Cemetery and laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknowns. You are watching coverage on this memorial day on cspan. [National Anthem playing] [drum roll] [taps playing] ladies and gentlemen, the wreathlaying is complete. Memorial day ceremony will begin shortly. Please take your seats. Ladies and gentlemen, please stand and remain standing with the president of the United States and the plank the National Anthem and the playing of the National Anthem. The executive director of the Army National military cemeteries program. General Joseph Dunford jr. , chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. Mattis, thee jim secretary of defense. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, the president of the United States. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, chaplin austin. Let us pray. Peace,y god, prince of you have declared there is no greater love than to lay down your life for ones friends. Sons and honor daughters, men and women who have given their lives in the name of freedom. We remember them on this memorial day. We pray it reminds us how blessed we are as a nation. We pray today for the family and friends of those who have given their lives in service to our nation. We pray that they will be comforted and reassured that the sacrifice of their loved ones is not in vain, and they are not forgotten. Ask that you continue to give wisdom to our commander in chief, his administration, and our military leaders as they promote peace across our country and around the world. Today, we have many men and women in harms way. We ask that you bless them with strength and courage to be victorious, and we ask that you bring them home soon. We ask that you continue to bless america. We ask these things in accordance to your will and your name as the prince of peace. Amen. Ladies and gentlemen, please join the United States air force band in singing our National Anthem. Playing] anthem [applause] please be seated. Generalnd gentlemen, dunford. [applause] gen. Dunford mr. President , mr. Vice president , secretary mattis, distinguished guests, and our gold star families it is an honor to join you this morning and reflection. Since the founding of our republic, thousands of americans has stepped forward to serve in uniform. Their story is one of selflessness, courage, and sheer commitment. The story is also one of extraordinary sacrifice. More than one million americans who have answered the call of duty gave the last full measure of their devotion so that fellow citizens could live in freedom and raise their children in peace. Today, we honor the fallen on the battlefields that serve as waypoints in our history. , today, to gettysburg we reflect on the enormity of their sacrifice and the dreams never realized. Today, we also reflect on the sacrifice of the families left behind. The english of parents, spouses, siblings, and friends. Of parents,sh spouses, siblings, and friends. For the children growing up without fathers or mothers. Today, we reflect on what is most important about the men and women we honor. We reflect on how they lived. They were people who stood for something larger than themselves. They embodied the most important values and traditions of our nation. They were people who understood that what we have in our country is worth fighting for. Though they were taken from us prematurely, they were people who touched our lives and made a difference. Today, if we truly want to honor the fallen from all of our conflicts, we will do something more than just mark their graves with flags and flowers. We will do more than just deliver remarks and reflect for a few moments. If we want to give meaning to the sacrifice of those who have given all on our behalf, each of us will leave here today determined to find, in some small way, a method to serve our nation and our communities in their honor. If we do that, then i would offer that does taken from us prematurely will be able to look down and know that we do remember them. Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the soldiers, airmen, marines, coast guard men who are still in uniform, thank you for remembering. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, listen now as the United States air force band performs america the beautiful. O beautiful, for spacious gray, ofr amber ty, purple mountains majes plain. He fruited america, god shares his grace on thee. And crown thy good with shiningood from sea to sea. O beautiful, for pilgrim feet whose stern impassioned stress a thoroughfare of freedom beat across the wilderness america, america grace with thee. Crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea. Thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, secretary mattis. Sec. Mattis they shall not grow old as we who are left grow old. Age shall not weary them or the years condemn. At the going down of the sun in the morning, we will remember them. Hould remember mr. President , mr. Vice president , general dunford, allstar families, everyone, we starnford, gold , we rememberryone today the fallen. That spartan king was right. More than a century ago, this plot of land was a plantation on the potomac. Now, these fields hold the greatest treasure of our nation, americas courageous dead. Not far from here lies the marker of Oliver Wendell holmes junior, who later rose to become a Supreme Court justice. He said that those who serve in our military have hearts that are touched with fire. , heng known a great things said, they are content with silence. If you have ever known one of knownllen, you have greatness, but it is hard to be content with their silence for we miss them. The empty chair on a holiday, and d every day holiday, empty everyday, the photograph that goes everywhere with you. Theyre fighting spirit persists in those who fight today on the air, on land, and at sea. In a world awash with change, some things stand firm, and some things are as