♪

>> present! >> present!

[ drums playing ] ♪

♪

>> ladies and gentlemen, the wreath laying ceremony is complete. please move to your seats and the ceremony will begin shortly. >> you are looking at live pictures there of president donald trump laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier. as you heard over the loud speaker as well, you heard that the laying of the wreath, that part of the ceremony has completed. as we see folks make their way to the other side of the pavilion there where president trump will now make his address alongside secretary of defense,

jim mattis, as well as the joint chief of staff, general -- i apologize, general dumford is going to speak as well. we'll be bringing you the comments live to you once they get underway. but you see there, representatives of the various branch of the u.s. military as the president laid the wreath just a short while ago. new bikes aren't selling guys... what are we gonna do? how about we pump more into promotions? ♪ nah. what else? what if we hire more sales reps?

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welcome back, everyone. you are looking at live pictures there on your screen of the memorial day services that are underway at arlington national cemetery. on the right-hand side of the screen, you're seeing the tomb of the unknown soldier where president trump just laid a wreath on the left-hand side you're seeing the opposite side of the memorial amphitheater where vice president mooiike pe and other dignitaries are taking their seats. you can see kellyanne conway there. the president is expected to make his memorial day address

momentarily. as we bring you these live pictures, it's important to note that the president a short while ago laid the wreath there. we'll bring you those pictures once again in case you missed them. but this is a very important ceremony, the 149th in our country's history, expecting about 5,000 visitors to attend today's memorial ceremony. we'll discuss a lot of what we can expect later today in the program, but we wanted to show you what we saw a few minutes ago. and that was president trump arriving unaccompanied notably by his family, although alongside defense secretary jim mattis as well as homeland security secretary john kelly and the chairman of the joint chiefs joseph dunford. we'll play that momentarily. watch. >> present! >> present!

[ drums playing ]

[ "taps" playing ] ♪

all right. i want to bring in our panel once again. i want to begin with presidential historian allen lichman in d.c. professor lichman, if i can get your thoughts on what you expect the president to say, and put in context past presidents and the message they deliver on this somber occasion. >> this is an occasion of great significance. it arose out of, of course, the worst conflict in the history of the united states, the civil war, when 620,000 were dead on both sides. and originally it was kind of separate kind of north and south, but eventually memorial day came to be a time of reconciliation and healing

between the two conflicted sides during the civil war. it was originally called decoration day because we were decorating the graves of the fallen soldiers. and kind of officially became memorial day and a holiday on the last monday in may in the late 1960s. this has also been an occasion for presidents to honor as president trump is doing, those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for their country. it is also a time, as you can see, the president surrounded by generals here, including his secretary of defense, a time for presidents who express their strong support for the american military. and that is precisely what i expect president trump to do. it is a nonpartisan time. don't expect this to be infected with politics or partisanship.

>> kevin bar rehren, i want to g you in as well, a lot of the president's men include former generals, including general john kelly. but this is a remarkably somber occasion for all of the families, the gold star families, who have lost members in the service of this country and made it possible for so many others to enjoy the freedoms of this country. but talk to us about the sacrifices of some of the preside presidents in terms of what they have done for this country. >> the generals that the president has surrounded himself by, these are combat generals of the wars still going on in afghanistan, in iraq, spreading out across the middle east. as counter terrorism wars grow and spread to follow the enemy, that fight, i think that is what is most remarkable to me. and i cover the pentagon now for a decade through five secretaries, three of the joint chairmen -- >> kevin, we just want to take a

quick listen to "the national anthem." we'll come back to you in a moment. >> please welcome the president of the united states. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> i apologize because we interrupted you there to listen to president trump make his entrance to "hail of the chief." we thought it was going to be

"the national anthem" and we'll be sure to bring that to you in just a moment. we'll go back to what we were discussing before i cut you off, kevin. >> in this year alone, the united states has lost several. the guys that have gotten to fight now are special operators. there's a war going on across a vast amount of territory, including fighting isis and in the philippines and indonesia. so what has changed is the large wars we are used to over the last decade have morphed into continual small battles. a lot of not just military, but also agents, agencies from the cia to private contractors and malcolm knows about the non-military fighters as well that are out there. and i think that is something to be most notable of this memorial day. you talk about the gold star families, guys like kyle miller, the s.e.a.l. kill in somalia last month. there are new members of this

unfortunate brotherhood and sisterhood of the fallen. and they are going to continue under this president. and it's, i think, a challenge for the administration to figure out how to talk about these wars and keep connected to the american public when they remain largely done away from the cameras by operators who hope to be away from the cameras. >> malcolm, that's an extremely important point. we often think of the conventional wars, particularly the two wars where we still have thousands of troops involved in harm's way, including those in iraq and syria as well as in afghanistan. but to kevin's point, we are now a country that has military operators in harm's way in many different countries, many still giving their lives, whether it be yemen or somalia as he mentioned. and that's certainly something that should not be lost on this day as well. >> absolutely. there are a lot more missions happening overseas. >> malcolm, we're going to listen to the national anthem now.

