Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) issued a mea culpa Wednesday for sending out a marketing campaign e mail with a photograph of him and Donald Trump at Virginia’s Arlington Nationwide Cemetery ― a go to mired in controversy after Trump employees and a cemetery worker reportedly acquired into an altercation over taking pictures and video on the grounds.
Cox apologized after catching flak for the marketing campaign e mail, which featured a picture of him and the presidential candidate on the grave of certainly one of 13 service members who died when the U.S. pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021. The e-mail included a message asking Cox’s supporters to honor the service members’ reminiscence, in addition to a hyperlink to donate to his reelection marketing campaign.
“This was not a campaign event and was never intended to be used by the campaign. It did not go through the proper channels and should not have been sent. My campaign will be sending out an apology,” Cox posted on X, previously Twitter, when it was identified that the cemetery forbids using its grounds for political and marketing campaign functions.
His workplace didn’t instantly reply when requested for extra particulars about how such an e mail went out in error.
Kevin Carter through Getty Pictures
Cox’s response to criticism stood in stark distinction to that of the Trump marketing campaign, which has struck a extremely combative tone amid the controversy.
“There was no physical altercation as described, and we are prepared to release footage if such defamatory claims are made,” Trump marketing campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung informed NPR after it reported that two of Trump’s aides “verbally abused and pushed … aside” a cemetery staffer who tried to cease the marketing campaign from taking pictures and movies.
“The fact is that a private photographer was permitted on the premises and for whatever reason an unnamed individual, clearly suffering from a mental health episode, decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team during a very solemn ceremony,” he continued.
After studies of the altercation, Trump posted a video to TikTok displaying him strolling close to the graves of just lately buried service members as audio performs of him criticizing President Joe Biden’s administration, which oversaw the U.S. pullout from Afghanistan.
Arlington Nationwide Cemetery confirmed that an “incident” occurred and that “a report was filed.” It additionally shared its coverage round marketing campaign actions on the grounds.
“Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators or any other persons attending for purposes, or in direct support of a partisan political candidate’s campaign,” the cemetery stated in a press release. “Arlington National Cemetery reinforced and widely shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants.”
