and stories from more than 800 goldstar families.ach one showcases the strength and resilience that characterizes our goldstar families. they are heartfelt notes like this one from my wife in east peoria, ill. -- she wrote about her husband -- these are her words -- "he never thought of himself as a hero but he always was to meet. it is are hard to know that he is gone. he was my soul mate." there are just simple messages like this one from an imam in anchorage, alaska. she wrote," i love you and miss you, son. thank you for all the great memories we shared." we're also honoring military families like all of you in the blue room, the big tree where we decorated the official white house tree with cards we collected from some of our country's military kids. the tree is decorated by kids. that is very cool. the notes are a lot of fun as well and you can read and as you go through. some are inspiring like the five children in medical lake washington who wrote --"no matter how many christmases our debt misses, he makes every christmas spe

made by the fallen of course, but also made by our goldstar families, here reliably year after year. for them it's a sacrifice that does not and. neither does our debt of gratitude for those for making it, of course the best way to honor the dead is to take care of the living and that is what our military has done over this past year. i think it's so fitting that one of the first large events without this, hunter, unless you are too young to be vaccinated, calls upon us to reflect and remember, to give thanks and to honor. that's what we do today. thank you all for coming to meet that obligation that was spoken of so elegantly. i've had some great pool alleges as governor, but no more important than this one. it is my distinct privilege to introduce the man who helped us lead our country out of the darkness and into the flight, our nation's leader, our commander in chief, delaware's favorite son, and our good friend, the president of the united states, joe biden. [applause] pres. biden: thank you, very much. good morning, everyone. >> good morning. pres. biden: it's good to be here o

we have the believe with me foundation, children and wives of goldstar families. us next with how you can help with comments that started it all. (danny) let me get this straight. after a long day of hard work... ...you have to do more work? (vo) automatically sort your expenses and save over 40 hours a month. (danny) every day you're nearly fried to a crisp, professionally! (vo) you earned it, we're here to make sure you get it. quickbooks. backing you. and a drumroll, please. yeah! tonight is a magical night. where anything is possible. it's party time. woo! here we go. ha, ha. now for the icing on the cake! come, we're about to begin. >> reporter: one group is making it their mission to lift up goldstar children for the sacrifices made by their families all in the name of our freedom. are 12 days of giving series, founder and ceo of the believe with me foundation, we appreciate it. begin by telling everyone about your organization, what you do. >> all men of military death, we help families killed in action, killed in training and service-connected illnesses. h

to the goldstar and surviving families here, you honor us with your presence.at when you look across this hallowed ground, you ache for those you have lost. your devotion to your loved ones has never faltered. and in turn, america owes all of you support that does not waiver . we renew that dedication every memorial day. and as we do, we also renew our faith in our democracy and the values of self-government that bind us together as americans. we understand the stakes. in the 21st century, the security of the world hinges again on the survival and success of the american experiment. and in turn, that great experiment relies on the american patriots who volunteer to keep their fellow citizens safe and their nation secure. these patriots carry a moral force that can be wielded only by free people defending their inalienable rights and the rule of law. today on the battlefields of ukraine, the world again sees the power of democratic citizens and soldiers to defy tyranny, cruelty, and oppression. their freedom is under attack. so is the international order rooted

god bless our goldstar families, and god bless america. thank you very much.ause] >> ♪ [instrumental "god bless america" plays] ♪ >> ♪ [band playing] [applause] [band playing] ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] >> washington journal live every day with news and policy issues that affect you. tuesday morning, the american conservative kelly discusses the use of technology in tracing those with coronavirus. catherine, a professor at george washington university's school of public policy and public administration, on the role of inspectors general. watch washington journal live at 7:00 eastern tuesday morning. join the discussion. >> next, senators talking about how coronavirus will affect gatherings for memorial day. they thanked those who served. from last week, this is about 40 minutes. >> mr. president, i ask unanimous consent to use my military rucksack in my speech. >> without objection. >> thank yo