♪ [ "the national anthem" playing ] ♪

[ cheers and applause ] >> please be seated. ladies and gentlemen, general dunford. [ applause ] >> mr. president, mr. secretary, mr. vice president and the gold star families, it is an honor to join you this morning in remembrance and reflection. since the founding of our republic, more than 42 million americans have stepped forward to serve their country in uniform. their story is one of selflessness, it's one of courage, and it's one of sheer commitment. but their story is also one of

extraordinary sacrifice. more than 1 million americans who have answered the call to duty gave the last full measure of their devotion so their fellow citizens could live in freedom and raise their children in peace. today we honor the fallen from battlefields that served as weigh points in our history, saratoga to midway, chosen to fallujah, today we reflect on the enormity of the sacrifice. we reflect on the hopes and the dreams never realized. today we also reflect on the sacrifice of the families left behind. the anguish of parents, spouses, siblings and friends. the sadness of children growing up without their fathers or mothers. and we know that for the families, every day is memorial day. but today we also reflect on what's 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 were people who embodied the most important values and traditi traditions of our nation. they were people that understood that what we have in our country is worth fighting for. and though they were taken from us prematurely, they were people that touched our lives, they were people who made a difference. today if we truly want to honor the fallen from all our conflicts, we'll do something more than mark their graves with flags and flowers. we'll do something more than delivering remarks and reflect for just a few moments. if we truly 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 of serving our nation in our communities in their honor. if we do that, then i would offer that those of us who were taken from us prematurely will be able to look down and know

that we truly do remember them. ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the soldiers, sailors, airmen and coast guardsmen 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 skies for amber waves of grain ♪ ♪ for purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain ♪ ♪ america america god shed his grace on thee ♪ ♪ and crown thy good with brotherhood ♪ ♪ from sea to shining sea

♪ o beautiful for pilgrims' feet whose stern impassion ed stress♪ ♪ a thoroughfare of freedom beat across the wilder nness ♪ ♪ america america god mend thine every flaw

confirm thy soul in self-control ♪ ♪ god shand crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, secretary mattis. [ applause ]

>> they shall grow not old as we that are left grow old. age shath shall not worry them as the years condemn. as the sun goes down, we will remember them. mr. president, mr. vice president, chairmen of the joint chiefs of staff, family members of the gold stars, we gather together with a shared gratitude. centuries ago, a king observed it is not the places that grace men but men grace the places. today we know that he was right, more than a century ago, this 624-acre plot of land was the plantation on the potomac. hardly sacred, now it holds the

greatest treasure of our nation, america's courageous dead. those who today we pause to remember. not far from here lies the marker of a civil war infantry veteran who later rose via supreme court justice. he said those who serve in the military have hearts that are touched with fire. having known great things, he said, we are content with silence. if you have ever known one of the fallen, you have known greatness. it is hard to be content with their silence for we miss them. the empty chair on the holiday, the empty every day, the photograph that goes wherever you do, the picture fades but the person in it does not. their fighting spirit persists,

passed down through the ranks, their spirit echoes in those who serve today in the air, on land and at sea. in a world of change, some things stand firm. some things are as plato said, good and true and beautiful. the kid on the line who never had a chance to grow old will always be 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. but i beg you let it have meaning. unite your sorrow to their awesome purpose. people do grace places, but people also grace people. we are blessed by our time with those now asleep, the mighty and the gentle. let us share their story with others then like the poet we all

can say, sleep soldiers still in honored rest, your truth and valor wearing. the bravest are the tenderest, the loving are the daring. now ladies and gentlemen, it's my great honor to introduce our commander in chief, the president of the united states, donald trump. [ cheers and applause ] >> thank you. thank you very much. thank you.

