Kristen Welker, host of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” has faced criticism for incorrectly stating that Vice President Kamala Harris attended the dignified transfer of the 13 U.S. service men murdered in the Kabul airport suicide attack during the tumultuous exit from Afghanistan in 2021. The wrong remark
The Untrue Assertion
Sen. Cotton lambasted Vice President Harris and President Joe Biden during the interview for missing a Gold Star families’ gathering commemorating the third anniversary of the servicemembers’ deaths. He pointed out that the families had asked Biden and Harris to come as well, but they were especially missing.
Welker cut off Sen. Cotton in his efforts to justify Harris, saying she had been there with President Biden at the 2021 transfer of the remains at Dover Air Force Base. This claim, however, was untrue. Harris was absent even while Biden attended the handover.
NBC’s Withdrawal
After the show, NBC published an official retraction via the “Meet the Press” X (previously Twitter) account:
Our morning program mistakenly suggested that Vice President Harris and President Biden both attended the dignified transfer of 13 American service personnel killed during the Afghanistan evacuation. Biden was present; Harris was not.
Significant public outcry and fact-checking exposed Welker’s error, therefore prompting the retraction.
Background: The Gold Star Families’ Event
The dispute originates from a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery honoring deceased servicemembers attended by former President Donald Trump. Some, like Vice President Harris, condemned Trump’s attendance, suggesting it was politically driven.
But Gold Star families defended Trump in a public statement:
We, the Gold Star families, invited President Trump to participate in the somber ceremonies marking the three-year anniversary of our children’s deaths. Though Vice President Harris has shamefully turned this holy time as a political tool, he was there to commemorate their loss.
During his “Meet the Press” interview, Sen. Cotton reiterated these feelings, stressing that the families had explicitly asked for Trump’s attendance to commemorate their children.
The Watch Incident and Withdrawal from Afghanistan
Senator Cotton also mentioned the well-known incident during the 2021 respectful transfer when President Biden seemed to check his watch several times, angering the families of the deceased. Critics of the administration’s handling of the Afghanistan pullout now use this event as a metaphor.
The disorganized evacuation claimed the lives of 13 U.S. service personnel and more than 170 Afghan civilians, so affecting military families as well as the prestige of the government.
Political Consequences
Welker’s erroneous assertion has fueled more attacks on the media and the Biden administration. Critics contend that the event draws attention to media bias and mistakes in handling delicate subjects.
Many who believe the government has not sufficiently handled the suffering of Gold Star families or accepted responsibility for the events surrounding the Afghanistan pullout relate to Sen. Cotton’s advocacy of the family and his attacks on Biden and Harris.
Ending
The discussion on “Meet the Press” emphasizes the continuing political and emotional consequences of the Afghanistan pullout. For many Americans, the dignified transfer of the 13 slain service members is a somber time that calls for honesty and respect. Kristen Welker’s and NBC’s blunder serves as a wake-up call for honesty and empathy in the discussion of such profoundly personal and important events.
