Statement from Senator Tom Cotton on President Trump’s Visit to Arlington National Cemetery

August 31, 2024

“I commend President Trump for accepting the invitation of the Gold Star families to join them at Arlington National Cemetery to honor their loved ones who died during the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. The families had every right to invite whomever they wanted to commemorate this solemn anniversary, just as President Trump and his aides had every right to accept their invitation; neither the families nor President Trump violated cemetery regulations or policies. The real scandal here isn’t that the families invited President Trump or that he accepted their invitation, and it’s not even that political apparatchiks working for the incompetent secretary of the Army disrespected the wishes of these Gold Star families. The real scandal is that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden condemned thirteen brave American troops to death and didn’t even have the decency to call or meet with the Gold Star families to express their condolences. Kamala Harris should never be our military’s commander-in-chief." - Senator Tom Cotton, veteran of the 3rd Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) and author of Sacred Duty: A Soldier’s Tour at Arlington National Cemetery