service members who died during the withdrawal, Mr Trump laid a wreath last Monday in honour of Sergeant Nicole Gee, Staff Sergeant Darin Hoover and Staff Sergeant Ryan Knauss. They were among the 13 US service members and more than 100 Afghans who were killed in the bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 26, 2021.
According to defence officials, Mr Trump’s campaign was warned not to take photographs before the brawl at the cemetery. Officials have said that an Arlington employee who was allegedly “verbally abused and pushed” by two Trump campaign staffers has declined to press charges. The Trump campaign has since attacked Pentagon officials, with a top campaign adviser, Chris Lacivita, calling military spokesmen “hacks”. Trump campaign officials say they had permission to bring in someone to take the video.
Since Mr Biden ended his re-election campaign, Mr Trump has been focusing on Ms Harris and her role in foreign policy decisions. He has particularly highlighted the vice president’s statements that she was the last person in the room before Mr Biden made a decision on Afghanistan.
The Biden administration was adhering to the withdrawal commitment and timeline that the Trump administration had negotiated with the Taliban in 2020. A 2022 review by a government-appointed special investigator concluded that decisions made by both Trump and Biden were key factors in the rapid collapse of Afghanistan’s military and the Taliban takeover.
Ms Harris on Saturday noted Mr Trump’s history of picking fights with veterans, repeatedly accusing him of “calling our fallen military personnel ‘stupid’ and ‘failures’ and insulting Medal of Honor recipients.”
“This is a man incapable of understanding anything other than serving himself,” Ms. Harris said. “I will always honor the service and sacrifice of all of America’s fallen heroes. … And I will never politicize them.”