Vice President Kamala Harris criticized former President Donald Trump over the recent controversy surrounding his campaign at Arlington National Cemetery, saying military cemeteries are “no place to play politics.”
The Army said last week that Trump campaign staff “abruptly shoved away” Arlington officials who had tried to warn them about the no-photography rule at the cemetery.
The event Trump attended on Monday was to commemorate 13 U.S. soldiers who were killed during the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan three years ago.
The Trump campaign has disputed the cemetery’s version of events and had accepted an invitation from the family of the fallen soldier.
Harris wrote that Trump had “desecrated sacred space for political stunts.”
Saturday’s social media post marked the first time Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, has commented on the controversy.
She has visited the Virginia cemetery several times during her time as vice president and said she would never use the site for political gain.
“If there’s one thing we can all agree on as Americans, it’s that our veterans, our military families and our service members should be honored, never disrespected and treated with the utmost respect and gratitude,” Harris said.
“And I believe that no man who cannot fulfill this simple and sacred duty should ever again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States.”
At a campaign rally in Michigan on Thursday, Trump fired back at those who had criticized him over the incident.
He said the families of the fallen soldiers had asked him to take photos at the spot after the memorial service.
“I go there and they ask me to take a picture and they say I was campaigning,” Trump said. “All I get is enough publicity. I don’t need publicity. I don’t need no publicity.”
The Trump campaign released a statement Sunday from Gold Star military families who had invited him to the event, saying the former president was there to remember the sacrifices of those slain.
They also targeted Harris in a statement, saying she had “exploited this sacred moment for political tactics.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s running mate, J.D. Vance, used the controversy to slam the Biden administration’s handling of the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal and say Harris should “go to hell.”
“Three years ago, 13 brave and innocent Americans died. They died because Kamala Harris refused to do her job,” Vance said in response to a question from the BBC’s US partner CBS News.
NPR previously reported that two Trump campaign staffers yelled abuse at and shoved cemetery officials when they tried to intervene.
Federal law prohibits using cemeteries for political activity, and the military said it warned participants of the rules in advance.
“This incident is unfortunate and it is also unfortunate that ANC personnel and their professionalism have been unfairly attacked,” an army spokesman said.
The Trump campaign denied that any physical confrontation took place at the cemetery, adding that it was “prepared to release the footage if such defamatory allegations are made.”
House Democrats have since called on the US military to submit a report on the incident, demanding a “full accounting” of what happened.