×

Mon. 5:30 p.m.: On ‘sacred soil,’ Trump lauds those who’ve fallen in service

President Donald Trump, left, Maj. Gen. Michael L. Howard, commanding general of Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region and the Military District of Washington, center, and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis pray during a Memorial Day wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 28, 2018, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — President Donald Trump paid a Memorial Day tribute at Arlington National Cemetery this morning, saying he came to “sacred soil” to “honor the lives and deeds of America’s greatest heroes.”

The commander in chief, speaking before an audience of Cabinet members, military leaders, veterans and families assembled in the marble amphitheater near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, said, “We mourn alongside their families and we strive to be worthy of their sacrifice.”

Trump’s somber tone contrasted with a tweet earlier in the day in which he said fallen soldiers would be “very proud and happy at how well our country is doing today,” citing the economy and low unemployment.

During his second Memorial Day trip to Arlington as president, Trump laid a wreath at the tomb before making his remarks. He recognized military figures, including Bob Dole, the former senator and 1996 Republican presidential nominee, who served in World War II. And he spoke warmly about a number of military families in attendance, including a young boy named Christian Jacobs, whose father is buried at Arlington.

Trump said the boy showed him his father’s grave last year, calling it “a moment I will always remember.”

Trump said the heroes who died for America “rest in these hallowed fields, in cemeteries, battlefields and burial grounds near and far, and are drawn from the full tapestry of American life.”

Gen. Joseph Dunford, the current chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, honored the more than a million Americans he said “gave their last full measure so we could live in freedom and raise our children in peace.”

He also honored the families “they left behind and for whom every day is Memorial Day.”

Those who attended the Memorial Day tribute included Trump’s chief of staff, John Kelly, whose son, Marine 2nd Lt. Robert M. Kelly, was killed in November 2010 after he stepped on a land mine while on patrol in southern Afghanistan. He is buried at Arlington.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
     

COMMENTS

[vivafbcomment]

Starting at $4.85/week.

Subscribe Today