Trump blows off honoring dead soldiers to attend golf tournament [View all]

President Donald Trump isn’t attending the dignified transfer of four American soldiers who died in Lithuania, because he has instead chosen to attend a Saudi-backed golf tournament at his country club in Doral, Florida.

Staff Sgt. Jose Duenez Jr., Staff Sgt. Edvin F. Franco, Pfc. Dante D. Taitano, and Staff Sgt. Troy S. Knutson-Collins, all in their twenties, died during a training exercise in the Baltic region of Europe when the military vehicle they were driving sank into a swamp, Military.com reported.

Their bodies began their dignified transfer back to the United States on Thursday and are expected to arrive on Friday at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. In place of Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will be present at the transfer, according to Fox News.

“The President of the United States as of now will not meet the remains of our service members when they land at Dover…because he will be at a golf tournament,” Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona wrote in a post on X. “Now you see why we are worried about his cuts to the [Department of Veterans Affairs]?”

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/4/4/2314507/-Trump-blows-off-honoring-dead-soldiers-to-attend-golf-tournament