It says a lot about Donald Trump that he is willing to pay the legal bills for supporters who are arrested for attacking protesters–a claim that he has tried and failed to say he never made. But what’s really telling is a bill that he hasn’t offered to pay. Several people who attended one of Trump’s rallies in Bloomington, Illinois saw fit to use a cemetery for a parking lot.
On Sunday, Trump flew into Bloomington for a rally at the Synergy Flight Center; more than 3,000 people attended. That morning, several area residents discovered that at least some of the attendees got the bright idea to use the East Lawn Memorial Gardens across the street for parking. So many people were unable to visit their loved ones that cemetery manager Jim Hough had to come in early. It turned out there wasn’t enough parking at the flight school, so several attendees drove onto the cemetery to park.
The local chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters started the cleanup effort later that afternoon. Here’s a picture of the carnage.
The bottom-feeders not only ripped up the turf, but also drove over several graves and headstones. At last count, three gravestones were damaged, while 15 others had been run over. According to IAFF local president John Meckley, it looked like “numerous people” ran over the gravestones. In some areas, it looked like people “made laps around it at the county fairgrounds race track.”
Needless to say, several area residents were outraged. In a colossal understatement, Charlotte Twyford, who has two relatives buried in the cemetery told The (Bloomington) Pantagraph that the bottom-feeders had “a total disrespect” for the site. Nick Altum, who has one relative buried there, said that there was only one tire track near his family’s plot, but there was “a lot more” further down the road from the plot.
Bloomington mayor Tari Renner was equally outraged. He said that even allowing for the typical crowd at Trump events, what happened at this cemetery “goes beyond normal decency.” Police chief Brendan Heffner said that his department was actively investigating this “deplorable” act.
Unless I’m very wrong, Trump hasn’t even offered to help pay for restoring this cemetery. And yet, he’s at least thinking about footing the legal bills for the thug who cold-cocked a protester at a rally in North Carolina. Add this to the voluminous evidence that Trump is morally unfit to be president.
Featured image courtesy Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois’ Facebook feed.
