Families of the 13 fallen United States service members who were killed during the Biden administration’s Afghanistan withdrawal criticized Vice President Kamala Harris’s statement criticizing Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery.
Darin Hoover, the father of Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover; Coral Doolittle, the mother of Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez; Jaclyn, and Mark Schmitz, the mother and father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz; Steve Nikoui, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui; Jim McCollum, the father of Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum; Herman Lopez, father of Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez; and Christy Shamblin, the mother-in-law of Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole Gee criticized a statement from Harris in videos released by former President Donald Trump on Truth Social.
In the videos, the families praised Trump for treating them with “the utmost respect, compassion, and understanding” and as someone who has “taken the time” to listen to the families’ “stories” and help the families “get some accountability” from the Biden administration. The families criticized Harris for “playing politics” and issuing a “heinous, vile and disgusting” statement that was a “political spin” to help her look better.
“Kamala, we have been treated with the utmost respect, compassion, and understanding by President Trump, something you and Joe Biden have refused to do since August 26, 2021,” Hoover said in his video. “Where were you and Joe Biden on August 26, 2024? Nowhere near Arlington Cemetery. You couldn’t be bothered to be with us or even say our kid’s names, just as you had done for the last three years. Neither one of you has called to speak with us or share in our grief. I wonder, Kamala, do you sleep at night securely in your bed, or do you have nightmares of our kids because it was your incompetence and negligence that got our kids murdered? It is you who sent out messages on social media that are outright lies. It is you who has disrespected our families. It is you who knows nothing about service and sacrifice. It is you that has divided this country. And, it is you who is unfit to be the commander-in-chief. These are the only memories we get to make with our son. And you are playing politics and trying to detract from our memories made that day.”
The videos from the Gold Star families come after Harris criticized Trump in a post on X for filming during his visit to Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to honor the 13 U.S. fallen servicemembers and take part in a wreath-laying ceremony.
“As Vice President, I have had the privilege of visiting Arlington National Cemetery several times,” Harris wrote. “It is a solemn place, a place where we come together to honor American heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service of this nation. It is not a place for politics. And yet, as was reported this week, Donald Trump’s team chose to film a video there, resulting in an altercation with cemetery staff.”
Harris continued to claim that Trump had “disrespected sacred ground, all for the sake of a political stunt” and referenced a debunked hoax that Trump had called fallen service members “suckers” and “losers.”
“If there is one thing on which we as Americans can all agree, it is that our veterans, military families, and service members should be honored, never disparaged, and treated with nothing less than our highest respect and gratitude,” Harris wrote. “And it is my belief that someone who cannot meet this simple, sacred duty should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States of America. I will always honor the service and sacrifice of all of America’s fallen heroes, who made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of our beloved nation and our cherished freedoms.”
As Vice President, I have had the privilege of visiting Arlington National Cemetery several times. It is a solemn place; a place where we come together to honor American heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service of this nation.
It is not a place for politics.
And…
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 31, 2024
“The events that happened on August 26, 2024, with President Trump at Arlington National Cemetery, were solemn and in keeping with the reverence and respect that is given to all members of our military that are buried there. We invited President Trump,” Hoover explained in his video shared by Trump. “We are the ones that asked for the video and the pictures to be taken at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.”
Hoover’s video comes days after NPR released an article claiming that officials from the Trump campaign had gotten into a “verbal and physical altercation” with a cemetery official who had been trying to prevent the Trump campaign from filming and taking photos in Section 60 of the cemetery.
In response to the article and allegations, Steven Cheung, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, issued a statement that a “private photographer was permitted on the premises.”
“Kamala, your statement is nothing more than a political spin to help you look better in your presidential campaign against Donald Trump,” Jaclyn Schmitz said in her video. “You have never walked a single day in our shoes. Our kids were murdered because of your administration. And you are partly to blame for that as well. What happened at Arlington – President Trump was invited by those families who have their soldiers buried at Arlington.”
Jaclyn Schmitz added the “one thing” Harris said in her statement that was true.
“No one should be running for president if they cannot honor military members, their families, as well as veterans,” Jaclyn Schmitz added. “So, I guess that means you should step down Kamala.”
Steve Nikoui blasted Harris in his video for “ignoring the advice” of generals, “the Doha Agreements, and countless other veterans and members of Congress.”
“At no time have you reached out to me to offer your condolences or to thank you for Kareem’s sacrifice and service,” Nikoui said. “Not once have you honored him by saying his name. So, I said it for you. You have disparaged all 13 who have lost their lives as well as their families, exhibiting your lack of gratitude by your silence. I agree with you on one thing: that a person like you should never, and will never stand behind the seal of the presidency.”
Mark Schmitz explained in his video that he was responding to Harris’s “heinous, vile, and disgusting post” alleging that Trump had been at the cemetery on Monday as a political stunt.
“Here we are on a beautiful holiday weekend day. I have to stop what I’m doing, spending time with what’s left of my family to address a heinous, vile, and disgusting post put out by Kamala Harris trying to incite those who don’t follow the truth that President Trump was in Arlington as a political stunt,” Mark Schmitz said in his video. “Shows you how much you know about the 13 families.”