father and goldstar mother-in-law and goldstar mother my deepest condolences as a parent, i can't think of anything worse i am sure all three of you would agree you are never going to be the same person again. is that the consensus? >> very much so. >> my understanding is all three of you were part of a group invited to meet with donald trump and i want to ask i know there were efforts to meet with president biden and my understanding is nothing ever came of that and donald trump heard about that and he invited all of the families. >> all of the families at the time in dc with the exception of one so eight of the 13 families yes we were invited and we did go and president biden neglected to say anything but president trump was very gracious and listened to our concerns and told us he would take care of it and stuff like this can't ever happen again and the failures on every level through the administration the pentagon, dod all the way down have failed us and our kids miserably. >> you lost your son taylor hoover marine corps staff sergeant 31 years old lofted ? lost in afghanistan and

last month i introduced the goldstar family fellowship program act. this will establish a fellowship for those goldstar families in our senate offices. i've also joined senator castor and the hello girls congressional gold-medal act to honor our women soldiers from world war i. and i am here also to make certain that our nation is a nation of legal immigrants, not illegal. the chaos at the border should embarrass each and every one of us. it's been decades in the making. this is something that we ought to work together to solve. to solve this crisis of drug trafficking sex trafficking, human trafficking and games. solve it, rather than allow it to be a political issue for a campaign. and i'm here to work to protect your rights to privacy. the physical and virtual space. yesterday senator clover chart and i this focuses on how we are protecting americans from what i call the data pirates. at google and facebook. your privacy is important and i believe that you and i have the right to send those trends without having our entire life story sold to the hi

this year we have a special goldstar segment we are doing, we tried to honor goldstar families everyegment this year, it's very powerful and my foundation is sponsoring a group of snowball expressou families,a big program where we took care of the children that are fallen and 13 families are being brought in this weekend to be part of it. >> pbs will stream on youtube, 8:00 on sunday, i will host that, it will be great. if people want to support your foundation, how do we do it? >> every foundation will tell you to go to their website. our website is gary g foundation.org, you can look at our programs on the youtube channel, a great way to see the foundation in action and meet the people we are working withhe and support of, we have many homes in the process, goldstar initiatives, a broad mission of the foundation because prior to starting the foundation, that's what i was doing, i was volunteering to support many indifferent organizations, doina lot of wonderful things reaching out all over the place so when i started my foundation, we created a broad mission. >> impressive and the

goldstar wife amy looney joins us.re so sorry this happened to you and so grateful for you and your husband's service to our country and so sorry for your loss, but can you tell us what happened? >> yes. thank you for having me on today. my colleague and one of my closest friends, ryan mannion, who is the president for the organization that we work with, the travis manuel foundation. we were honored to have been invited to the american legion's veteran inaugural ball hosted at the renaissance hotel in washington d.c. and our main purpose in attending was really no political agenda, was simply just to honor and show our respect for our military community. the event was honoring about 40 medal of honor recipients that night and upon our arrival, we encountered a group probably of about 75 and i hate to even call them protesters because this was such an aggressive forum, well beyond peaceful protest. and they pushed us, they said horrible vulgar things to us, things i would never think to say to anybody, especially in tha

the goldstar families. >> yes. the goldstar pilgrimage is a part of history that doesn't get all the play it deserves. the u.s. government gave the family of the fallen the choice to bring their loved ones home. for those who chose to leave them overseas, they were given the choice to come over in the early 1930s and visit their loved ones headstone. and visit the battlefields. they did some shopping and other things that were not war related. but that was over four different summers, 1930 to 1933. i don't know how many ultimately came to this site. but 6693, i think is the total number of women who came over on that trip. men were not eligible. they often call it the goldstar mother pilgrimage, because it was mothers, who lost their sons. sometimes widows, as well. most of these guys didn't have a chance to marry, but if they had a widow, she was the one who was eligible. the superintendent at that point would've welcomed them in and taken them around. they would have come on a cruise liner, with nice table cloths

mom or a goldstar dad. so we try to get that message out. leland: quickly, mona, you said more could be done. give me a couple of things. >> one of the things that just what you said, those who know goldstar families recognize that they're a goldstar family. i have a goldstar hanging in my window. for those who do know goldstar families, recognize them, show your support for them, and honor them on those days like memorial d day. leland: we stop and think on memorial day, you stop and think a number of times, 365 days a year. >> right. leland: becky and mona appreciate you being with us. we told todd and sherone in our thoughts and prayers and thank you both. >> thank you. leland: when we come back, we'll take a look how memorial day began, not only how we say thank you, but also, how we celebrate the freedoms we have because of those who have given so much. . >> it's emotional. >> yes, it is. and you don't think you're going to get that way until you've been here. with all that usaa offers why go with anyb

