The Atlantic’s newsroom remained in the duck-and-cover position one day after it issued a sensational story claiming that former President Donald Trump mocked a soldier killed on American soil, with family members and veteran journalists coming forward to rip the liberal rag for producing fake news.

On Tuesday, The Atlantic reported that President Trump, in April 2020, called the family of 20-year-old Vanessa Guillén, a U.S. Army soldier stationed at Fort Hood, Texas who lost her life at the hands of a mentally ill soldier on base. The daughter of Mexican immigrants, Guillén’s body was discovered two days after the attack at which point the outlet claims President Trump called her family and offered to defray the cost of her funeral. Jeffrey Goldberg, The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, writes that President Trump, upon receiving the full bill, exclaimed, “It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a f****** Mexican!” and ordered former chief of staff John Kelly to not pay it. That account was disputed by Guillén’s sister as well as another White House reporter there during her visit.

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“I was in the Oval Office (pool correspondent) the day Vanessa Guillen’s family visited. The meeting was somber, respectful, and according to Vanessa’s sister Mayra, very much appreciated,” wrote Fox News reporter John Roberts on X. He tagged Mayra Guillén’s sister who has since become an advocate for support and enhanced protections for American soldiers. Furthermore, Guillén family attorney Natalie Khawam accused Goldberg of “lying” by fabricating a statement where she purported to state that the family never received any financial support from the U.S. government after Vanessa’s death.

“After having dealt with hundreds of reporters in my legal career, this is unfortunately the first time I have to go on record and call out Jeffrey Goldberg@the Atlantic: not only did he misrepresent our conversation but he outright LIED in HIS sensational story,” Khawam wrote on X, according to Fox News. “More importantly, he used and exploited my clients, and Vanessa Guillén’s murder… for cheap political gain. I would like to also point out that the timing of this ‘story’ is quite suspicious, as this supposed conversation that Trump had would have occurred over 4 years ago! Why a story about it now?!”

“As everyone knows, not only did Trump support our military, he also invited my clients to the Oval Office and supported the I Am Vanessa Guillen bill too. I’m grateful we were successful in getting bipartisan support of the I Am Vanessa Guillen Act, and because of everyone’s hard work and efforts our service members now have more protections and rights while serving our country,” she added.

After having dealt with hundreds of reporters in my legal career, this is unfortunately the first time I have to go on record and call out Jeffrey Goldberg@the Atlantic: not only did he misrepresent our conversation but he outright LIED in HIS sensational story.
More… https://t.co/uJtfsNTo37

— Attorney Natalie Khawam (@WhistleblowerLF) October 22, 2024

Vanessa’s sister, Mayra Guillén, blasted Goldberg and The Atlantic’s reporting in her own statement on X. “Wow. I don’t appreciate how you are exploiting my sister’s death for politics- hurtful & disrespectful to the important changes she made for service members,” Guillén said. “President Donald Trump did nothing but show respect to my family & Vanessa. In fact, I voted for President Trump today. My sister’s death was never to be politicized. Unbelievable.”

Wow.
I don’t appreciate how you are exploiting my sister’s death for politics- hurtful & disrespectful to the important changes she made for service members. President Donald Trump did nothing but show respect to my family & Vanessa. In fact, I voted for President Trump today. https://t.co/o8cDrKOKBV

— Mayra Guillen (@mguilen_) October 22, 2024

Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff, added to the growing chorus of condemnation for the outlet’s reporting, saying the former president was nothing but “gracious” when speaking with the family and attending to burial matters from the Oval Office. “I was in the discussions featured in the Atlantic’s latest hit piece against President Trump. Let me say this. Any suggestion that President Trump disparaged Ms. Guillen or refused to pay for her funeral expenses is absolutely false,” Meadows wrote on X. “He was nothing but kind, gracious, and wanted to make sure that the military and the U.S. government did right by Vanessa Guillen and her family.”

I was in the discussions featured in the Atlantic’s latest hit piece against President Trump. Let me say this.

Any suggestion that President Trump disparaged Ms. Guillen or refused to pay for her funeral expenses is absolutely false.

He was nothing but kind, gracious, and…

— Mark Meadows (@MarkMeadows) October 22, 2024

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