Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, criticized Trump online for visiting the cemetery last week, claiming he “disrespected sacred ground” to perform a political stunt. Since then, the family members of the 13 servicemembers have released videos clarifying that they invited the former president to the cemetery. DeSantis is the latest person to defend Trump.

“And first of all, he was invited by the Gold Star families,” DeSantis said. “He didn’t just show up to make a scene, they invited him to be there. They asked him to pose for photos with the family members of the fallen.”

The Florida governor also questioned why Harris and others are more angry at Trump for consoling the Gold Star families than they are at the reason that their family members were killed in combat in the first place. He argued that “something is wrong” if people are more angry at Trump’s visit.

On Truth Social, Trump accused Harris and “Sleepy Joe” Biden of being responsible for the deaths of the 13 servicemembers and argued both should have been at the Arlington National Cemetery on Aug. 26, the three-year anniversary of the Abbey Gate attack. He also denied reports of a fight between his campaign staff and a cemetery official, calling it “a made up story by Comrade Kamala and her misinformation squad.”

Besides DeSantis, former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who endorsed Trump last week, also defended the former president’s cemetery visit, as he joined the Gold Star families to remember the sacrifices of their family members. She also said she did not see or hear about any kind of altercation until later when it became a national news story.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has similarly defended Trump, citing how the families also invited Harris and President Joe Biden to join them. Cotton added that both Biden and Harris should have been in attendance, arguing that they were responsible for the 13 servicemembers’ deaths.