House Speaker Mike Johnson had to step in to allow former President Donald Trump to visit Arlington National Cemetery with Gold Star families to mark the third anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal, a family member told The Daily Caller.

Gold Star families who lost children during the Biden administration's Afghanistan withdrawal invited Trump to Arlington National Cemetery, where he laid a wreath for 13 service members who lost their lives serving their country in Afghanistan. But the Gold Star families told the Caller that Arlington National Cemetery was trying to make it difficult for the former president to attend a ceremony to commemorate their children, which the families had requested.

Arlington National Cemetery told Gold Star families they could only visit the cemetery at certain times that didn't work around everyone's schedules, and they were also told the president could not be present at the children's graves, families told the Caller.

Rep. Michael McCaul, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, explained to the caller that Darin and Kelly Barnett, parents of Gold Star Sergeant Taylor Huber, had contacted them and told them that Arlington National Cemetery was having difficulty coordinating a ceremony with President Trump for the parents of U.S. soldiers who died at Abbey Gate and other parents on the anniversary of their deaths. The caller was told that the cemetery had told them they could only be there at certain times when everyone's schedules didn't match up, and that the President could not be present to visit the children's graves. McCaul immediately contacted Johnson to help with the matter, and Johnson continued to pursue the matter until it was resolved, the caller was told.

“When Darin and Kelly contacted me, I was outraged to hear that their request to be with President Trump to commemorate the anniversary of Taylor's death, along with several other family members of U.S. military soldiers who died at Abbey Gate, was being blocked. I immediately asked what could be done and reached out to Chairman Johnson to ask what could be done. Thankfully, Chairman Johnson and his team acted quickly and were able to resolve the situation. However, this should never have happened. Gold Star families have suffered enough already,” McCaul told the Caller.

California Republican Senator Darrell Issa It is called Biden has asked the president to meet with the families of Gold Star recipients multiple times, his office told the Caller. The president attended Monday's ceremony and has been in contact with Arlington National Cemetery in the run up to the anniversary, his office said.

“This administration has completely obstructed the memorialization of 13 fallen soldiers and has dragged the families of Gold Star recipients into the fray in their war against Trump,” Issa told the Caller.

“Our office worked with Arlington National Cemetery to reschedule the ceremony in time for President Trump to attend, at the request of our office, as the families were unable to receive assistance from Arlington National Cemetery,” two sources familiar with the discussions told Caller.

Another source familiar with conversations between Gold Star families and Arlington National Cemetery said things changed after Johnson's call.

“The Speaker needed to get involved. Rep. Issa, Rep. Mast and Chairman Mike McCaul played key roles in supporting Gold Star families. Things changed dramatically after the Speaker's call. It was just three days before the ceremony, but Arlington National Cemetery waited until the very last minute to confirm key parts of the ceremony with the families.” (Related: U.S. military investigation finds Kabul airport bombing “unpreventable,” contradicts Marine's shocking testimony)

“Arlington officials claimed the families did not want any media, photography or videography in Section 60, which contradicted what the families actually requested. The families had agreed to media appointed by the Trump campaign, but Arlington continued to resist and disrupt the process,” the source continued. “This would not have happened without Chairman Johnson.”

Huber, in an emotional phone interview, said he and other members of Gold Star families called President Trump to request his attendance and criticized the Biden administration for not reaching out to him over the past three years.

Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump stands alongside his grandson, Staff Sergeant Bill Barnett (left), who died in the Abbey Gate bombing, Darin Taylor Hoover, during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on August 26, 2024. Monday marks the third anniversary of the August 26, 2021, suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport that killed 13 U.S. soldiers. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“We, we sent the invitation to President Trump. We asked him to come. We asked him to help lay a wreath for my son. We asked him to help with the shootings of Sgt. Canals and Cole. We asked him to do that. President Trump didn't come to us. His team didn't come to us and say this would be good for business. Business? No. President Trump has been on our side from day one. He's been caring, he's been loving, he's been understanding. He's taken some of our anger on board, because honestly, frankly, we haven't heard anything from this administration in three years,” Huber said.

The whistleblower contacted President Biden's White House to ask for details on why these families had not reached an agreement with Arlington National Cemetery in the presence of Trump. The White House directed the whistleblower to Arlington National Cemetery and said, “This is an issue for Arlington National Cemetery and the Trump campaign, not the White House.”

The caller also contacted Arlington National Cemetery about these allegations, but the cemetery did not immediately respond.