CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama honored fallen troops Tuesday by placing a wreath at a memorial and making a Veterans Day pledge to the many Americans who have served in the military.
“Let us rededicate ourselves to keep a sacred trust with all who have worn the uniform of the United States of America: that America will serve you as well as you have served your country,” Obama said in a statement. “As your next commander in chief, I promise to work every single day to keep that sacred trust with all who have served.”
One week after winning the presidential election, Obama marked Veterans Day at the bronze soldiers memorial between the Field Museum and Soldier Field in Chicago.
The Illinois senator, who will inherit wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from President Bush, was accompanied by Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq war veteran who lost her legs in combat.
She later ran unsuccessfully for Congress and now is the Illinois governor’s veterans affairs director.
On a brisk autumn day, Obama moved a pre-positioned wreath a few feet closer to the front of the memorial that bore the phrase “dedicated to the defenders of our liberty.” He and Duckworth bowed their heads briefly and then each saluted.
In his statement Obama praised “the extraordinary service and selfless sacrifice of our nation’s veterans” who have “defended the American people and stood up for American values.”
“Since 9/11, a new generation of American heroes has borne a heavy load in facing down the threats of the 21st century, and their families have been asked to bear the painful absence of a loved one. These Americans are the best and bravest among us, and they are all in our thoughts and prayers,” he said.
In New York, meanwhile, President Bush saluted the nation’s veterans, saying he’ll “miss being the commander in chief of such a fabulous group.”
Bush marked his last Veterans Day as president at a New York pier, speaking to a crowd of thousands bundled against the windy November chill for the rededication ceremony of the USS Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.
The president praised veterans in the crowd, including those who served aboard the Intrepid in its long history of military action.
“Today we send a clear message to all who have worn the uniform: Thank you for your courage, thank you for your sacrifice and thank you for standing up when your nation needed you most,” Bush said.
The president spoke in the shadow of the Intrepid and near the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan. Astronauts Scott Carpenter and Buzz Aldrin helped the president toss a wreath into the Hudson River as a bugler played taps.
Local ceremony.