thank you so much. and thank you, general dunford, secretary mattis, for your moving words and for your service to our great nation. vice president pence, cabinet secretaries, members of congress, members of the armed services and veterans, thank you for joining us as we honor the brave warriors who gave their lives for ours. 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 of the families and loved ones they left behind. special, special people. i especially want to extend our gratitude to secretary john kelly for joining us today. incredible man. [ applause ] i always like to call him general. he understands more than most ever could or ever will. the wounds and burdens of war, not only did the secretary proudly serve in the military for more than 40 years enduring

many hardships, but he and his incredible wife karen have born the single most difficult hardship of them all, the loss of their son, robert, in service to our country. robert died fighting the enemies of all civilizations in afghanistan. to john, karen, heather, kate, andrea and the entire kelly family, today 300 million american hearts are joined together with yours. we grieve with you, we honor you, and we pledge to you that we will always remember robert and what he did for all of us. thank you, john. [ applause ]

the kelly family represents military families across the country who carry the burden of freedom on their shoulders. secretary kelly is joined today by his son-in-law jake, wounwarrior, and the secretars son, johnny, who will soon leave on his fifth deployment. it is because of families like yours that all of our families can live in safety and live in peace. to every gold star family who 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. but they were all angels sent to

us by god. and they all share one title in common, and that is the title of he hero. real heroes. [ applause ] 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 have 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, not 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 dole, here with his wife, senator elizabeth dole. [ applause ]

senator dole fought bravely in world war ii and was severely wounded by german fire. in just a few weeks, bob 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. [ applause ] 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 won 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 innocence to wage war on humanity itself. we're joined today by the wife of specialist christopher horton who rests on these so beautiful groun 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. well, chris was in the national guard, and 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. chris knew 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 deployment, chris 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. standing watch with his comrades, he died in the ensuing gun battle with enemy forces. chris sacrificed his life to protect his fellow soldiers and to protect all americans. he was a warded the purple heart and bronze star for his courage. and only 26 years old, chris secured his place in our hearts for eternity. jane, america grieves with you. our whole entire nation sends 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 ]

thank you, jane. we are also joined today by david and rose beyers, the parents of major andrew beyers. as a boy, andrew dreamed of 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, hurdling into dangers and unknown territory. about this time last year, andrew was sent on his third combat deployment. this time he went to afghanistan. on november 3rd, he was one of

ten special forces to land by helicopter near a taliban safehaven in northern afghanistan. they trekked through a mile of waist-deep mud and climbed a steep cliff before finally reaching the village that they wanted to reach. there a night-long battle ensued. andrew and his team fought off wave after wave of fighters. a grenade detonated as the taliban began to surround the american and afghan forces. andrew ran through the smoke and through the hail of bullets to rescue an afghan soldier. in the midst of this torrent of gunfire and danger, andrew worked heroicicly to open a

gateway and get his men to safety risking his life to save theirs. and he did it. unbelievably, he did it. but in saving those lives, andrew was killed right then and there by enemy fire. andrew has since been awarded the silver star for gallantry in battle. to his parents, david and rose, we stand in awe of your son and his courageous sacrifice. on behalf of the american people, i express to you our everlasting gratitude for what your son did for his country, for his comrades and for all of us. andrew's father has said that he holds onto the promise of joshua

1: 1:9, the lord your god will be with you wherever you go. thank you. thank you. thank you. [ applause ] thank you. [ applause ] what a man he was.

to every gold star family, god is with you, and your loved ones are with them. 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 and so brilliantly fought for, and they died to protect. let us also pledge to tell the stories of robert, chris, andrew and all of america's fallen

warriors today and for the next 1,000 years. [ applause ] and while we cannot know the extent of your pain, we do know that our gratitude to them and to you is boundless and undying. boundless and undying. we'll always be there. thank you. their stories are now woven into the soul of information, into the stars and stripes on our 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 unknown soldiers. we do not know where they came from, who they left behind or what they hoped to be. but we do know what they did. they fought and they 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 we hear whispering throughout this sacred place and from every tombstone on these hallowed grounds. it is the love that binds 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, but if americans just take the time to look into your eyes and tell you how much we thank you and dearly we pray fo and how truly we love you, then hopefully, you can find solace through your pain. and every type you see the sun rise over this blessed land, please know your brave sons and daughters pushed away the night and delivered for us 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.

thank you. >> ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing for the playing of taps and the benediction. ♪

[ playing of taps ]