couple of weeks ago on the 80th anniversary of d-day, we told you the story of ron de elliott, a goldstar daughter her father, corporal frank elliot, was killed during the normandy invasion. now for decades, rhonda and other goldstar families were able to call on the american battlefield monuments commission or a bmc to place flowers, flowers at the family's paid for themselves on the graves of their loved ones in the cemetery series oversees such as in normandy, it meant so much to them this is my father's ghraieb in normandy with flowers people walk into the cemeteries, they see these flowers and they know that there's somebody at home that's still cares about that soldier nine years ago presumably for cost reasons, the a bmc shutdown that program. >> retired marine corps general john kelly had goldstar dad himself first told us about this program being shut down i think it's minimal cost to the government, minimal work for the government. i suppose who some administrative costs and the battle monuments, but i can't imagine very much it even if it was a lot i've been they did give their

our goldstar and surviving families wage a fight that goes on long after the funerals.acred duty to do more to ease the burden that they shoulder on memorial day, and every day. for as long as america has sent our sons and daughters into harm's way, those on the homefront have also been on the frontlines. mr. president, you know firsthand the pride of seeing a loved one put on our countries uniform -- our country's uniform. you know what it means to wait and worry wallace on -- while assad cert -- while a son serves in about is on far away. you know what it means to commit troops to fight. you understand the mixture of pride, stress, fear and love that all of our military families live with. as a former commander i know these feelings myself. for the loved ones of those who have fallen, let me say, we know the depth of your sacrifice. but we can never truly know the depth of your loss. all we can do is honor the memory of those you lost by caring the memories of those who you mourn. and by seeking to perfect our union and defend our democracy. and by striving to live ou

joined me now, to goldstar fathers who lost their sons in last week's attack.et me start with you, mark, if i may be a your son wasas sent back to afghanistan to assist with the evacuation efforts. you said it something he always wanted to do. of never seen a young man train as hard as he did to be thea bet soldier he could be. he went back just for this mission. explain. >> is, he did. first, i just wanted to say that jared has exemplified so much that any man could ever strive for and madee me so proud to watch him undertake this endeavor of going into the marine corps. he completed his boot camp. he went to jordan, was excited about that. and was constantly looking to do more and was given that opportunity. >> first, i want to say to both of you if i may come as a parent, nobody can understand the loss that both of you have gone through. i can't't imagine the pain that both of you are living through and i'm very sorry about that. mark, you met with biden over the weekend, how did that go? >> initially, i wasn't going to meet with him, but then i felt i owed

to every goldstar family, we will stand by your side forever, it is very fitting that the veterans' dayarade begins right here in new york city. since the earliest days of our nation, new york has exemplified the american spirit and has been at the heart of our nation's story of daring and defiance. on july 2, 1776, the british armada sailed into new york harbor numbering more than 400 ships and carrying more than 30,000 men. the british came here to snub out what they thought was just a minor american revolution. didn't turn out to be that way. but the redcoats did know, what they did know was they were going to have a problem, but they didn't know that new york would meet them with the fearsome power of american patriots. in world war i, new york, regiments like harlem, hellfighters, the lost battalion and the fighting 69th were revered all over the globe. during world war ii, 63 million tons of supplies and more than 3 -- than three million service members shipped out of new york harbor. on september 11, 2001, the whole world saw the horror, and responded to america's wicked enemies

we we are joined live from the war memorial with one goldstar families story. >> reporter: this concert will honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice to defend their country. we had a chance earlier this week to speak to some parents in the east bay who who had a son, an army in and he he was killed in action a decade decade ago. all these years later though their grief is still with them. they tell us they have been able to get help in morning their son and connect connect with other goldstar families. >> he was a fun kid. full of mischief. he wasn't a military kid kind of growing up he was like all the other kids. >> john hallet the third grew up in concorde and became an army captain. he was killed just just two weeks after deploying to afghanistan in august 2009. wendy and john remember the moment that they learned their son had died like it was yesterday. >> when the soldiers came to the the door he was essentially ded essentially devastated and i wae was like this is harder them to. to. >> a west point graduate, he found his calling while attending his high school. all three so

