White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby held a phone gaggle with reporters on Monday where he spoke about the third anniversary of the deadly Abbey Gate terror bombing at the Kabul airport during Biden’s retreat from Afghanistan that killed 13 servicemembers and over 150 Afghans and wounding dozens more.
One reporter asked Kirby why neither Biden, on vacation in Delaware, nor Kamala Harris, hiding out from reporters in Washington, held any public observance of the anniversary of the attack like Trump did at Arlington Cemetery Monday morning with several Gold Star families and Abbey Gate survivors. Kirby said that Trump was personally invited by the families of the fallen, implying Biden and Harris were not invited.
Biden and Harris issued separate statements Monday on the attack anniversary. Biden’s statement at this link. Harris’ statement at this link.
Unbelievable.
Trump is at Arlington Cemetery honoring the 13 American heroes killed at Abbey Gate during the Afghanistan withdrawal.
Meanwhile, the leaders who conducted it — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris — are nowhere to be found. pic.twitter.com/9ygdgmNR0i
— Kristina Wong (@kristina_wong) August 26, 2024
Excerpt from the White House transcript of Kirby’s off-camera phone gaggle:
MODERATOR: Next up we’ll go to Francesca Chambers.
Q Thanks, Kirby. Appreciate it. Two questions. First one on what’s going on with Hezbollah in the Middle East. The President sent the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman there over the weekend on a surprise visit. What does he hope to accomplish with that visit? What does he hope to learn?
And then, secondarily, going back to your opening remarks on Afghanistan, why did the President and Vice President release separate statements today? And why did the White House feel that they did not need to host or attend public events in the way that former President Donald Trump did today? Thank you.
MR. KIRBY: Well, a couple of things here.
I mean, first, on the Chairman’s trip, it’s always useful when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs has an opportunity to visit with and meet with and learn from his counterparts overseas. And obviously, with everything going on in the Middle East and the added force posture that we have contributed to the region, it makes a lot of sense at this particular time for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs to go over there and have those conversations.
And I’m sure that — I won’t speak for Chairman Brown, of course, but I’m sure he’s learning a lot, and he’s getting an opportunity to see firsthand what our military readiness looks like and getting a chance to thank the men and women that are deployed over there or serving over there. So, lots of good reasons at this particular time for the most senior military officer to go for a visit.
And then, on your second question, I would say there are many ways that we as a nation and our leaders can observe the third anniversary of Abbey Gate. And Mr. Trump was invited by at least one, I think maybe several, of the families to lay a wreath at Arlington, and that is certainly a way to recognize the sacrifice and the loss. But it was a personal invitation by families, and certainly I’ll let him speak to that and his willingness to do it. But that was a way.
Another way is to continue to work, maybe not with a lot of fanfare, maybe not with a lot of public attention, maybe not with TV cameras, but to work with might and main every single day to make sure that the families of those — of the fallen and of those who were injured and wounded, not just at Abbey Gate but over the course of the 20-some-odd years that we were in Afghanistan, have the support that they need.
And you don’t have to look very far at the President and the First Lady’s track record and the Vice President’s track record over the last three and a half years to see how deeply devoted they are to the men and women of our military and to our veterans and to their families, everything from Joining Forces to the PACT Act and any number of other steps that this administration has taken to make sure that we are meeting, as the President describes, our one true, sacred obligation as a country. There’s an awful lot that goes into that.
And the President, the Vice President, the First Lady, Second Gentleman, they take those responsibilities seriously. You may not see them every day. You may not get a headline on it every day. There may not be a press release. But it doesn’t mean that that work isn’t ongoing, and that the respect and the admiration that they have for everyone who is now or ever has served a uniform remains a paramount priority for them.
The observance at Arlington National Cemetery Monday morning was a stirring tribute by President Trump.
Trump participated in three wreath laying ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for three of the fallen with their family members and wounded Abbey Gate survivors.
Video of the ceremony below. Toward the end of the wreath laying ceremonies, Iraq war veteran former Congressman and current Army Reserve Lt. Col. Tulsi Gabbard can be seen with a group of veterans looking quite moved:
Gabbard, still looking quite touched, spoke about her experience at Arlington in a Fox News interview about her endorsement later that day of President Trump. Gabbard said Trump met for hours with the families at Arlington.
Trump also visited the graves of the fallen.
@realDonaldTrump speaks via phone to the family of SSG Ryan Knauss who couldn’t make it today, as he lays flowers at their boys grave … pic.twitter.com/QNUELSPJKA
— Chris LaCivita (@LaCivitaC) August 26, 2024
— Dan Scavino Jr. (@DanScavino) August 26, 2024
President @realDonaldTrump visiting @ArlingtonNatl Cemetery this morning to lay wreaths with Gold Star families at the graves of our brave men & women who lost their lives 3 years ago today during the disastrous Afghanistan withdraw in 2021.
Pictured with the family of Sgt.… pic.twitter.com/VKsbShGWWC
— Corey R. Lewandowski (@CLewandowski_) August 26, 2024
We honor the 13 KIA from Abbey Gate but also the wounded pic.twitter.com/a4rddgx8ie
— Rep. Mike Waltz (@michaelgwaltz) August 26, 2024
Sgt. Nicole L. Gee
Cpl. Daegan Page
LCpl. David Espinoza
LCpl. Dylan Merola
Cpl. Humberto Sanchez
Cpl. Hunter Lopez
Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo
SSG. Ryan Knauss
LCpl. Kareem Nikoui
Seaman Maxton Soviak
SSgt. Darin Hoover
LCpl. Jared Schmitz
LCpl. Rylee McCollum— Rep. Mike Waltz (@michaelgwaltz) August 26, 2024
Last photo by New York Times photographer Doug Mills:
During a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, @realDonaldTrump lays a wreath in honor of those who were killed during the Abbey Gate bombing. With Trump is Marine Cpl. Kelsee Lainhart, was paralyzed during the bombing and 13 U.S. service members died. pic.twitter.com/fthyK7cOFe
— Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) August 26, 2024