plato said, good, true, beautiful. Those who never got a chance to grow old are there to teach us that suffering has meaning if it is accepted out of love for others. To the families of the fallen both here and at home, no words will ease your pain. Unite your sorrow to their awesome purpose. People do grace places, that they also grace people. T they also grace people. Let us share their stories with others, and then, like the poet, we can say, sleep soldiers in honored rest, the bravest are the tenderest. Areloving other daring now, ladies and gentlemen, its to introduce our commanderinchief, president of the United States, donald trump. [applause] pres. Trump thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you so much. You,. Ank , general dunford, secretary mattis, for your service to our great nation. Vice president pence, cabot said cabinet secretaries, members of congress, armed forces in veterans, thank you for joining us as we honor the brave warriors who gave their lives for hours, spending their last moments on this earth in defense of this country and of its people. Words cannot measure the depth of their devotion. The purity of their love. Or the totality of their courage. We only hope that every day, we can prove worthy. Not only of their sacrifice and service, but of the sacrifice made by the families and loved ones they left behind. Special, special people. I especially want to extend our secretary john kelly for joining us today. Incredible man. [applause] pres. Trump i always like to call him general. He understands more than most of her could, or ever will, the wounds and burdens of war. Not only did he proudly serve in the military for more than 40 years, and during many, but he and his incredible life have borne the single most difficult hardship of them all, the loss of their son, robert, in service to our country. Enemysied fighting the of all civilizations in afghanistan. Karen, heather, kate, andrea, and the entire kelly family, today 300 million american hearts are joined together with yours. , we honorwith you you, and we pledge to you that we will always remember robert and what he did for all of us. Thank you. [applause] pres. Trump the kelly family represents military families across the country who carry the burden of freedom on the shoulders. Todayary kelly is joined by his soninlaw, jake, a wounded warrior, and the secretarys son, johnny, will soon leave on his fifth deployment. It is because of families like yours that all of our families can live in safety and peace. Whovery gold star family honors us with your presence, you lost sons and daughters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers. They each had their own names, their own stories. Their own beautiful dreams. Angels sent toll us by god and they all share one title in common. Hero. At is the title of real heroes. [applause] though they were here only a brief time before god called them home, their legacy will endure forever. General Douglas Macarthur once said that the soldier who is called upon to offer and to give his life for his country is the noblest development of mankind. Here at this hallowed shrine we honor the noblest among us. The men and women who paid the ultimate price for victory and for freedom. 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 that for fame or for money, or even for glory, but for country. We are privileged to be joined today by a man whose life demonstrates the values of service and sacrifice. Senator bob whole, here with his wife, senator elizabeth dole. [applause] pres. Trump senator dole fought bravely in world war ii and was. Everely wounded by german fire in just a few weeks he will be celebrating his 94th birthday. [applause] and bob, i know i speak for millions of grateful americans when i say thank you. Thank you, bob. We thank you not only for your service, but for helping us to remember your fallen comrades and the countless american patriots who gave their lives in the second world war. Since the first volley of gunfire in the revolution, brave americans in every generation have answered the call of duty and one victory for freedom in its hour of need. Today a new generation of american patriots are fighting to win the battle against terrorism, risking their lives to protect our citizens from an enemy that uses the murder of innocents to wage war on humanity itself. We are joined today by the wife of specialist Christopher Horton , who rests on these so beautiful grounds. As jane tells us, chris was a man who loved his country with every part of his being. In 2008, chris enlisted in the oklahoma Army National guard. He trained as a sniper, becoming known as one of the best shots anywhere, at any time. He was a talented, tough guy. While chris was in the national guard, he was also a volunteer police officer. In everything he did he was thinking about how he could serve god, serve his family, and serve his country. In 2011 he deployed for the first time to afghanistan. He knew that his job was one of the most dangerous there was, but he was determined to go after the enemy at any cost to himself. His missions helped target and kill terrorists who sought to destroy innocent people. Just three months into his first appointment he was near the pakistan border, trying to eliminate an enemy cell that was doing so much damage. And that was planting deadly roadside bombs against his unit and the units of many others. Comradeswatch with his , he died in the ensuing gunbattle with enemy forces. Chris sacrifice his life to protect his fellow soldiers. Americans. Ect all he was awarded the purple heart and the bronze star for his courage. At only 26 years old, he secured his place in our hearts for eternity. Jane, america grieves with you. Sendsole entire nation you our support, our strength, and our deep, deep love. You lost your husband and america lost a hero. And together we will preserve his memory. Today, tomorrow, and