tell us about 31 goldstar and first responder surviving families. >> pictures of these heroes who madeas police officers, many served our country first before they became first responders. it's a promise the tunnel to towers has made a promise your viewers joined us on to make sure we take care of these families. if they are willing to go out and protect us we've got to take care of the families left behind and that is what we are doing here for independence day, independence weekend, make sure we always step up and do the right thing because so many of them, those 31 plus staff sergeant ben webb. there's a lot more that has to be helped. joe: we see people from all backgrounds but chose different careers in life to serve others. it is independence day. how do you serve? >> i will be with my family. i will be here later on, a special on fox, we pray, i pray for these great heroes, their families are safe, their families somehow learn to live with this sacrifice their loved ones have made and we celebrate our independence, celebrate this country, the greatest country that is ever existe

[applause] earlier tonight, several members of our goldstar family committee let us in the pledge of allegiance. we have gotten to know these families pretty well of the last seven years. you represent yourselves and the price that you pay for. you honor us with your presence here tonight. thank you. [applause] five months ago, we are the news that a suicide bomber had attacked a checkpoint to afghanistan. along with 13 members of the u.s. military. one of those lost that day was massachusetts own marine corps sergeant. she volunteered for that mission. she was there because she was there because she wanted to be there. to evacuate women and children from the increasingly dangerous streets. she paid for it with her life. lieutenant governor and i spent time with her family when she returned home. the kind and decent people out and heartbroken that she is gone. i would like to ask for a moment of silence to honor those up you have lost in the goldstar families they have left behind because they are the very best among us. thank you. let me close with this. any fall of 2018, we were hi

goldstar parents addressed the dnc last week, trump continues to sidestep the controversy, his running mate, the father of a marine addressed it directly. >> captain humayun khan is an american hero. >> reporter: the story is such a headline it is prompting a response from the vfw saying election year or not, the vfw will not tolerate anyone member for exercising his or her right of speech or expression. yesterday president obama made a thinly veiled reference to trump while addressing a veterans group in atlanta. >> i'm tired of some folks trash talking america's military and troops. >> reporter: trump will host a rally less than an hour from where humayun khan grew up. yesterday he took a swipe at his democratic rival. >> clinton, she is the devil. >> reporter: and clinton through her own punches yesterday while campaigning for critical swing states. >> for the life of me, i don't know why someone runs to be president of the united states who thinks and says we never win anymore, our country is full of losers. he could not be more wrong. juliet: some citing a new york times report ci

the siblings like the goldstar sister who wrote to me of her brother, private class stephen dennis gaveremember him not as 1253rd war casualty, but the 6'7" inch burst of light he was on the world. these sons and daughters, these brothers and sisters, who lay down their lives for us, they belong to us all. they are our children too. we benefit from their life, their positive influence on the world, and it is our duty, our eternal obligation to be there for them too. to make sure our troops always have what they need to carry out the mission, to make sure we care for all those who have served. to make sure we honor all those who we have lost. to make sure that we keep faith with our military families. to make sure we never stop searching for those who are missing, or trying to bring home our prisoners of war. we are greatful for the families of our pow mias. this may be the first memorial day since the end of our war in afghanistan, but we are acutely aware that our men women in uniform still stand watch, still serve and still sacrifice around the world. several years ago we had more tha

members of our armed forces, veterans and most of all, our goldstar families.at have given way to the silence of these sacred hills. the chaos and confusion of battle has yielded to perfect , precise rows of peace. the americans who rest here and their families, the best of us and those from whom we asked everything. ask almost today only one thing in return . that we remember them. if you look closely at the white markers that drape these hills, one thing you will notice as that so many of the years, the dates of birth and dates of death are so close together. they belong to youngamericans . those who never lived to be honored as veterans for their service. men who battled their own brothers in civil war, those who fought as a band of brothers and ocean away. men and women who redefine heroism for a new generation. they are generals buried besides privates they lead. americans known as dad or mom. some only known to god. mister hellman, a marine who then watched over these grounds has said, everyone here is someone here. those who rest beneath this silence not

