Former President Donald J. Trump on Friday slammed two damning quotes from The Atlantic magazine that accused him of disparaging fallen veterans and making racist comments about slain Mexican-American soldiers. did.
During a campaign stop in Texas, Trump objected to paying for the funeral of Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen, who was killed in 2020 when Trump was president, citing expense. was vehemently denied. Guillen’s relatives also attended the event in Austin, Texas.
According to an article published in The Atlantic on Tuesday, President Trump expressed shock when an aide asked if the administration had received a bill for Guillén’s funeral expenses. While welcoming his family to the White House in April 2020, Trump offered to cover any costs the military could not collect.
“It doesn’t cost $60,000 to bury a fucking Mexican!” the article quoted Trump as saying.
On Friday, the former president said Guillén’s family had come forward to prove his innocence.
“There are people who are saying all kinds of horrible things,” Trump said. “Then, all of a sudden, the family they’re talking to comes out of nowhere and says, ‘President Trump was perfect.'” What he did was so amazing. He brought us money. ”
When Trump met with the families at the White House in 2020, he said, “If I can help with the funeral, I will help, and I will help financially.” A lawyer for Guillén’s family told The Atlantic that she sent the bill to the White House, but that the family never received any money from Mr. Trump. According to the magazine, lawyer Natalie Khawam said some of the funeral costs were paid by the military and some were covered by donations.
The magazine and its editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Gold, who wrote the article, reported that two months before the 2020 election, Trump privately called U.S. soldiers killed in combat “losers” and “sucks.” He repeatedly attacked Mr. Berg. ”
Goldberg defended his reporting in a statement. He described how Trump made remarks about funeral costs at a Dec. 4, 2020 National Security Council meeting, which members of the Guillén family did not attend, and the report was echoed by two people who were present. He said it was based on notes from the era. Meeting recordings taken by participants.
“I understand why the Guillén family would be angry after reading this story,” Goldberg said in a statement. “I stand by my reporting, including the undisputed detail that President Trump did not provide any financial assistance to his family.”
Goldberg also said he heard Trump use those words from Trump’s former White House chief of staff, John F. Kelly, who wrote a 2020 report on Trump’s comments disparaging fallen U.S. soldiers. defended. In an interview with The New York Times, Kelly acknowledged a report in The Atlantic that claimed Trump had characterized those who died on the battlefield serving the United States as “losers” and “the lowest of the low.”
The magazine’s 2020 report continues to frustrate Trump, who often portrays himself as a champion of the U.S. military, veterans and veterans.
On Friday, Trump said it was ridiculous to stand over the graves of soldiers who died in World War I and call them “sucks” and “losers.”
“Can you imagine someone doing that?” Trump said. “I might be the president, but somebody’s going to start a fistfight and I’m probably going to say, ‘You were right.’ Who would do something like this? They make up a story.”
Mr. Trump called Mr. Goldberg a “scumbag” and said Tuesday’s article, like in 2020, was well-timed to persuade voters in the final days of the election.
“Ted, the problem I have is that 5, 10, 20 percent of people who read this are going to believe it,” Trump said, along with fellow Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. told the parliamentarian. At the event.
Mr. Trump thanked Guillen’s relatives who attended, including his mother, Gloria, and sister, Myra. After the Atlantic article was published, she wrote on social media that she had voted early for Trump.
“They are an incredibly brave and beautiful family,” Trump said.
Khawam, the family’s attorney, said the couple was invited to board a plane by Trump before his speech, where they met.
“We are truly grateful for his continued kindness and his steadfast support for our military and their families,” Khawam said in a statement.
Mr. Trump’s comments Friday echoed his attack on The Atlantic the previous day, when he was asked about the headline of the magazine’s Tuesday report during a campaign stop in Las Vegas. It read, “Mr. Trump: “We need a general like Hitler.”
“No, I never said that,” Trump said. “I would never say that. He’s a rag who made up a story. He’s done it before. It’s a failed magazine. Right before the election.”
Trump’s speech in Texas focused primarily on immigration, but he also criticized Vice President Kamala Harris’ appearance on CNN town hall with Anderson Cooper. During the event, she called Trump a “fascist.”
“The town hall with Mr. Cooper was unbelievable. Alison Cooper was very angry,” Trump said. Perhaps it was the intentional misspelling of Mr. Cooper’s name that drew laughter from the audience.
Trump has previously referred to Cooper as “Alison Cooper.” He used the name in a Memorial Day social media post that referenced an interview Cooper had with author E. Jean Carroll, who won a civil lawsuit against Trump on sexual abuse charges. .
