Former President Donald Trump released a statement from the Gold Star families of the 13 fallen United States service members who were killed during the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In a post on X, Trump shared a joint statement from Misty Fuoco, the sister of Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole Gee; Cheryl Juels, the aunt of Gee; Christy Shamblin, the mother-in-law of Gee; Mark Schmitz, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz; Jaclyn Schmitz, the stepmother of Schmitz; Herman Lopez, the father of Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez; Jim McCollum, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum; Steve Nikoui, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui; Coral Doolittle, the mother of Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto Sanchez; Darin Hoover, the father of Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover; and Kelly Barnett, the mother of Hoover.
The families wrote in their joint statement that Vice President Kamala Harris’s statement labeling Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery to take part in a wreath-laying ceremony to honor the family’s lost loved ones and fallen servicemembers a “political stunt” was “false, hypocritical, and disrespectful.”
In the statement, the families added that Harris had “disgracefully twisted this sacred moment into a political ploy.”
“Today, Gold Star Families who lost their loved ones in the Harris-Biden Administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan released the following joint statement and heartfelt video messages in a direct response to Kamala Harris’ false, hypocritical, and disrespectful statement attacking President Trump,” the statement from the families began.
I want to thank the families of our Great Warriors who have been lost to us for the way they came together as one, and thanked me for attending, at their request, the Celebration of their wonderful family members who, because of the Incompetence of Kamala Harris and Joe Biden,… pic.twitter.com/ewkbVniBC0
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2024
“We, the families of the brave service members who were tragically killed in the Abbey Gate bombing, are appalled by Vice President Kamala Harris’ recent attempts to politicize President Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery,” the statement continued. “President Trump was invited by us, the Gold Star families, to attend the solemn ceremonies commemorating the three-year anniversary of our children’s deaths. He was there to honor their sacrifice, yet Vice President Harris has disgracefully twisted this sacred moment into a political ploy.”
Trump responded to the statement from the families by thanking them for coming “together as one” and for thanking him for attending the ceremony at the cemetery and blasted Harris and President Joe Biden for their “incompetence” and for being why the fallen service members were “no longer with us”:
I want to thank the families of our Great Warriors who have been lost to us for the way they came together as one, and thanked me for attending, at their request, the Celebrating of their wonderful family members who, because of the Incompetence of Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, are no longer with us. Thank you for saying you wanted me to stand with you at Arlington National Ceremony, and take pictures, that it was your request, not mine, but it was my Great Honor to do so. I WILL NEVER FORGET! Lightweight V.P. Kamala Harris tried turning it around, because they weren’t there, have never spoken to the families, and have no intention to do so. In Afghanistan, you don’t take the Soldiers out first, you take the Soldiers out last. This would be Military 101, the most basic, and the “leaders” of that Disaster should be immediately fired. We have FOOLS in the White House, and now, they are trying to solve the Hostage Crisis in Israel. Guess how that’s going to turn out?
The joint statement from the families comes after Trump posted videos from the Gold Star families on both Truth Social and X, in which the families blasted Harris for her statement attacking Trump for his visit to the cemetery.
Harris’s statement criticizing Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery came days after NPR released an article claiming that officials from the Trump campaign had been involved in a “verbal and physical altercation” with a cemetery official who had tried to prevent the Trump campaign from being able to film and take photos in Section 60 of the cemetery.