The US military on Friday released an almost entirely redacted police report detailing an incident in which a member of Donald Trump’s campaign staff allegedly pushed Arlington National Cemetery an employee.
The report, released under a court order, glosses over a keyword that appears to describe how the Trump campaign staffer pushed the cemetery aside.
According to the visible parts of the report, the Trump employee used both hands as he tried to pass the cemetery official. The names of both individuals have been redacted and the cemetery’s affidavit to police has been blacked out entirely. Officials previously said an employee of the former president pushed the cemetery worker when she tried to prevent two people from filming and photographing Trump’s visit to the graves in Section 60, a sacred area where American forces are buried , killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The cemetery official refused medical treatment and did not want to press charges, the report said. American surveillancea Washington-based government transparency group filed a lawsuit seeking release of the police report, and a federal judge ordered it released by Friday. The group has published the report on its website.
Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, is in a close race against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, and the dispute has raised concerns about the politicization of the military in his campaign. Trump was at the cemetery at the invitation of military families and brought officials to document the visit. He later shared a video of his visit on TikTok, which included scenes of him at the cemetery and a voiceover blaming the Biden administration on the “disaster” of the withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
Chioma Chukwu, interim executive director of American Oversight, expressed satisfaction that the report was released, allowing the public to see “that there is still an ongoing federal law enforcement investigation into the August incident at Arlington National Cemetery.” Chukwu stressed that the behavior of Trump and his team “is consistent with his history of politicizing the military and violating clear ethical boundaries, and it is time for the public to have all the facts.”
In a letter accompanying the report, Army Senior Counsel Paul DeAgostino explained that the redactions were made to protect personal privacy and information collected for law enforcement purposes.
He said the records were part of an ongoing investigation and their release “could reasonably be expected to interfere with ongoing enforcement proceedings.”
The Army echoed DeAgostino’s comment, saying it released the report to comply with the court order and that the police investigation “remains open and therefore we cannot provide additional information at this time.”
It is unclear what action is being taken by law enforcement, as the employee declined to press charges. The families of three service members killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan have invited Trump to a ceremony marking the third anniversary of the attack. They said the former president knew their children’s stories and blamed the Biden administration for their deaths.
A defense official previously said the Trump campaign had been warned not to take photos in Section 60 before their arrival and the altercation. At a campaign event in Michigan a few days after the incident, Trump complained that family members had asked to take pictures with him at the cemetery, saying, “They’re asking me for a picture and they’re saying I’ve been campaigning,” without turns the TikTok video.
Army releases redacted police report on scuffle during controversial visit to Trump’s Arlington cemetery – Times of India
