Try as they might, Trump aides cannot seem to quell criticism of their recent photo op at Arlington National Cemetery, which allegedly included a physical altercation.
The latest high-profile condemnation comes from Jimmy McCain, the son of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who was also a Purple Heart recipient who served in the Navy and spent several years as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. The younger McCain, who is currently serving in the Army, told CNN that he thought the incident was a “violation” of the cemetery, a resting place for fallen soldiers—including his own grandfather and great-grandfather. (Sen. McCain is buried at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery.)
“It just blows me away,” McCain told CNN of the Trump team’s fight at Arlington, adding, “These men and women that are laying in the ground there have no choice” about whether to participate in a campaign event.
As I reported last week, two Trump campaign staffers clashed with a cemetery official where Trump had been attending a wreath-laying ceremony to honor soldiers who died in the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan. A statement from the Army later confirmed that the staffer had been “abruptly pushed aside” after they tried to enforce cemetery rules that prohibit filming and photographing in a section where recent US casualties are buried, which is forbidden by federal law. (NPR was the first to report news of the incident.) Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign, denied the report of a physical altercation, while Trump himself has called the incident a “made-up story.“
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Julianne McShane is Mother Jones’ news and engagement writer, focusing on daily news coverage and stories at the intersection of gender and inequity.
