Trump campaign responds to claims his trip to Arlington Cemetery led to altercation with staff member

Donald Trump and his team are responding to claims that he had an altercation with a staff member during his visit to Arlington National Cemetery.

According to reports, a member of Trump’s team and a cemetery employee clashed over the presence of a photographer in Section 60, the part of the cemetery where American soldiers killed in recent wars are buried.

According to Steven Cheung, a spokesman for Trump’s campaign, a cemetery official tried to “physically block” members of Trump’s team.

“The fact is that a private photographer had access to the grounds and for some reason an anonymous person, who was clearly suffering from mental health issues, decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team from entering a very solemn ceremony,” Cheung said in the statement.

He threatened to release footage to support his claim, but that footage has not yet been released.

The conflict came to light after NPR reported a “verbal and physical altercation” between Trump and cemetery staff over the presence of a photographer and videographer from Trump’s team.

According to Arlington National Cemetery, federal law prohibits political campaigning or “election-related” activities at military cemeteries, including by photographers.

“We were allowed to bring a photographer,” Cheung protested.

He posted a screenshot of an email stating that “only former President Trump is allowed to have an official photographer or videographer outside of the main media pool.”

His campaign later posted a video of the visit to Trump’s TikTok account.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump shared a statement from family members of the fallen soldiers approving the taking of photos and videos.

“We have allowed President Trump’s official videographer and photographer to attend the event so that these sacred moments of remembrance could be respectfully captured and we could cherish these memories forever,” the families said.

“The President and his team conducted themselves with nothing but the utmost respect and dignity toward all of our military personnel, and especially our beloved children,” the statement said.

Visitors have long taken photos at graves at Arlington National Cemetery, including in Section 60.

But the cemetery seemed to think Trump’s visit was different.

It said it “strengthened and broadly shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants,” including “photographers, content creators, or other individuals present for the purpose of directly supporting the campaign of a partisan political candidate.”

Trump was invited by the families to visit the cemetery to pay tribute to the 13 Americans killed three years ago in a bombing outside Kabul airport during the evacuation from Afghanistan.

The former president laid a series of wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier before making a private visit to Section 60, the part of the cemetery where soldiers killed in Afghanistan are buried.

He was accompanied by relatives of several American soldiers killed in a bombing at Abbey Gate. He was also accompanied by two Marines who were injured in the attack: Cpl. Kelsee Lainhart, who was paralyzed in the attack and is now in a wheelchair, and Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews, who lost his right arm and left leg.

Arlington National Cemetery is considered sacred ground by the United States Army and is administered by the Army.

The media were not allowed to accompany Trump to Section 60, the final resting place for those who died in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, a place that is regularly visited by spouses and family members of the fallen.

Trump posed for photos with his family and laid flowers at the graves of several fallen soldiers, according to images posted by his team on social media.

Governor Spencer J. Cox, Republican of Utah, who visited the cemetery with Trump, shared a photo of Section 60 on social media, showing the former president and others standing in a “thumbs up” pose around the grave of Staff Sergeant Hoover.

The families of the fallen have released a statement supporting Trump and his team

The White House slammed Trump’s visit to the cemetery, pretending it was only for the television cameras.

“There are many ways that we as a nation and our leaders can commemorate the third anniversary of Abby Gate, and Mr. Trump was invited by at least one, I think maybe several families, to lay a wreath at Arlington and that is certainly a way to recognize the sacrifice and the loss. But it was a personal invitation from fans,” said John Kirby, White House spokesman for the National Security Council.

‘Another way is to continue to work, perhaps not with a lot of fanfare, perhaps not with a lot of public attention, perhaps not with TV cameras, but to ‘work every day to ensure that the families of those who fell and those who were wounded, not just at Abbey Gate but throughout the 20-plus years that we were in Afghanistan, had the support that they needed,’ he added.

As president, Trump struck a deal with the Taliban that set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

But he criticized the eventual exit during Biden’s presidency, saying its implementation had failed.

President Biden lays flowers at the grave of SSG Ryan Knauss

Arlington National Cemetery is considered sacred ground and is managed by the United States Army

More than 100 Afghan civilians and 13 US soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport.

The terrorist group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

Monday’s visit allowed Trump to tie his rival Kamala Harris to what he calls “the most embarrassing moment in our history.” Trump has repeatedly criticized President Joe Biden’s handling of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Biden was in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Monday, at the start of the second week of his summer vacation.

The visit also provided Trump with an opportunity to debunk reports that he has no respect for veterans and that he has previously called fallen World War II soldiers losers and losers, reports Trump has denied.

“This is the 3rd anniversary of the FUCKING withdrawal from Afghanistan, the MOST AWKWARD moment in the history of our country,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday.

‘Gross incompetence – 13 DEAD American soldiers, hundreds wounded and dead, AMERICANS and BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF MILITARY EQUIPMENT LEFT BEHIND.’