Former U.S. President Donald Trump reneged on a proposal he made to assist pay the funeral prices of a murdered soldier, saying, “It would not price 60,000 bucks to bury a [expletive] Mexican!”
The declare, first revealed in The Atlantic, originated with nameless sources, thus Snopes is unable to independently confirm its veracity.
On Oct. 22, 2024, the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed a story that generated controversy as a result of it included a number of damning however anonymously sourced anecdotes about former U.S. President Donald Trump simply two weeks earlier than the 2024 presidential election.
Goldberg’s article, which primarily went viral for reporting that Trump had privately wished that he may have “the sort of generals like Hitler had,” opened with an anecdote about Trump providing to assist pay for the funeral prices of a U.S. feminine soldier, Vanessa Guillén, who allegedly had been murdered by one other soldier at Fort Hood in April 2020, solely to angrily reject the invoice 5 months later.
As described within the Atlantic, Trump had initially provided to assist with the service, however when he acquired a invoice for $60,000 he grew to become irate, refused to pay, and instructed an aide, “It would not price 60,000 {dollars} to bury a [f******] Mexican.” Goldberg cited two nameless sources on the assembly during which this change allegedly occurred, in addition to written notes taken by an unnamed aide.
Members named within the article as being current on the assembly denied that such an change ever occurred. The household of the slain soldier additionally expressed objection to the Atlantic’s reporting, suggesting her story had been politicized by Trump’s opponents.
On that foundation, some conservative retailers described the story as “fully debunked” or false. On this article, Snopes evaluations each the declare that Trump refused to pay this soldier’s funeral invoice in addition to the declare that the story had been fully debunked.
Snopes reached out to Goldberg for added background on The Atlantic’s reporting however has not acquired any remark.
The July 2020 Guillén Household Assembly
On April 22, 2020, Vanessa Guillén, a soldier with the third Cavalry Regiment stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, went lacking. Her physique was discovered three months later. In keeping with prison complaints filed within the Western District of Texas, a fellow soldier killed her and, with an accomplice, disposed of the physique.
Previous to her disappearance, Guillén had complained to relations about sexual harassment at Fort Hood however instructed them she felt uncomfortable reporting it up the chain of command. Her demise, Army.com reported, became “a rallying cry to finish sexual harassment and assaults within the U.S. army.”
Trump invited the Guillén household to the White Home. They made the journey on July 30, 2020. Trump appeared with Guillén’s sister Mayra, her mom, Guadalupe, and their lawyer, Natalie Khawam.
Throughout the course of their dialog, in accordance with a transcript of the occasion, Trump was shocked to be taught {that a} funeral had not but occurred as a result of ongoing investigation into Guillén’s demise. He then provided to assist with the prices:
THE PRESIDENT: When would you prefer to have the funeral? When?
MS. MAYRA GUILLÉN: As quickly as doable.
THE PRESIDENT: As quickly as doable. I agree. As quickly as doable with the funeral. We’ll make certain — we’ll guarantee that occurs. Okay, please? […] And if I may also help you out with the funeral, I am going to assist — I am going to make it easier to with that.
MS. GUADALUPE GUILLÉN: Thanks.
THE PRESIDENT: I am going to make it easier to out. Financially, I am going to make it easier to. […] For those who need assistance, I am going to make it easier to out.
Because of outreach from the Guillén household, the “I Am Vanessa Guillén Act,” which eliminated commanders from army sexual assault investigations, was included within the $770 billion Nationwide Protection Authorization Act signed into regulation in December 2021.
The central allegation in The Atlantic regarded feedback Trump allegedly made 5 months later, throughout a Dec. 4, 2020, assembly within the White Home with nationwide safety aides.
The December 2020 White Home Assembly
Goldberg reported that an unnamed supply stated Trump had been angered by the severity of criticism leveled in an inner Military investigation into Guillen’s demise released on Nov. 20, 2020.
“In keeping with an individual near Trump on the time,” Goldberg wrote, “the president was agitated by [Secretary of the Army Ryan] McCarthy’s feedback and raised questions concerning the severity of the punishments distributed to senior officers and noncommissioned officers.”
Towards that backdrop, the subject of Guillén’s funeral got here up at a nationwide safety assembly on Dec. 4, 2024. Citing two “two folks current on the assembly” and the “contemporaneous notes” of a participant, Goldberg recounted a portion of a nationwide safety assembly on the White Home during which the subject of the Guillén funeral invoice was raised:
In an Oval Workplace assembly on December 4, 2020, officers gathered to debate a separate national-security problem. Towards the top of the dialogue, Trump requested for an replace on the McCarthy investigation [into the institutional failures leading to Guillén’s death].
Christopher Miller, the performing secretary of protection …, was in attendance, together with Miller’s chief of employees, Kash Patel. At a sure level, in accordance with two folks current on the assembly, Trump requested, “Did they invoice us for the funeral? What did it price?”
In keeping with attendees, and to contemporaneous notes of the assembly taken by a participant, an aide answered: Sure, we acquired a invoice; the funeral price $60,000. Trump grew to become indignant. “It would not price 60,000 bucks to bury a [f******] Mexican!”