the goldstar family is calling on donald trump to apologize to the parentof killed in iraq. don't look for that to happen. teresa is here with more on what trump has said . he is not apologize, is that correct? >> donald trump a host a rally 47 minutes from where my income grew up. this is his parents calling sacrifice nothing and no one.e attempt to change the conversation to put the focus back on policy issues like isis. >> i am not talking about the cons are a lot of people ?i'm talking about people coming from syria that are not properly vetted . >> at the issue donald trump is attempting to move past. bipartisan backlash over in salty directed at the parents of con killed in iraq back in 2004. after his goldstar parents address the while trump continues to sidestep the controversy, his running mate addressed it directly. >> as donald trump and i both said, captain, is an american hero. [cheering] story had become such a headline that it's prompting in response from the vfw saying election year or not ?the vfw will not tolerate anyone berating a goldstar family president

fellow joint chiefs of staff, spouses, distinguished guests, fellow americans, and most importantly, goldstars, welcome to all. today, we join in remembrance of the 155th observance of memorial day. it's a day a profound significance in the legacy of our nation. this day we remember the over one million americans that took their last breath on the bed rock of liberty, supporting the eternal cause of freedom. their unwavering commitment, dedication to freedom, echoes through the ages, reminding us of our sacred duty to remember. and behind every one of these men and women is a family, husband, or a wife, mother, father, brother or sister, son or daughter. for these families, every day is memorial day. each carry on the dreams that are fallen, could never fully realize. this land where we stand today once housed sentinels which overlooked and defended washington, d.c., but now it serves a more solemn purpose. it is the final resting place of our nation's bravest. a quiet testament to their sacrifice. we gather on the sacred grounds where over 400,000 arm. -- are buried. a narrative not written

doubly for the goldstar families.al in washington dc, and to see your son, father or grandfather's name on it. it must be very comforting to the families to know that there son and daughter did not die in vain. >> yes. we believe that is true. of course they are not individual names on these memorials. they are about the families, and the strength of those families in during such a tremendous loss. >> i know that it takes a little bit of a village to create these monuments in terms of the funding. we have sponsors, counties and tell us what it took to bring that memorial to oak hill. >> we, of course, had a team, the goldstar family representatives and the supervisor dave cortese, his office and raising funding through the county and oak hill memorial itself giving us the location. we have some of our coalition, the veterans post and organizations within the county doing ongoing fundraising over the last few years. that includes having the mockup of the memorial at the santana row and after the veterans day parade. >>

unlike yourself, i know tens of goldstar families. i buried some of my best friends over the years and i held those families at their worst moments. shame on you for invoking that. you know better. >> -- >> the same goldstar families she's speaking about, here is the pointed answer. yes, she wants to raise taxes. she wants to repeal what we did. she doesn't want to make it permanent for middle american folks. the biden tax plan came out today that talks about an 18% of all incomes because of the health care plan, which she supports and $2500 increase in premiums. i'm not like elaine luria. i don't have millions of dollars in the bank and neither do most people out there. every bit of tax increase harms us. we are in a health care, economic crisis and a pandemic. the last thing they need is her tax increases. >> mr. taylor, it says about 400,000 virginians currently have health care through the medicaid expansion. in 2017 -- >> can you start over? >> in 2017, you voted for the american health care act, which drastically reduced funding

vice president, general dunford, senator and senator all, trusted allies and goldstar families.day to help us honor the fallen. --se laid to rest sacrifice, service, and purpose. guarded our freedoms. -- discharged a sacred obligation to remember them. no words can capture the totality of their patriotism and love. words.ings are beyond their silence speaks for itself. to those they leave behind, beloved spouses, family, and friends. we know not a day passes that you don't think of them. millions of your fellow americans or member with you. the life ofebrate your hero with you. they are here for you. we, your department of defense, and your friends. is beyond words. let those of president theodore roosevelt capture a fraction of their glory. belongs to those actually in the arena, face marred by sweat and blood, who ,trives valiantly, who errors who comes short again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcoming. but who does actually strive to do the deeds, knows great , whosiasms and devotions spends himself at a worse -- in a worthy cause. achievementof h

electric audi q8 e-tron models... >>> there is an apology to know this weekend from fox news to a goldstar fox published been deleted without a correction. the reporting claims the family had to pay $60,000 to have the remains of their phone relative shipped home from afghanistan because the pentagon refused to pay. again, that was a false story. false fox had been notified that it was false, how fox came to pull the story is of interest to our senior media reporter oliver darcy. what were the steps that led to fox finally apologizing? >> this was an interesting chain of events. so fox news publishes this false story and the pentagon notifies them that the story is inaccurate but unlike most news organizations that would immediately move to correct it, they just tweak the headline and they were notified again by the pentagon that the story was still wrong and they just deleted the story, not a correction, and note to readers, they straight up deleted the story and no apologized no apology to the goldstar family, either. this issue went on until this week when military.com obtain documents

