You were mistaken if you thought Donald Trump was ready to move on from his visit to Arlington National Cemetery.

On Tuesday, Trump breathed more life into the story when he pushed back on assertions made by the press and the U.S. Army itself that members of his staff had engaged in an altercation with ANC personnel.

“The was no conflict or ‘fighting’ at Arlington National Cemetery last week. It was a made-up story by Comrade Kamala and her misinformation squad. She made it all up to make up for the fact that she and Sleepy Joe have BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS for the INCOMPETENT AFGHANISTAN Withdrawal – THE MOST EMBARRASSING DAY IN U.S. HISTORY!!!” Trump wrote via his Truth Social media platform.

Trump’s stance comes after he was apparently invited to Arlington for an August 26 wreath-laying ceremony, which itself came on the three-year anniversary of the deaths of 13 American service members working to facilitate a speedy and hectic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan after nearly two decades at war.

The visit drew the ire of veterans and military supporters alike after Trump’s campaign shared images of him standing over the graves of our nation’s most recently fallen military members while smiling and flashing a thumbs up for the camera.

The area of the cemetery Trump was visiting, Section 60, strictly prohibits photography. That thumbs-up image and video taken of the event and later shared by the Trump campaign team were both prohibited by Army regulation and federal law.

“Participants in the August 26th ceremony and the subsequent Section 60 visit were made aware of federal laws, Army regulations and DoD policies, which clearly prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds,” an Army spokesperson said in a statement.

They said Arlington National Cemetery holds thousands of wreath-laying ceremonies each year. All of those were carried out without a problem until last week.

“An ANC employee who attempted to ensure adherence to these rules was abruptly pushed aside. Consistent with the decorum expected at ANC, this employee acted with professionalism and avoided further disruption,” they said.

Despite Trump’s claim the event did not take place, the Army said a report was filed with the relevant police agency, though no charges will be forthcoming.

“The incident was reported to the JBM-HH police department, but the employee subsequently decided not to press charges. Therefore, the Army considers this matter closed,” they said.

Trump has said he was invited to be at the event by the grieving families, and that they gave permission for his staff to film and photograph his visit. Even if that is the case, Trump, his staff, and Gold Star families do not have the authority to suspend Army regulation or U.S. law as they see fit.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee to the presidency, took to social media over the weekend to lambaste Trump’s use of the nation’s most hallowed ground for political purposes.

On Tuesday, her campaign pointed out that this week is the four-year anniversary of Trump’s infamous “suckers” and “losers” comments, which he allegedly made to gold-star father and four-star Gen. John Kelly while refusing to visit a WWI cemetery in Europe.

“We should never forget that Donald Trump disparaged our fallen service members as ‘suckers’ and ‘losers.’ Even all these years later, it remains shocking, disturbing, and simply un-American. No one seeking America’s highest office should ever talk about our fallen heroes this way. It’s disqualifying. Trump has repeatedly attacked and demeaned our service members, veterans, and military families, and his reckless policies threaten to gut their hard-earned benefits,” Harris-Walz 2024 Spokesperson Joseph Costello said in a statement.

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