Yes, John McCain used footage filmed at Arlington National Cemetery in a campaign ad

In late August, former President Donald Trump became embroiled in controversy over his visit to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, where he participated in a wreath-laying ceremony to honor service members killed in the Afghanistan War withdrawal.

During that visit, an Arlington National Cemetery official was “abruptly pushed aside” in an altercation with Trump’s staff, but she declined to press charges, an Army spokesman said.

The cemetery employee was trying to make sure those participating in the ceremony were following the rules, which “clearly prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds,” according to the spokesman. 

In an apparent violation of those rules, Trump shared a TikTok video that shows scenes of him at Arlington National Cemetery.

A little more than a week after Trump’s visit to Arlington, Jimmy McCain, late Arizona senator and Republican presidential nominee John McCain’s son, said he has registered as a Democrat and will vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. He said he was further “fired up” by the decision after seeing Trump’s campaign visit to Arlington.

That led some people on social media to share posts claiming John McCain used footage filmed at Arlington National Cemetery in a campaign advertisement. Those posts include a video clip that purportedly shows McCain walking among tombstones at the cemetery as part of the campaign ad.

VERIFY readers Tom and Juan asked us if these claims about McCain are true.

THE QUESTION

Did John McCain use footage filmed at Arlington National Cemetery in a campaign advertisement?

THE SOURCES

• Copy of John McCain’s original 1999 campaign advertisement on C-SPAN’s website
• Associated Press report published by the New York Times on Nov. 9, 1999
• Archived Associated Press report published by the Los Angeles Times on Nov. 12, 1999
• New version of 1999 McCain campaign ad shared by C-SPAN on Nov. 21, 1999
• 2022 Army memorandum outlining the media policy for military cemeteries
• Document outlining federal rules for visiting Arlington National Cemetery

THE ANSWER

Yes, John McCain used footage filmed at Arlington National Cemetery in a campaign advertisement. But McCain later removed the footage from the ad.

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WHAT WE FOUND

Late Republican Sen. John McCain did use footage filmed at Arlington National Cemetery in a 2000 presidential campaign advertisement. But McCain later said his campaign made a mistake in doing so and removed the footage from the ad.

C-SPAN has a copy of the original McCain campaign advertisement dated November 1999 on its website. That advertisement matches the video clips that people recently shared on social media with claims about McCain filming at Arlington National Cemetery. 

The advertisement highlighted McCain’s service in the U.S. Navy and included footage of him walking among tombstones at Arlington National Cemetery with a voiceover saying he never forgot “those heroes with whom he served.”

Howard Opinsky, a spokesman for McCain’s campaign, said McCain was visiting the graves of his father and grandfather when he was filmed, according to an Associated Press report published by the New York Times on Nov. 9, 1999.

“We will show the ad,” Opinsky was quoted as saying at the time despite pushback from the Army.

A spokesman for McCain later said he would remove footage of Arlington National Cemetery from the television ad, according to an archived Associated Press report published by the Los Angeles Times on Nov. 12, 1999.

The Army said McCain’s campaign did not ask for permission to film at the cemetery, and “any request to do so would have been denied because partisan activity is banned at Army installations,” the AP reported. 

“McCain acknowledged that his campaign erred and sent a letter to the Army saying the scenes would be cut,” the archived AP report reads.

Another version of McCain’s campaign ad that C-SPAN shared on Nov. 21, 1999, does not include footage of McCain at Arlington National Cemetery. The Arlington footage was replaced with shots of service members saluting and McCain shaking hands with a service member. 

Arlington National Cemetery has shared the rules regarding partisan activities in multiple places on its website. 

A 2022 Army memorandum outlining the media policy for military cemeteries says Arlington National Cemetery “will not authorize any filming for partisan, political or fundraising purposes, in accordance with the Hatch Act, 32 CFR 553, and AR 360-1.”

Another document outlining federal rules for visiting Arlington National Cemetery says, “Partisan activities are inappropriate in Arlington National Cemetery, due to its role as a shrine to all the honored dead of the Armed Forces of the United States and out of respect for the men and women buried there and for their families. Services or any activities inside the Cemetery connected therewith shall not be partisan in nature.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.