we pray for each and every one, we pray for our goldstar family members, that you bless them as well, give them peace and comfort as only you can. we pray for all of those who are still alive as field of you's or as p.o.w.'s or m.i.a.'s. we pray that you bless this country is only you can. ask the things of you, and together we say amen. >> amen. doc: thank you, chaplain. , if you areat can physically able, and it is safe ?o do so, what you please rise is my daughter and privilege to introduce to you -- good. honor and privilege to introduce to you -- good. i was giving him time to get up the stairs. /afghanistan veteran, currently serving in the united states legal agency, ladies and gentlemen, colonel andross martin. [applause] i'm going to stand behind you. that is good. col. martin: present the colors. please join my son, andross mar tone, and i come up with the pledge of allegiance. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, as to the republic, for which it god,s, one nation, under indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. [cheers & applause] >> ♪ o say

the person that yelled that out was the guest of cory mills, he is a goldstar dad, his son was killeds interrupted, attempted and got escorted out, goldstar dad talking about his son who president biden has never said his name, wanted to make it known at the state of the union. >> president biden: up 30%. 30% they went up. the biggest increase in history. pete: second battalion first marines. remember the 13. right at the moment president biden had pivoted and said the world is safer now under -- rachel: he didn't stand up and say say my son's name, he never said at the state of the union address anything about the others who died, the tragedy is not only did their son died but their son's brother killed himself at the gravesite of their son a year later. this is a massive human tragedy. pete: when they commander-in-chief ignores and dismisses that. rachel: he was taken out, handcuffed, taken away, let out in handcuffs, had to pay a fine. think about the protesters blocking the traffic. there is a protected class, certain people treated one way in our country and certain people allowe

we didn't mean to impact goldstar kids are now way. we worked together and will probably -- we are grateful to have you on the committee and we will likely have a near unanimous a vote out of the house on that. hopefully we will get the senate on it, too. the bigger issue that we are working on his more national service. how do we get folks more tied to their country. we have to get back. there are ways to connect that to education and help the folks who are working in communities that need support. host: >> the u.s. house is now in recess. when members return at noon eastern, they'll work on a bill requiring health insurance coverage for those with pre-existing conditions and another bill providing over $17 billion in disaster relief. again, the house live at noon eastern here on c-span. and coming up in just a few minutes, house republican leader kevin mccarthy is expected to brief reporters. we will take you live there in just a moment. >> here's a look at some of our featured programs this weekend on "book tv." saturday night at 9:

jillian: goldstar mom joins us with the story and how his legacy changes lives. we have that next.) remember that degree you got in taxation? (danny) of course you don't because you didn't! your job isn't doing hard work... ...it's making them do hard work... ...and getting paid for it. (vo) snap and sort your expenses to save over $4,600 at tax time. quickbooks. backing you. mno kidding.rd. but moving your internet and tv? that's easy. easy?! easy? easy. because now xfinity lets you transfer your service online in just about a minute with a few simple steps. really? really. that was easy. yup. plus, with two-hour appointment windows, it's all on your schedule. awesome. now all you have to do is move...that thing. [ sigh ] introducing an easier way to move with xfinity. it's just another way we're working to make your life simple, easy, awesome. go to xfinity.com/moving to get started. rob: inviting the atf and cdc to investigate the mysterious death of american tourists. the country's tourism bureau says the agencies can look at the incidence in whatever capacity they need to. the

we will hear from the goldstar father and katie will be taking your phone calls. all live from miami. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [silence] [silence] [silence] hello everyone. please take your seat. we're about to begin the next session. as other guests come in, let me greet you with a good afternoon to everyone. i'm alu harrison and again welcome back to chapman session e her at miami book fair. i don't believe anyone this this room is joining us for the first time today, if there is anyone -- no thank you. thank you for being here with us i hope you had an opportunity perhaps to -- produce various booth and activities throughout the fair, and tonight is almost coming to a close. but not quite yet. and we have a real treat in store for you right here in the chapman center for this session and the very next one. so i know that you will enjoy it. at this point i would like you to help me to welcome the individual

