In a very sweet and heartwarming event that occurred on Wednesday, November 26, the day before Thanksgiving, Vice President JD Vance and his family served troops their early Thanksgiving meal at Fort Campbell, with his young children joining in behind the counter at the chow line.
That came after Vice President Vance gave a rousing speech to the troops in which he thanked them for their sacrifices and said he and his family were there to celebrate their service. He also vowed to not let standards decline so that American troops such as they remain the best in the world.
Much of the speech consisted of the vice president thanking the gathered service members. Doing so, he said, for example, “We’re here to celebrate, not just the United States Army – we’re here to celebrate each and every one of you.”
Further, commenting on what the administration is trying to do as regards standards and ensuring personnel are of the highest quality, he said, “We believe in your mission so much that we know that you guys can meet the highest standards in the world. And when you look to your left and to your right, we want you to know you’re serving with the very best and very brightest this nation has to offer.”
And, hammering past administrations for sending troops off to fight die for no clear reason, he vowed that such would, henceforth, not at all be the case. He said, “We went and sent you off to battle without a clear mission and that is something this president and this administration is never going to do.”
Emphasizing that point and commenting on a changed understanding of what soldiers will be asked to do and why, he said, “If we ask you to go off and do something, if we ask our soldiers to risk their lives to defend the country — what I promise you is we’re only going to do it with a clear mission and clear guidelines.”
Getting toward the conclusion of his speech with more thanks and a comment about Thanksgiving, the Vice President then said, “Never forget that the most deadly weapon anywhere in the world — it’s not about technology, it’s not about what you’re holding in your hands — it’s about what’s up here. You are the most dangerous weapon anywhere in the world and America is counting on it to keep us safe. Happy Thanksgiving soldiers and thank you for having me.”
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Giving a bit more commentary on the holiday itself, he said, “Thanksgiving – what we celebrate tomorrow – is a uniquely American thing. At the heart of it is the spirit of gratitude.” The VP added, “The happiest people that I’ve ever met – the most successful people that I’ve ever met – they live their life with the spirit of gratitude.”
But the real highlight of the visit was watching the vice president and his family serve the troops their Thanksgiving meal. The vice president served the mashed potatoes, Second Lady Usha Vance helped their kids Ewan and Vivek serve rolls to the troops, and their daughter Mirabel served butter pats to soldiers and their families.
Watch them here:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video