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Biden Honors Veterans in Ceremony at Arlington Cemetery
“This is the last time I will stand here at Arlington as commander in chief,” President Biden said in remembering service members who have served the country.
transcript
Biden Honors Veterans and Lays Wreath at Arlington Cemetery
President Biden acknowledged that it would be his last time at the Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day as the country’s commander in chief.
This is the last time I will stand here at Arlington as commander in chief. It’s been the greatest honor of my life, to lead you, to serve you, to care for you, to defend you, just as you defended us, generation after generation after generation. Our son Beau Biden deployed to Iraq for a year with the Delaware National Guard. I still remember the day he asked me to pin his bars on him. He stood ramrod straight. How proud Jill and I, our entire family, felt. So for all the military families, to all those with a loved one still missing or unaccounted for, to all Americans grieving the loss of a loved one who wore the uniform, Jill and I want you to know we see you. We thank you. And we’ll never stop working to meet our sacred obligation to you and your families.
Reporting from Washington
President Biden urged Americans to take a moment to honor those who serve in the military and their families on Monday, using the backdrop of Arlington National Cemetery to observe Veterans Day one last time as the country’s commander in chief.
“The world is dependent on each of you and all of us, all of you, to keep honoring the women and the men and the families who have borne the battle,” Mr. Biden said. “To keep protecting everything they fought for, to keep striving to heal our nation’s wounds, to keep perfecting our union.”
Mr. Biden’s remarks came after he placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
The president has presided over the armed forces during a tumultuous four years. He has said one of the worst moments of his term was the deaths of 13 service members in Afghanistan in 2021 after Mr. Biden ordered the withdrawal of all American troops from the country.
Service members have also been assigned to assist Ukraine in its fight against Russia and to the Middle East after attacks against Israel led by Hamas that killed 1,200 people. But Mr. Biden has not ordered large deployments of troops in either place.
In his remarks, the president recalled traveling to the battlefields where American soldiers had fought, including his visit earlier this year to the cliffs in Normandy, France, above the beaches where troops began their offensive to defeat Nazi Germany during World War II.
“Just standing there, you wonder, ‘How in God’s name did they have the courage to do what they did?’” Mr. Biden said.
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