j.r.: diane was a goldstar mother and says if she can give these families are number, she would. she wants each want to know that the community is there for them as they deal with their loss. >> tell them to stay strong. you have to carry on. you have to make sure their name is never forgotten j.r.: j.r. stone, abc 7 news. ama: -- larry: truly agonizing. it is growing more tense by the day. roots of they sent this message to their workers. >> we are here with you in solidarity to support you and we extend to your families our heartfelt concern during this catastrophic period. larry: nancy pelosi says she has raised the need to evacuate workers directly with the secretaries of state and defense as well as the chairman of the joint chiefs. the situation in afghanistan is obviously fast developing. i line and abc news will keep you updated throughout the night and we will at 5:00 a.m. if you have ideas on how you abc 7 -- abc7news.com/take note ama: now to developing -- abc7news.com/takeaction. ama: extremely dry conditions are causing the fire to spread to the northeast. christmas

he has dedicated his life to supporting goldstar families and building memorials to honor our fallenvicemembers. in 2016, thousands were moved by woody's patriotic words when he spoke at one of our rallies in west virginia. he was incredible, still remember it. of course, we all remember the wonderful moment when woody flipped the coin at this year's super bowl. woody, you are a national treasure and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. woody, where is woody? where is woody? thank you, woody. [applause] pres. trump: thank you, woody. brave man. 94. i give a lot of congressional medals of honor. when i say a lot -- probably five so far, and it is really one of my greatest honors to do. the congressional medal of honor, our highest honor. woody, fantastic. so often i am giving them posthumously, but we hear the stories and their families are there and everyone is proud. every once in a while, we have one that can be given to people who are living, like you, woody. so thank you very much. we are also deeply moved and honored to be joined by a goldstar spouse who knows the true pr

this tree is a dog with goldstar ornaments that honor some of america's greatest heroes of the men and women who gave their lives for our country. an ipadthat tree is station that allows guests to e-mail holiday wishes to our service members. in then an amazing treat blue room, a tree dedicated to our military families. it stands over 18 feet tall. i know. big, big. it is covered from trunk to tip with messages to military .amilies and after the holidays we will be sending each family member their message as a family -- as a special keepsake. and much like these military decorations, the rest of the decorations celebrate proud american traditions and our singular american spirit. you will see hundreds of messages from students from schools sharing their dreams. and you can read about their hopes and aspirations on these beautifully handcrafted snowflakes hanging from the ceiling. and in the library, we are honoring great american authors and thinkers with manuscripts trimmed with pages of texts and quotes. and kids, we will see this -- the state dining room, featuring dozens of vintage

goldstar families are those who have lost center dot or sewer serving in the u.s. military. the rudder led -- this comes as a bunk with the new york times" is reporting that donald trump received five deferments during vietnam. republican vice presidential candidate mike pence had to defend the mother of a soldier from the crowd's boos at one of his rallies monday. the crowd booed catherine byrne, whose son serves in the u.s. air force, after byrne asked pence about trump's treatment of muslim parents khizr and ghazala khan. again, trump is disrespected our nation's armed forces and veterans and disrespect for mr. khan and his family -- [boos] when you're able to look at trump in the eye and tell him, enough is enough. you have a son in the military. how do you tolerate this disrespect? >> well, i thank you for the question. it's all right. it is all right. folks, that is what freedom looks like and that is what freedom sounds like. amy: donald trump has said if someone harassed his daughter the same way women have alleged former fox news chairman roger ailes did to them, he

the goldstar families well, what i said was and this fact, if there are ghost off families were at the hearings when general amelie testified >> before the house armed services committee he said the same thing and he kept saying, as i've said before, so there was nothing new that was learned in this hearing and sometimes i actually oh very sad for the the goldstar families because the the general was kept saying over and over that in >> order to really get out and to answer their questions. we've got to look at the policies that have taken place and the decision was made not just for the last for three days or for a week, but the whole 20 years that we were in afghanistan the general also said that the doha agreement was the foundation of everything that follow, including the end, which says that you i can't just make a judgment of and give the transparency and give the goldstar families what they need without looking at the entire picture. and i hope because i want them to have the answers to. but the only way that we can do that is in a bipartisan way, not in an overtly political way

