Former President Donald Trump on Thursday responded to criticism that he used an appearance Monday at Arlington National Cemetery marking three years since the terrorist bombing in Afghanistan that killed 13 U.S. service members for political purposes.
Trump said during a rally in Potterville, Michigan, which was broadcast live by the Newsmax2 online streaming platform, that he was invited to the wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by families of the fallen service members, who also asked him to take pictures with them.
"Those incredible parents and sisters and brothers, they asked me to go to Arlington, and I did," Trump said. "While I was there — those families had asked me to be there; three families plus one soldier who was horrifically injured, both legs and an arm — ... while we were there, they said, 'Could you take pictures over the grave of my son, my sister, my brother; would you take pictures with us, sir?' I said, 'Absolutely.' I did. And then I said, 'Farewell.' I said, 'Goodbye.'
"And last night, I read that I was using the site to politic. This all comes out of Washington — just like all of these prosecutors come out of Washington. They all come out, they send their prosecutors into the DA's office, they send them into the attorney general's office. These are bad people we're dealing with.
"So I go there. They asked me to have a picture, and they say I was campaigning."
Trump said he doesn't need to do anything to get publicity because "the one thing I get is plenty of publicity."
"I don't need that," Trump said. "I don't need the publicity. But these are great people. And when you think about it, [President] Joe Biden killed their children by incompetence. Should have never happened.
"[Vice President] Kamala [Harris] killed their children just as though they had a gun in their hand by gross incompetence, and not one general or incompetent bureaucrat was fired for the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country.
"And then they accused me of having a picture taken at the tombstone with a family because they loved the president, they loved me, and I love them. I got to know them," he continued.
"Ask the cops in the street trying to protect you from murderers and rapists and thugs if Kamala Harris cares about law-abiding citizens. Remember defund the police? Ask the families of women and murdered by illegal aliens and the teenagers cut to shreds by gangs from El Salvador and Venezuela if Kamala Harris cares about you."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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