(TheRedWire.com) – On Monday, President Joe Biden addressed a packed Arlington National Cemetery to remember the armed forces killed during combat.
On the Memorial Day event, Biden relayed that the gathering at “this sacred place [and] at this solemn moment” was to honor and remember the “sacrifice” of hundreds of thousands of men and women who had given their lives for the U.S.
He described those who had passed as a “link in the chain of honor” going as far back as the United States’ “founding days.” He added that each of the fallen heroes was “bound by” their “common commitment” to the “idea of the United States of America.”
Biden also referenced the death of his son, Beau Biden, who passed in 2015 after a battle with brain cancer which is believed to be the result of being exposed to toxic chemicals during the Iraq War.
Telling the families of fallen veterans, Biden said he “know[s] it hurts,” adding that the feelings were still raw “nine years” after he lost his son.
He said that the pain of loss remained with him “every day,” but so is the “pride” he felt in Beau’s service.
Vice President Kamala Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff joined Biden.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown Jr. also attended the event.
Biden also used his speech at Arlington to commit to veterans of passage laws that would favor service members and their families.
The President touted signing over “30 bipartisan laws supporting servicemen [and] veterans,” adding that in 2023, the Department of Veteran Affairs had “delivered more benefits and process[ed] more claims” than before in history.
Biden also shared the obligation that the United States had to prepare those it sent into battle and “take care of their families” when veterans return home and “when they don’t.”
Copyright 2024, TheRedWire.com
