The crowd of Republicans at their national convention chanted each of the names of the 13 service members who died in Afghanistan in a powerful moment at the RNC.
Gold Star families whose loved ones were killed received a standing ovation when they took the stage to criticize Biden’s handling of the chaotic withdrawal.
Their appearance came after a heartbreaking video where they described the moment they knew they had lost their sons and daughters to the moment Biden looked at his watch as their bodies were returned to the US.
The crowd chanted “never again” between his speeches at the Milwaukee convention.
“While Joe Biden has refused to acknowledge their sacrifice, Donald Trump spent six hours in Bedminster with us,” said Christy Shamblin, mother-in-law of the late Sgt. Nicole Ghee. “It allowed us to grieve. It allowed us to remember our heroes.”
Herly Juels speaks as part of a group of families of U.S. Gold Star military members who were killed during the third day of the Republican National Convention.
Shamblin said Trump spoke to the families “in a way that made us feel understood.”
“Donald Trump carried the weight of my grief for a few hours,” Shamblin said. “For the first time since Nicole’s death, I felt like I wasn’t alone in my grief.”
Trump remained standing as family members took the stage to speak.
As Herman Lopez, father of the late Hunter Lopez, read each of the 13 names he said Biden had never uttered, the crowd repeated them.
“(Biden) let my son down. He let the 13 down. He let the 45 injured down. He let those 174 civilians down. He let our country down.”
At the end of his emotional testimony, Trump said from his seat: “so beautiful.”
The families spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com at the Fiserv Forum on Tuesday.
Their children were among 13 Americans and about 170 Afghans who died days later when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive in August 2021. To date, no Biden administration official has taken responsibility for the loss of life.
Darin Hoover, who lost his son Taylor Hoover, a 31-year-old Marine Corps sergeant, in the attack, said he wants to ensure “what happened to our children never happens again” by getting Trump re-elected.
“Sure, war is hell and we’re going to lose some,” he continued, “but not the way our children were lost.”
Gold Star families whose loved ones were killed received a standing ovation when they took the stage to criticize Biden’s handling of the chaotic withdrawal.
Gold Star families choke on stage at Republican National Convention
As Herman López read the names of the 13 fallen soldiers, the crowd repeated them.
Trump remained standing as family members took the stage to speak.
“I’m here because Trump speaks for me, he speaks for my morals, for my beliefs. He speaks the truth,” Taylor’s sister Coral Doolittle told DailyMail.com.
“We’re here to support Trump because we need change. We need someone who cares about veterans, our military, our military families… and we know he’ll do that for us,” added Kelly Barnett, Taylor’s mother.
“I support Trump because for the last three years, while my son has been gone, we have tried to reach out to him, President Joe Biden, and he still hasn’t returned our calls or asked us to meet with him,” said Alicia Lopez, mother of Marine Corporal Hunter Lopez.
She said that in the “almost three years that we’ve lost our children,” President Trump has been the “only one who has reached out to us and asked us how we’re feeling and how we’re doing.”
Her husband, Herman Lopez, said that “Joe Biden has dropped the ball” and that there is no longer “trust” in his administration.
“We need a leader we can trust,” he continued.