He turned to his chief of employees, Mark Meadows, and issued an order: “Do not pay it!” Later that day, he was nonetheless agitated. “Are you able to consider it?” he stated, in accordance with a witness. “[F******] folks, making an attempt to tear me off.”
Previous to publication, Goldberg reportedly reached out to the Guillén household lawyer, who instructed him that “no cash was ever acquired by the household from Trump,” however that among the prices have been lined by the Military, which had additionally provided her a plot in Arlington Nationwide Cemetery.
The Guillén Household Response
Following publication, the Guillén household strongly objected to The Atlantic’s reporting. Mayra Guillén posted on X that The Atlantic had exploited her sister’s demise for politics:
Wow I do not respect how you’re exploiting my sister’s demise for politics- hurtful & disrespectful to the essential adjustments she made for service members. President Donald Trump did nothing however present respect to my household & Vanessa. In truth, I voted for President Trump right this moment.
The Guillén household’s lawyer, Natalie Khawam, additionally objected to The Atlantic’s story, alleging that Goldberg had distorted and lied about their dialog. Her remark, posted on X, didn’t point out which side of the reporting was a lie, nor did it refute Goldberg’s reporting that she instructed him that Trump had not paid the aforementioned invoice:
After having handled lots of of reporters in my authorized profession, that is sadly the primary time I’ve to go on file and name out Jeffrey Goldberg on the Atlantic: not solely did he misrepresent our dialog however he outright LIED in HIS sensational story.
Extra importantly, he used and exploited my shoppers, and Vanessa Guillén’s homicide… for reasonable political achieve. I want to additionally level out that the timing of this “story” is sort of suspicious, as this supposed dialog that Trump had would have occurred over 4 years in the past! Why a narrative about it now?!
As everybody is aware of, not solely did Trump assist our army, he additionally invited my shoppers to the Oval Workplace and supported the I Am Vanessa Guillén invoice too.
I am grateful we have been profitable in getting bipartisan assist of the I Am Vanessa Guillén Act, and due to everybody’s arduous work and efforts our service members now have extra protections and rights whereas serving our nation.
A translator current on the assembly echoed this account as properly, posting on X that “President Trump was genuinely involved about Vanessa Guillén and appalled by the tragedy the Guillén Household have been enduring.”
Crucially, such statements don’t deal with Goldberg’s central allegation — that Trump angrily refused to make good on his supply to cowl funeral prices. As a substitute, they attest to the truth that Trump was heat and beneficiant with the Guillén household of their interactions.
As no Guillén member of the family was current through the December 2020 closed-door nationwide safety assembly, these denials can not converse to the validity of the quotes attributed to Trump by The Atlantic.
The Trump Marketing campaign’s Response
In response to Goldberg’s reporting, Trump spokesperson Alex Pfeiffer — who was not current on the December assembly — issued a forceful denial.
“President Donald Trump by no means stated that. That is an outrageous lie from The Atlantic two weeks earlier than the election.” Pfeiffer additionally forwarded statements from Trump’s nationwide safety adviser, Kash Patel, and from a spokesperson for former Chief of Workers Mark Meadows.
Patel’s assertion didn’t instantly deny the allegation relating to Trump’s feedback through the December assembly and clearly referenced, at the least partly, the president’s actions on the July assembly, not the December assembly:
As somebody who was current within the room with President Trump, he strongly urged that Spc. Vanessa Guillen’s grieving household mustn’t should bear the price of any funeral preparations, even providing to personally pay himself as a way to honor her life and sacrifice.
As well as, President Trump was capable of have the Division of Protection designate her demise as occurring ‘within the line of responsibility,’ which gave her full army honors and offered her household entry to advantages, providers, and full monetary help.
Ben Williamson, a spokesperson for Meadows, alleged that Goldberg had not included the substance of Meadows’ full denial in his reporting. Meadows, who described the story as “the Atlantic’s newest hit piece towards President Trump,” issued his own statement on X. “Any suggestion that President Trump disparaged Ms. Guillen or refused to pay for her funeral bills is totally false,” he posted.
As a result of the denials from the Guiillen household can not lengthen to the content material of the December 2020 assembly, the declare reported by Goldberg about Trump’s refusal to pay a $60,000 invoice in the end pits the phrases of two nameless former Trump officers towards the denials of Mark Meadows and Kash Patel.
The Backside Line
In response to The Atlantic’s reporting, the Each day Caller described The Atlantic’s claims as false. “The sufferer’s sister and quite a few Trump officers,” the conservative outlet reported, “have come ahead to dispute the story as false.” This overstates the case.
A number of issues may be true on the similar time. It may be true that Trump was gracious with the Guillén household, that he aided their efforts to cross the I Am Vanessa Act and that he was capable of transfer the cogs of presidency ahead to offer her household some monetary reduction. It may also be true that the dialog described to Goldberg by two former Trump aides was actual, that Trump refused to pay a $60,000 invoice, and disparaged Guillén.
The veracity of the previous can’t be used as proof disrproving the latter, nevertheless.
The declare that Trump refused to pay for Vanessa Guillén’s funeral and made disparaging remarks about that request is unverified — it pits a reader’s belief in two nameless sources towards the denials of two long-time Trump allies.