always. Thank you, jane. [applause] thank you, jane. Thank you, jane. [applause] pres. Trump thank you, jane. We are also joined today by david and rose byers. The parents of major andrew byers. Ofoy, he dreamed of it the chance to attend the United States military academy at west point. He worked hard. He earned that chance. And he graduated at the top of his class. He became the commander of a special halo team, leading his fellow soldiers out of aircraft, hurtling into dangerous and unknown territory. About this time last year he was sent on his third combat deployment. This time he went to afghanistan. On november 3 he was one of 10 special forces operators to land by helicopter near a taliban safe haven in northern afghanistan. They trekked through a mile of waste deep mud and climbed a steep cliff before finally reaching the village that they wanted to reach. There, a nightlong battle ensued. He and his team fought off wave after wave of enemy fighters. A grenade detonated. As the taliban and began to surround the americans and afghan forces, he ran through the smoke and through the hail of the lets to rescue an afghan soldier in the midst of this torrent of gunfire in danger, he worked heroically to open a gateway and get his men to safety, risking his life to save theres. And he did it. Unbelievably, he did it. But in saving those lives, he therelled right then and by enemy fire. Awarded the been silver star for gallantry in battle. Rose, parents, david and andtand in off of your son his courageous sacrifice. On behalf of the American People i expressed to you our everlasting gratitude for what your son did for his country, for his comrades, and for all of us. His father has said that he holds onto the promise of joshua one, verse nine, the lord, your god, will be with you wherever you go. Thank you. Thank you. [applause] pres. Trump what a man he was. To every gold star family, god is with you. And your loved ones are with him. They died in war so that we could live in peace. I believe that god has a special place in heaven for those who lay down their lives so that others may live free, from fear and this horrible oppression. Now, let us pledge to make the most of that freedom that they so gallantly fought for. And they died to protect. Let us also pledged to tell the stories of robert, chris, andrew , and all of americas fallen warriors today and for the next 1000 years. And while we cannot know the extent of your pain, what we do gratitude toour them, and to you, is boundless and undying. Boundless and undying. Well always be there. Thank you. [applause] their stories are now woven into the soul of our nation. Into the stars and stripes flag. And into the beating hearts of our great, great people. Today we also hold a special vigil for heroes whose story we cannot tell because their names are known to god alone. The on known soldiers. Known soldiers. We do not know where they came from, with a left behind or who they hoped to be. But we do know what they did. They fought and died in a great and noble act of loyalty and love to their families and to our country. In a letter written, that is now famous, one Civil War Soldier captured it all and for all time. He wrote to his wife if i do not return, my dear sarah, never forget how much i love you. Nor that when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will whisper your name. That is the love that we hear whispering throughout this sacred place and through every tombstone on these hallowed grounds. It is the love that lines this earth beneath us and bleeds from the hearts of all of those who died, so that we might live free. We can never replace them. We can never repay them. But we can always remember. And today, that is what we are doing. We remember. Words cannot wipe away the tears or bring back those smiling faces. Take theericans just time to look into your eyes and tell you how much we thank you and how dearly we pray for you and how truly we love you, then hopefully you can find solace through your pain. And every time you see the land,e, over this blessed please know that youre brave sons and daughters pushed away us night and delivered for all that great and glorious dawn. Thank you. God bless you. God bless our fallen heroes. God bless their families. God bless our military. And god bless the United States of america. Thank you. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing for the playing of taps and the benediction. Present. [taps] grant to all of us, grace, peas, and a strong recollection of this National Memorial day observance. May the memory of this sacred place be etched into our hearts and always cause us to be thankful for your blessings and their sacrifices. They shall grow not old, as we have left for old. Age shall not worry them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them. Amen. Ladies and gentlemen, please remain in place until the president has departed and the colors are retired. [applause] [applause] later today, some of this years commencement addresses, from former president bill clinton, Vice President mike pence, and senators cory booker, tammy duckworth, and kelly ayotte. Commencement speeches starting at 1 00 eastern time. Gary lynn foot, Army Aviation officer, broke his back and helicopter act to than in a rack. He now uses fullbodied technology to walk. He talked about his experiences at the Ronald Reagan president ial library in simi valley, california. Melissa good evening. Im the chief marketing officer for the Reagan Foundation institute. Thank you for being with us this evening. If you havent attended an event before, you know that we start each program by reciting the pledge of allegiance in the honor of the men and women who defend our freedom around the world. Tonight i ask do so in honor of those currently fighting, those who are missing, those who have perished, and those who are veterans
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