Real photos of Trump smiling and giving a thumbs up over soldiers’ graves?

Claim:

In two different photos, former US President Donald Trump can be seen smiling and giving a thumbs up while posing next to the graves of fallen Marines at Arlington National Cemetery.

Evaluation:

context

In the photos, Trump stands next to the families of the fallen Marines, some of whom smiled and gave a thumbs up themselves.

In August 2024, two photos were shared online purporting to show former US President Donald Trump standing at the graves of fallen soldiers, smiling and giving a thumbs up. The images appear to have been taken when Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery on August 26 to commemorate the US Marines killed in a suicide attack at Kabul airport in 2021 during the US military withdrawal from Afghanistan. In addition to more than 100 Afghans, 13 American soldiers died.

An anti-Trump X-account posted one of the images (archived), showing Trump next to the grave of Sergeant Nicole Leeann Gee, with the caption: “Smiling over soldiers’ graves with a thumbs up is beyond disgusting.” Another account’s post (archived) shows Trump in a similar pose next to the grave of Staff Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover.

The above photos are authentic and were originally shared on X by the official accounts of Utah Governor Spencer Cox and people from the Trump campaign team. Therefore, this claim is rated as “true.”

The first photo was shared on August 26 by Corey Lewandowski, who was Trump’s campaign manager in 2016 and returned as an adviser to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.

Lewandowski wrote on X: “President @realDonaldTrump visits @ArlingtonNatl Cemetery this morning to join Gold Star families in laying wreaths at the graves of our brave men and women who lost their lives 3 years ago today during the catastrophic Afghanistan withdrawal of 2021. Pictured with the family of Sergeant Nicole Leeann Gee.”

The second photo was shared by Cox, who is also pictured with Trump, although Cox did not give a thumbs up. However, other people in the photo smiled and gave Trump a thumbs up on camera.

Cox wrote on Facebook:

There is no greater sacrifice than giving your life in defense of our country. It was my great honor to stand alongside the family of Staff Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover today at Arlington National Cemetery to honor his legacy and that of the 12 others who lost their lives at Abbey Gate in Afghanistan three years ago.

Two of Gee’s family members spoke in support of Trump at the Republican National Convention in July 2024. Christy Shamblin, Gee’s mother-in-law, said: “While Joe Biden refused to acknowledge their sacrifice, Donald Trump spent six hours with us in Bedminster. He let us mourn. He let us remember our heroes. Donald Trump knew the names of all our children. He knew their stories, and he spoke to us in a way that made us feel understood, as if he knew our children.”

Trump’s visit to Arlington National Cemetery sparked controversy when reports emerged that Trump’s staff had an altercation with a cemetery official. According to an anonymous source who spoke to NPR, the official tried to stop Trump’s staff from taking videos and photos in a part of the cemetery designated for the burial of recent U.S. casualties.

In a statement, Arlington officials said only cemetery staff were authorized to take photos or videos and that “a report had been filed” on the incident:

Federal law prohibits political campaign or election activities at Army military cemeteries, including photographers, content creators, or others who are there for specific purposes or to directly support the campaign of a partisan political candidate. … Arlington National Cemetery has affirmed this law and its prohibitions and made them fully accessible to all participants.

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said there was no physical altercation. “We are prepared to release footage when such defamatory claims are made,” he told NPR. “The fact is that a private photographer was allowed onto the premises and for some reason an unnamed individual who was obviously suffering from a mental disorder decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team during a very solemn ceremony.”

Photos in the Getty Images archive show Trump laying a wreath at the cemetery the same day, alongside retired Marines injured in the 2021 Kabul airport bombing. Former U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard was also present at the ceremony.

We have previously covered controversial claims about Trump’s attitude toward US soldiers, including one in which he allegedly called fallen soldiers “suckers” and “losers.” However, we were unable to independently verify this claim.

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