Arlington

Soldiers die in war. Soldiers die when there isn't a war. Soldiers die when there is bad planning by civilian leadership. Soldiers die when there is bad execution by military leadership. Soldiers die even in the midst of what seemed like a good plan. 

Should the withdrawal of our military from Afghanistan gone smoother, more orderly? In retrospect - of course. The withdrawal in its last stages was chaotic with Afghans clinging to departing aircraft and mobbing the airfield. A terrorist attack killed thirteen service members. When things like this happen, someone has to get the blame. And who is the most appropriate target for that blame? The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces and the metaphorical buck stops with him. And he certainly was blamed. 

To listen to the pro-Trump/anti-Biden voices, you would think that the thirteen deaths were the only ones to have occurred. It's true that they were the only military deaths in Afghanistan in 2021, but there were also 15 military deaths in 2017 (12 killed-in-action KIA); 16 (13 KIA) in 2018; 23 (17 KIA) in 2019 and 11 (4 KIA) in 2020. Where was the outrage and recriminations toward Trump during that time? There wasn't any. People outside MAGA world understood that deaths happen. When military deaths happened when Biden was president, it became political. 

I'm not going to pretend to understand the grief of the families who lost their loved ones during that terrorist attack. They have every right to express their anger and point the finger at who they believe is to blame for the death of a family member. But the Trump campaign has politicized the grief of these families in order to score points. 

Let's jump to the Arlington visit.

Last week media, including social media, reported that Former President Trump participated in a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery to honor the thirteen service members who were killed in a terrorist attack during the withdrawal from Afghanistan on the third anniversary of their deaths. It was also reported that neither President Biden nor Vice President Harris attended. The reports gave the impression that this was an official commemoration that Trump attended. MAGA-oriented social media accounts quickly jumped on this story, accusing Biden and Harris of "not showing up" for this commemoration. Something seemed off about this story, so I dug a little to get some context. A quick Google search indicated that the only "official" wreath laying ceremonies take place on Memorial Day and Veterans Day with the President laying the wreath (although the president does not always do so). Anyone can apply to do a wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknowns, and they occur every single day of the year. The application was made by Marlon Bateman, a Trump administration State Department official, on behalf of the family of one of the service members killed in the attack. Initially NPR reported that the memorial was for three of service members, not all thirteen, although I can no longer find that reference, so it may have been incorrect. It was clear, although it was not reported as such, that this was a privately sponsored event that Trump was invited to and that Biden and Harris were not invited to. This context did not surface until NPR reported a few days later that a campaign video was made from images of the event, including images taken in a prohibited area, and that a Trump aide pushed an Arlington staffer, ignoring her instruction to refrain from recording in the prohibited area. 

Once the full story came out Trump was rightly criticized, but being his usual self, doubled down, lying that he had received permission, or that the families had authorized the video in Section 60 (which they had no authority to do). Gaslighting proceeded in full force, with MAGA world spreading the lie that those chiding Trump were attacking Gold Star families.  And amid the denial that he was there for political purposes, his campaign released a campaign video of him strolling among grave stones. What can I even say about the disgusting "thumbs up" photo at the gravesite?

And somehow - somehow people believe that Trump supports the military, even after disrespectful events like this, after he ridiculously states that the Presidential Medal of Freedom is "better" than the Medal of Honor - on top of all the ugly things he has said about the military over the years. "Suckers and Losers"; "I like those who weren't captured"; "I always wanted a Purple Heart"...and on and on. 

And yet...there's still a chance he'll be re-elected.