j.r.: diane was a goldstar mother and says if she can give these families are number, she would.he wants each want to know that the community is there for them as they deal with their loss. >> tell them to stay strong. you have to carry on. you have to make sure their name is never forgotten j.r.: j.r. stone, abc 7 news. ama: -- larry: truly agonizing. it is growing more tense by the day. roots of they sent this message to their workers. >> we are here with you in solidarity to support you and we extend to your families our heartfelt concern during this catastrophic period. larry: nancy pelosi says she has raised the need to evacuate workers directly with the secretaries of state and defense as well as the chairman of the joint chiefs. the situation in afghanistan is obviously fast developing. i line and abc news will keep you updated throughout the night and we will at 5:00 a.m. if you have ideas on how you abc 7 -- abc7news.com/take note ama: now to developing -- abc7news.com/takeaction. ama: extremely dry conditions are causing the fire to spread to the northeast. christmas va

he'll talk to every young person, every veteran, every goldstar family who wants to speak to him no matter how long it takes so he can hear their stories as well, show his respect. the boston pride is about knowing where you come from. the map, about knowing where you are and where you're going. mark wants to make sure he has the necessary facts to inform his decisions as a leader and to others. as commander in chief i've relied on mark's counsel because i know he always gives it to me straight no matter what. he always gives to me straight. 's working with the best information possible and he doesn't hold anything back. during his tenure as chairman, mark has been a steady hand guiding our military as he navigates what i suggest one of the most complex environments our world has faced in a long he's been critical in the extending allieses, indo-pacific, keeping our force on the cutting edge of cyber and space. continuing to take terrorists off the battle field. standing with the brave people of ukraine, making sure they have the equipment and support they need when they need it, to defend

this is a family that is a goldstar family. i was with them in washington.hey do not trouble with handlers. it is presenting trump with fresh challenges about how to act with the nominee. but this is hotly debated especially within the republican party. we have been watching donald trump for over a year have these controversies bubble up almost daily. he seems to be competitive. , these of the wind political winds sweeping the country, populism for change, he remains competitive. >> it's not just the khan family, it's warren buffett, it is a range of people saying not fit. a range of people saying at long last. that kind of thing. it seems to me that there is a coming together. some asking how strong is the -- so i am asking how strong is the convergence of these things? bob: it is strong. the democrats have got a bit of a bounce. at the heart of this campaign is not an ideological project. he is not making an argument in a political way. ais is an isolated candidate, defiant candidate, who operates without the advice of advisors. he has advisors like paul m

you up goldstar families coming into your committee to testify.rom these goldstar parents after the withdrawal from afghanistan. do you agree with that that that ramped up our adversary? >> absolutely. foreign policy, that was the beginning of the end. that ugly surrender to the taliban. that is what it was. a surrender. the goldstar families, men and women killed by a suicide bomber i will be meeting with them on the anniversary of abigail to hear from them. also to tell them what we are doing for man investigation standpoint. the sniper who at the suicide bomber in his sites, as for permission to engage and was denied that permission. a call for an airstrike —-dash denied access to engage. what is so sad for these parents as it could have been prevented and their child is dead now. >> unbelievable. this is so sad. >> we sell satellite imagery after afghanistan, beijing meeting with putin, threat to europe, threat to the pacific. >> you saw it all happening. >> real-time. >> adapt you this morning. >> thanks for having me. maria: congressman mich

but in my heart and soul goes out to those goldstar families as it goes out to the over 2,400 soldiershat lost their life in afghanistan. yeah anytime you look at war, were coming on the anniversary of 911 and i look at the heroes that fire department that went into those buildings knowing they were going to come out those individuals are heroes and their families will suffer for the rest of their lives. all 2,400 plus. and so i intend on being there and that regards i think that president biden, unlike donald trump who has ridiculed people in the military, weighing the metals, who get one without civilian metal higher than that a medal. >> gold battles sadder than the medal of honor. >> terrible things about john mccain and other soldiers is better to be alive and to be dead. so to say to me, now that the one who we know has had the sympathies who understands because of his own son and family members who have been in the military have served not got up like donald trump did, to talk to say, then that donald trump understands and kaye has more about military families from what he said