- President Trump delivered his first Memorial Day address Monday
- He placed a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery
- He hailed ‘Gold Star’ families and mentioned service members who gave their lives
- He called on Americans to remember them ‘today, and for the next one thousand years’
- Among those he mentioned was the late son of homeland security secretary Gen. John Kelly
- He also mentioned a fallen Army Specialist and a Green Beret Major who risked his life for others
President Donald Trump honored those who lost their lives serving the nation as he participated in a solemn wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery Monday and told emotional stories of just a few who perished.
‘Here at this hallowed shrine we honor the noblest among us – the men and the women who paid the ultimate price for victory and for freedom,’ Trump told a crowd of families, military personnel, and dignitaries at Arlington on Monday in his first Memorial Day speech as president.
‘We pay tribute to those brave souls who raced into gunfire, roared into battle and ran into hell to face down evil. They made their sacrifice not for fame or for money or even for glory, but for country,’ Trump said.
Among those whose stories Trump shared was Army Specialist Christopher Horton, an Oklahoma Army Guard member who died in Afghanistan. He was a sniper known ‘as one of the best shots anywhere at any time,’ the president said, but died during a deployment in 2011 at the age of just 26.
President Donald Trump lays a wreath at The Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va.
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‘Chris sacrificed his life to protect his fellow soldiers and to protect all Americans,’ Trump said, before hailing his widow.
‘Chris secured his place in our hearts for eternity,’ Trump continued. ‘Jane: America grieves with you,’ the president said.
After he concluded his story, Horton’s widow, seated near Vice President Mike Pence, wiped a tear from her eye, as she received a standing ovation from members of the crowd.
‘Thank you, Jane,’ Trump said, looking up in her direction from the the dais where he spoke.
Trump also toured the cemetery’s Section 60, which holds the graves of those who served since 2001 in the global war on terrorism. The president gave a high-five to Christian Jacobs, 8, who was dressed in a Marine uniform, and was there with his mother, Brittany Jacobs.