Trump is not a fit person to be at D-Day events.

Press Release.

By Simon Magorian.

The objection to Trump appearing at our D-Day event is not just over his habit of flirting with Fascist and white supremacist politics which has been stated by us here.

There is also the problem of Trump's relationship with the Vet community and also his habit of using the military as theatrical props.

He has a habit of not being very duty orientated when it comes to representing the nation at military cemeteries.

There was his failure to attend a service at a WW1 cemetery last year.

"President Donald Trump was scheduled to take a 30-minute helicopter ride from Paris to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial in Belleau, France. But a rainy forecast for the city made it too risky for him to safely fly there, the White House said a couple hours before he was to arrive at the cemetery.

"The President and First Lady’s trip to Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial has been cancelled due to scheduling and logistical difficulties caused by the weather,” the White House announced."

NBC News.

This was roundly condemned by many.

Nicholas Soames grandson of Winston Churchill was unequivocal.

I think most people were shocked at the sheer feebleness of his non-attendance due to weather. Even the most ardent Royal-hater would concede that the Queen would never back out of an engagement like that due to poor weather. Whatever criticisms are levelled against the Monarchy you have to accept she is a trouper.

He received widespread criticism for this from the Vets community and beyond.

The posts below are typical of the response to trump's disrespectful behaviour.

He also failed to attend a service at Arlington Cemetery for Veterans Day and when he was challenged said he was too busy making phone calls.

His attacks on John McCain.

His attack on John McCain was particularly unpleasant.

“He’s not a war hero,” said Trump. “He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.”

McCain spent five and a half years as a POW in the notorious prison known as the "Hanoi Hilton" during this period he was repeatedly tortured and spent two years in solitary confinement.

These comments sparked outrage, not just for the unpleasantness of the attack but because it revealed that Trump had a terrible attitude towards POWs.

Charity Money.

There was also a controversy over monies collected by the Trump Foundation for military charities during the election campaign, and the matter has not been resolved to the satisfaction of many Veteran organisations.
After a much-publicised announcement, he had raised(a widely disputed) $6million he seemed very slow in parting with it.

From  MSNBC in 2016.

Using the Military as Theatrical Props.

Before the midterm elections, Trump attempted to fire up his base with fear-mongering about a group of refugees travelling on foot who were still thousands of miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.

Trump tried to convince people that women and children seeking asylum were a national security risk and he deployed thousands of U.S. troops to the southwest border to anticipate their arrival.

However, after the midterms, Trump was silent about the supposed threat.

In the event, many of the troops ended up being employed in menial tasks like shovelling horse manure.

"This guy just cannot stop disrespecting troops and military families," Will Fischer, director of government relations for VoteVets, said in a statement. "From smearing POWs, to campaigning to push veteran vendors off 5th Avenue, from lying about donations to veterans’ charities until he was caught, to sleazeball attacks on Gold Star families, to skipping ceremonies to honor fallen heroes of World War I, to sending troops off to take part in a campaign stunt, this guy simply does not respect the military or those who served. Period."

 Not the leader of the Free World.

Many like to argue that as "Leader of the Free World", he should be present.
The problem is that the one person who does not accept him having this moniker is Trump himself.

His whole schtick has been around the slogan America First, he has made it quite clear he has no interest in global leadership.
When Populist Nationalists like Orban of Hungary and Bolsonaro of Brazil have visited the White House he has revelled in being a role model for nationalist insularity.

He didn't win the popular vote in the Presidential election, Hillary Clinton won millions more votes than him. He won office due to the Electoral College system.

He may be the legal President but he does not have a popular mandate. He has not only not tried to unite the country under his Presidency he has actively promoted division. He is only interested in how his base feels.

If you have no desire to unite your own people you can hardly aspire to be a world leader.

 

WW2 was about collegiate leadership which united western democracies and the Soviet Union in a battle against Fascism, he is incapable of contemplating such a thing. It was the kind of alliance which is against everything he stands for.

It will be a signal achievement if he manages to get through the week without saying something barbarous.

He is quite simply unlike any other American President and should never have been invited.

The Nature of our D-Day event has changed.

It is now to be invitation only, the Vets and the dignitaries have been invited. Unlike the event in Normandy where apparently the Vets are to be excluded.

From the outset, we have made it clear that we did not wish to drag the Vets into this row. After all, they were not consulted about the invitation. I imagine they are as divided about Trump as the rest of us. I make no claim to speak on their behalf. I do not.

The Vets have been put in an invidious position. They will have been awaiting this event with mixed feelings: a sense of pride and loss and being tribunes for the fallen. There to stand as witnesses to memory for when we defeated Nazism in a struggle for national and moral survival.

They will not make a fuss, whatever their feelings and get on with it.

I get the impression from people I have spoken to there is the general feeling amongst the attendees to honour the event in spite of Trump's presence.

However, since the only thing being offered to many is to watch from outside the exclusion zone on giant screens on Southsea Common, I think the tens of thousands that were previously expected will likely stay away.

People won't be boycotting it, you can't boycott something you're being excluded from.

I don't feel inclined to go down to stare wistfully at a ten-foot high steel fence.

It seems that Donald Trump has got his wall, after all.

And the British, the British, will be paying for it.

The security arrangements for the narcissist in chief will cost central government a cool £18million for his visit.

There seemed to be a little bit of mischief-making from certain quarters about us picketing or being disruptive towards the official event. We have never been planning a tactic of that sort and all our public pronouncements have made it clear we have been planning to do something around Guildhall Square from the outset.

For Trump enthusiasts(there are some) who are waxing lyrical about his visit to Britain: If you are capable of ignoring Trump's flirting with Fascism, racism and antisemitism and his appalling comments about assaulting women, I'm sure people will have no difficulty in ignoring our protest, if you so wish.

Our online petition against his invitation has garnered over 
74,000 +signatures.

We will be holding our alternative event In Portsmouth Guildhall Square on the 5th of June between 11 and 2.

The far right has had mixed results in the Euro elections,but the beast of fascism is still alive and we must be vigilant in opposing it now.  

We will be putting flowers on the War Memorial, observing a silence, we will have some antifascist speeches and some poetry and songs. We will be remembering those who died fighting fascism .

We will be respecting our veterans.

We will not be respecting Mr Trump.