{"id":50352,"date":"2018-11-12T03:44:41","date_gmt":"2018-11-12T03:44:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/11\/12\/white-house-cemetery-motorcade-would-have-disrupted-roads\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T08:16:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T08:16:20","slug":"white-house-cemetery-motorcade-would-have-disrupted-roads","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2018\/11\/12\/white-house-cemetery-motorcade-would-have-disrupted-roads\/","title":{"rendered":"White House: Cemetery motorcade would have disrupted roads"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

PARIS \u2014 Stung by criticism for not attending an event honoring U.S. military dead, the White House says President Donald Trump didn\u2019t want to disrupt Paris roadways for a last-minute motorcade to a cemetery in northern France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump had been scheduled to lay a wreath and observe a moment of silence Saturday at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial, located adjacent to Belleau Wood<\/a> and about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Paris. The White House cited weather conditions that grounded the president\u2019s helicopter for the cancellation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the wake of criticism that Trump didn’t travel by car to the event, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a statement Sunday that noted the weather and “near-zero visibility” as well as concerns that a motorcade on short notice would have required closing substantial portions of area roadways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“President Trump did not want to cause that kind of unexpected disruption to the city and its people,” Sanders said. She also said the trip to Aisne-Marne was 2\u00bd hours each way by car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, Trump spent much of Saturday at the U.S. ambassador\u2019s residence following a meeting and lunch with French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump was in Paris for events to commemorate the 100th anniversary<\/a> of the end of World War I.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The US flag flutters at half mast prior to a ceremony at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and memorial in Belleau, eastern France, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. President Donald Trump cancelled his visit due to bad weather. (Francois Mori\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Attending the cemetery event in Trump’s place were the White House chief of staff, retired Marine Gen. John Kelly; the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Gen. Joe Dunford; and several members of the White House staff. The Battle of Belleau Wood was a critical conflict in the war and a pivotal encounter in Marine Corps history.<\/p>\n\n\n\t