Former President Donald Trump called the late U.S. Army soldier Vanessa Guillen a “f***ing Mexican” after he discovered the cost of her funeral that he offered to pay for, The Atlantic reported on Tuesday.
A Houston native and the daughter of Mexican immigrants, the 20-year-old Guillen was murdered in 2020 by a fellow soldier while on base in Fort Hood, Texas, a notoriously difficult location for women in the army. Her murder sparked outrage across the country and was a catalyst for a national investigation into sexual harassment and abuse against women in the U.S. Army.
After Guillen’s death, Trump invited her family to the White House and offered to personally pay for her funeral.
“I saw what happened to your daughter Vanessa, who was a spectacular person, and respected and loved by everybody, including in the military,” Trump said to Guillen’s, according to notes from The Atlantic. “If I can help you out with the funeral, I’ll help — I’ll help you with that."
"I’ll help you out. Financially, I’ll help you,” he added.
It was a seemingly generous offer from Trump at odds with his reported comments on deceased members of the military. In 2018, he referred to soldiers buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery as “losers” and “suckers,” according to his former chief of staff, retired Marine Gen. Mark Kelly. Earlier this year, he visited Arlington National Cemetery for a campaign photo-op, despite filming not being allowed at the cemetery, with members of his staff shoving a woman who tried to enforce cemetery regulations.
Trump was outraged when a bill for Guillen's funeral was submitted to the White House, The Atlantic reported.
“What did it cost?” Trump asked his staff. When they informed him the total cost was $60,000, he was livid.
“It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a f---ing Mexican! Don’t pay it!” Trump told his then-chief of staff, Mark Meadows. The Guillen family attorney told The Atlantic they were never reimbursed for the funeral.
The Atlantic’s report also noted Trump saying he needs “the kind of generals Hitler had” after he grew frustrated with the U.S. military’s lack of blind obedience. A Trump spokesperson called the story "an outrageous lie two weeks before the election."
