Gov. Cox apologizes for Arlington National Cemetery campaign email

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox apologized on Wednesday for his campaign sending out a fundraising email based on his visit to Arlington National Cemetery alongside former President Donald Trump earlier this week.
Federal law prohibits political campaign activities within Army National Military Cemeteries.
On Monday, Cox joined Trump in honoring the 13 U.S. service members killed by bombings outside the Kabul airport during the country’s withdrawal of Afghanistan three years ago.
The Republican candidates participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier alongside families of those who gave their lives at Abbey Gate on Aug. 26, 2021.
“I’m also grateful that President Trump was so gracious in joining us in remembering the 13 heroes that lost their life at Abbey Gate,” Cox said Monday in a post on X, which accompanied multiple photos of the two together at the cemetery.
Two days later, the “[email protected]” email address sent out a message drawing attention to the photos, as well as to a letter in which Cox invited President Joe Biden to meet with the family of Staff Sgt. Darin Taylor Hoover of Sandy as an act of “accepting responsibility” for the tragedy.
The email, which included Cox’s digital signature, gave recipients the option to host a yard sign or donate to his campaign for reelection to a second term.
Shortly after the email was sent out, one recipient, Alan Wessman, posted pictures of the it on X, saying that political events are forbidden at Arlington National Cemetery and that using photos from Cox’s visit in a campaign email is “evidence that it was a campaign event.”
Cox responded to the post from his personal X account: “You are correct Alan. 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.”
An apology email was sent out Wednesday afternoon, repeating Cox’s earlier statement and adding, “Honoring those who serve should never be ‘political.’ We’re committed, as we move forward, to ensure that we run the best campaign possible and we’ll accomplish that by not politicizing things that shouldn’t be politicized.”
On Wednesday, multiple national news outlets, beginning with NPR, reported of a complaint that had been filed with the Arlington National Cemetery about “a verbal and physical altercation” that occurred when an official at the cemetery attempted to prevent Trump campaign staff from taking photos and video.
In a statement, the cemetery said it “reinforced and widely shared” the federal prohibition on “election-related activities,” including photographs connected to a candidate’s campaign, “with all participants.”