U.S. Army veteran Lucas O’Hara undercut claims that former President Donald Trump had used a Monday ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery to promote his 2024 presidential campaign.
Trump attended and participated in the wreath-laying ceremony — honoring the 13 American service members who were killed during the Biden-Harris administration’s disastrous exit from Afghanistan — alongside veteran and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) and the families of the fallen. Neither President Joe Biden nor Vice President Kamala Harris attended.
On MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Mike Barnicle complained about Trump being there, suggesting he should not have been allowed to attend.
“Morning Joe” panel says Trump honoring thirteen service members was solely for political purposes. While Trump was at Arlington National Cemetery, Biden was on vacation. pic.twitter.com/T6ZKdkc4mk
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) August 28, 2024
“I looked at the same pictures that you’re alluding to now and describing, taken at Arlington taken of the former president, and the thought rolled immediately through my mind: is nothing sacred? That is sacred ground,” Barnicle said to MSNBC host Jonathan Lemire. “And the idea that any candidate of any party would use, intentionally or unintentionally, use that sacred ground as a prop for a political campaign is beyond condemnation.”
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“It’s terribly upsetting, obviously, to people who have buried loved ones in Arlington National Cemetery. It’s terribly upsetting to veterans and terribly upsetting to people who view it as a spectacle. And it ought to be for Americans who value what the military does for this country worldwide and has done for this country for centuries and will continue to do for this country,” Barnicle continued.
But O’Hara, who attended the ceremony, had a very different view of what happened on Monday.
“I have been working on a project for the last six months with the Abbey Gate Foundation that will be presented on their behalf in the next few weeks,” he said in a lengthy Instagram post. “Because of that, yesterday I had the honor to attend the wreath laying ceremony remembering the 13 soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice serving their country during the collapse of Afghanistan and the bombing at Abbey gate three years ago.”
“During the ceremony I got to witness something that I’ll be quite honest, was pretty unbelievable to see in person. No matter who the politician, there always seems to be an angle when they do things to make it beneficial,” he continued. “Yesterday that was not the case.”
“I have witnessed over 75 wreath laying ceremonies performed by politicians and conducted 524 funerals in this cemetery during the time I served in the Presidential Honor Guard for three years,” O’Hara added, referring to Monday’s wreath-laying as “the most respectful and solemn ceremony I have seen.”
“@realdonaldtrump, @tulsigabbard, and the rest of the team that came to pay their respects did that tenfold. There were no speeches, no angles, no weird photo ops just our elected officials and the 45th President respectfully and solemnly honoring the fallen and their families,” O’Hara said, adding that he personally witnessed as Trump — without any aides or handlers rushing him on to his next event, gave the families of the fallen his time. “I watched President Trump spend more time at the graves with the families than I have ever seen a political representative do before … just him truly showing gratitude and love to these families for their loss.”
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“No matter what the party, this is what I look for in my elected officials. Americans ready to serve and support Americans,” he concluded. “God bless this country and those who fight for it and for those no longer with us… you will never be forgotten.”
Several of the families also responded to the criticisms aimed at Trump, saying that they had approved the presence of a photographer and videographer to ensure that the ceremony was “respectfully captured” and preserved. They thanked the former president for giving them his time and “his compassion and respect.”
From the Abbey Gate Gold Star families and Purple Heart recipients who were at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday. pic.twitter.com/u1YfJlZe2i
— Rep. Mike Waltz (@michaelgwaltz) August 28, 2024
