Last Updated on 04/09/2024 by Arun jain
Jimmy McCain, son of Vietnam War POW and longtime Republican Senator John McCain, said Tuesday that former President Donald J. Trump’s campaign “violated a sacred place” when it clashed with an official at Arlington National Cemetery.
Mr. McCain, a first lieutenant in the Arizona National Guard, told The New York Times that he was “deeply shocked” by the incident. Confrontation in the graveyard last week, said it could be an “extremely triggering” event for families of soldiers buried there.
“Arlington National Cemetery is a very sacred place not only for veterans, but for their families,” Mr. McCain said. He added, “It is very holy, sacred ground and should be left as such.”
The altercation took place during Mr Trump’s visit to a wreath-laying ceremony, in which 13 US soldiers were killed. Afghanistan in 2021. Federal law prohibits taking photographs or filming for political purposes in that part of the cemetery, and the Army Public Affairs Office defended a cemetery official who said Pressured by a member of Mr. Trump’s staff After trying to stop the expedition from filming in the restricted area.
Trump campaign spokeswoman Carolyn Levitt said in a statement that “there is no greater supporter for our brave military men and women than President Trump.” She added that Mr Trump avoided starting wars and putting “our troops in harm’s way”.
Mr. McCain, who also criticized the actions of the Trump campaign Interview with CNN Published earlier Tuesday, the Times said it planned to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris. He also said that he joined the Democratic Party about a month ago after returning from a period of service in Jordan. “You have a lot of time to think abroad,” he said.
Mr. McCain, 36, enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2006 and served in the Iraq War. He later served in Afghanistan as a member of the Oregon National Guard, he said. Although he is a member of the Arizona National Guard, Mr. McCain said, “I in no way represent them with my views.” The Arizona National Guard said in a statement that it does not comment on political matters.
The controversy and Mr. McCain’s decision to join the Democratic Party was perhaps the most dramatic example of a member of the McCain family moving away from the Republican Party, which his father represented. As a presidential candidate in 2008 and as a longtime senator from Arizona. He passed away in 2018, And his body was laid to rest in the Capitol Rotunda before being interred at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. His father and grandfather, both admirals, are buried at Arlington.
Jimmy McCain said he was trying to follow his father’s legacy of “speaking your mind and standing up for what you believe in.”
Cemetery has been done First, politics was done by others – Senator McCain himself once called an ad his campaign ran that included a video of him at Arlington “a very bad mistake” – but the episode involving Mr Trump drew considerable criticism.
Corey Lewandowski, Senior adviser to the Trump campaignposted photos of Mr. Trump’s visit to the restricted area of the cemetery, In which the former President gave a “thumbs up” pose. The military said those attending the visit were informed of the ban against political activities, and that an employee who tried to ensure compliance with the rules was “suddenly pushed aside.”
On Tuesday, Mr. Trump wrote on social media that there was “no confrontation” at the cemetery, calling the incident a “made-up story”, even though his campaign acknowledged earlier confrontations and described the cemetery employee as “suffering from a mental health episode”.
Mr. Trump criticized Senator McCain on several occasions, including Says he is “not a war hero” Despite being shot down over Hanoi during the Vietnam War and held as a prisoner for five and a half years. “I like people who didn’t get caught,” Mr. Trump declared.
The senator’s widow, Cindy McCain, Joseph R. Endorsed Biden Jr over Mr. Trump in the 2020 presidential election, citing Mr. Biden’s “character and integrity.”
and Meghan McCain, the couple’s eldest daughter and A A self-described conservativeEffectively hailed the Democratic National Convention last month, Writes on social media That maybe Republicans should “just forfeit because I don’t know how you can compete with this.”
However, Mr. McCain is the first known family member to join the Democratic Party.
Post John McCain’s son says Trump team’s cemetery clash violates ‘sacred space’ appeared first New York Times.