>> have your seat for the benediction. almighty and merciful god, grant to all of us grace and peace and a strong recollection of this national memorial day observance. may the memory of this sacred place among america's sons and daughters 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 that are left grow old. age shall not weary 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. >> all right, you're watching the conclusion there of the memorial day ceremony at arlington national cemetery. you heard president trump paying tribute to gold star families, their sacrifices saying at one

point they were angels sent to us by god. and called them heroes. he went on then to profile and talk about the sacrifices made by some of those including specialist chris horton whose wife jane was in attendance as well as a member of the special forces andrew buyers whose parents were there, as well. so a very moving tribute by president trump to just highlight some of the sacrifices of those families including that of general john kelley, homeland security secretary john kelley whose son robert also died on the fields of afghanistan. so a very moving tribute there. i want to bring in with us malcolm nance, combat veteran as well as jack jacobs. malcolm, your initial reactions and thoughts to the president's speech that was struck. >> well, it was a good speech. and i appreciate that he paid tribute to the gold star families. he had trouble with the gold star families last year during

the campaign. but that seems to have been washed over and now he's meeting the roles of the president adequately in this particular case. and i'm very glad that he you know, came to this ceremony and stuck to the script. >> colonel jake jacobs, i'd like to get your reactions and comments on the president's speech as we see them there. i think he's meeting there with both the family of chris horton, i believe that's his wife as well as others that may have been gold star families. we know that as i was mentioning the parents of andrew buyers, david and rose, were also in attendance. >> i think the most notable comment was not from trump but instead was from general joe dunford, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff when he said that the best way that we can to remember the people who have fallen whose sacrifices gave us the opportunity to live in freedom was not just to think about them but to think about

the ways in which we can serve. you know, we live in an environment in which a very small number of young american men and women are out there defending a very large number of us. we have an all volunteer force, and it means that the rest of us don't have the opportunity or even the inclination to serve the country. what's really important i think joe dunford made a very good point of it is that to honor those who have fallen, we need to think of ways in which we can serve the rest of the people in this country. it's not just enough to think about the people who have fallen. >> kevin baron, if you're still with us. i'd like to get your reactions to actually secretary of defense's comments, as well. he made a very powerful connection, if you will, between i guess ancient philosophy and i guess there's a reason why they call him the warrior poet drawing on plato and talking about the people that grace the

places and in this particular reference, he was talking about national cemetery in arlington once being a plantation, now housing our most treasured souls. >> yeah, and you know, that's how jim mattis talks when you talk to him in person. call me jim. not general mattis. he'll do the same thing. you never know when sometime in the conversation he'll throw back to some classics but you know, you can tell the difference in the speeches between general dunford fundamental addressing the crowd making that national call to service. i think secretary mattis sounding like he normally does as the marine commander speaking to his troops and then the president. i'd also make note of general kelly in the audience. now secretary kelly. you know, quickly, i went with him back to afghanistan when he was the senior military adviser to secretary gates. he went back to the very unit, the 35 marines that his son was be is standing in and had been killed. they were still deployed. we went right out to one of

their combat outposts. he brought with minimhim a "was post" article about his son's deaths and the eulogy he gave at his son's death if folks can go back and read it. it's the same national call for service and awareness. it wasn't as much a eulogy to his sons or to the marines or valors of combat. rather, it was a real calling for america to get into the car, get in the fight. realize the kind of -- how big this battle is and you know, that was six, seven years ago. so it's really notable that he's there and stlei pointed out. that's the history behind that. >> as president trump also made reference to, it wasn't only his son that he lost his son which he called the single most difficult hardship but i believe his son-in-law as well as his other son who was preparing for another round of combat duty. so a family that has certainly paid the ultimate sacrifice and continues to give to this country, a tremendous amount.

before we go, alan, professor, if i can get your final thoughts on this. >> i'd like to pick up on two somewhat different themes. one is the theme of peace. the truth is, history shows that no matter how heroic the pursuit of victory in war, it will not stop the deaths. wars always beget more wars. world war i was supposed to be the war to end all wars and many scores of millions of men and women have died in wars ever since then. the only way to avoid the death is to avoid war. presidents have said the hardest thing they can do is put americans in harm's way. in a sense, that's true. but history also shows maybe the hardest thing they can do is avoid war. the second point i want to make. >> i'm so sorry to cut you off. we're running out of time. there's one tribute we would like to make to some of those that have fallen. stay with us for one moment. i look at the brave men and

women in uniform who have made the ultimate sacrifice. a look a women in uniform who have made the ultimate sacrifice. sunday, the growing russia investigation. new reports that president trump's son-in-law jared kushner tried to set up back channel communications with russia to avoid u.s. monitoring. the reaction? former deputy cia chief john mclaughlin. >> if an american intelligence officer had done anything like this, we would consider it espionage. >> the trump trump administration responds but not in front of cameras. >> >> we're not going to comment on jerryd. we're not going to comment. >> after john brannan testifies that russia can lure people unwittingly into treason. >> individual who's go along the treasono