Sir Nicholas Soames, British politician and grandson of Winston Churchill, criticized Donald Trump with a harsh message, calling him “pathetic,” “inadequate,” and “not fit to represent this great country” after the president did not attend a cemetery visit honoring fallen soldiers of World War I.
The president is in France attending events commemorating 100 years since the end of the war. On Saturday, Trump and first lady Melania were slated to visit the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery at the site of the Battle of Belleau Wood in northern France.
They did not attend the event because of “scheduling and logistical difficulties caused by the weather,” the White House said in a statement.
Chief of Staff John Kelly and his wife laid a wreath there instead.
That apparently did not sit well with Soames, who voiced his opinion with strong words.
“They died with their face to the foe and that pathetic inadequate @realDonaldTrump couldn’t even defy the weather to pay his respects to The Fallen,” Soames wrote, including a hashtag saying Trump is “not fit to represent this great country.”
They died with their face to the foe and that pathetic inadequate @realDonaldTrump couldn’t even defy the weather to pay his respects to The Fallen #hesnotfittorepresenthisgreatcountry
— Nicholas Soames (@NSoames) November 10, 2018
Others expressed their dismay with the president’s decision not to attend the event.
Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications under Obama, expressed his opinion that the weather was not an excuse to cancel.
“There is always a rain option. Always,” he wrote.
I helped plan all of President Obama’s trips for 8 years. There is always a rain option. Always. https://t.co/exZNlONQOp
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) November 10, 2018
The Aisne-Marne American Cemetery contains the graves of 2,289 war dead, according to the American Battle Monuments Commission.
The cemetery was dedicated in 1937. The site once again saw battle in 1940 during World War II, which damaged the memorial chapel.