NORMANDY TO COMMEMORATE THE 75th ANNIVERSARY OF D-DAY.
>> THANKS.
>> THANKS. >>> JUNE 6th, 1944 WAS A DAY
THAT UNITED THE COUNTRY AND THE
WORLD.
WORLD. THIS MORNING I SPOKE WITH NANCY
PELOSI WHO IS HERE LEADING LARGE
BIPARTISAN SENATE AND REPUBLICAN
HOUSE DELEGATION.
HOUSE DELEGATION. >> YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE
SERVICE MEMBER, THE SACRIFICE
THAT THEY MADE 75 YEARS AGO.
>> THEY WERE CHILDREN.
MANY OF THEM WERE TEENAGERS.
17, 18, 19 YEARS OLD, 20, 21.
VERY YOUNG.
VERY YOUNG. THEY HAD SO MUCH COURAGE.
WHEN YOU LISTEN TO THEM AND THEY
TELL THEIR STORY, IT’S
DIFFERENCE
DIFFERENCE DIFFERENCE.
DIFFERENCE. SOME SAY I WAS VERY AFRAID.
OTHERS SAY I WAS PRAYING TO GOD.
OTHERS SAY I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO
SWIM AND I WAS HOPING FOR THE
BEST.
BEST. THEY ALL HAD THEIR INDIVIDUAL
STORIES.
STORIES. WHEN I LIKE TO TELL IS WHEN WE
WERE HERE ON THE 70th
ANNIVERSARY THAT MANY MORE
VETERANS.
VETERANS. THAT’S WHAT’S SAD ABOUT THIS
YEAR, THERE’S FEWER VETERANS
BECAUSE FIVE YEARS HAVE GONE BY.
MY UNCLE DIED AT THE BATTLE OF
THE BULGE.
THE BULGE. THEY SAID WE WENT THERE AFTER.
THEY CONTINUED TO FIGHT AND
ANOTHER HISTORIC BATTLE WHICH
WAS ONE OF THE DECISIVE BATTLES
OF WORLD WAR II.
THIS WAS HISTORIC.
NORMANDY.
NORMANDY. IT WAS HISTORIC PROPORTION.
ALMOST NOTHING TO COMPARE TO IT
IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD.
>> WHERE DO WE SEE THAT KIND OF
LEADERSHIP?
LEADERSHIP? >> IT REMINDS US THAT WE HAVE AN
OBLIGATION TO BUILD A FUTURE
WITH PEACE WORTHY OF SACRIFICE
THAT OUR VETERANS MADE THEN AND
THEY MAKE ALL THE TIME.
WE HAVE TO STAY CLOSE TO OUR
VETS AND THEIR FAMILIES.
THAT’S SUCH AN INSPIRATION.
IT GIVES US A CHALLENGE TO DO
BETTER.
BETTER. >> I WAS READING WHAT YOU’VE
WRITTEN ABOUT YOUR FATHER.
HE WAS A CONGRESSMAN FROM
MARYLAND AND HE WENT UP AGAINST
THE PRESIDENT, FDR, ON THE ISSUE
OF LETTING REFUGEES IN, THE JEWS
FROM EUROPE THAT WERE BEING
BARRED BY THE UNITED STATES.
HE REALLY FOUGHT POLITICALLY TO
OPEN THE DOORS.
WHAT DOES THAT TELL US ABOUT
AMERICA AND HOW AMERICA SHOULD
BE WELCOMING TO REFUGEES AND
ASYLUM SPEAKERS?
ASYLUM SPEAKERS? >> AGAIN, HE WORKED AT THE
SHRINE OF FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.
HE WAS A NEW DEAL DEMOCRAT.
THAT WAS RISK TAKING FOR HIM TO
BE, SHALL WE SAY, BEGGING TO
DIFFER ON THE SUBJECT OF THE
TREATMENT OF JEWS IN EUROPE AS
WELL AS ENTERING THE UNITED
STATES AS WELL AS ESTABLISHING A
COUNTRY, A JEWISH STATE.
OUR ANGELICAL COMMUNITY SAID
IT’S THE CROWN JEWEL OF AMERICAN
HUMANITARIANISM.
HUMANITARIANISM. WE HAVE TO GET IT RIGHT.
THAT IS TO SAY BE RESPECTFUL AND
UNDERSTAND THAT EVERY COUNTRY
HAS A RESPONSIBILITY TO
RECOGNITION THE HUMANITY OF
THESE PEOPLE.
THESE PEOPLE. >> DO YOU WORRY THAT THE
ARGUMENTS WE’RE HAVING NOW ABOUT
BORDERS AND IMMIGRATION THREATEN
TO KIND OF RESPONSE, THE VALUES
THAT THESE MEN FOUGHT AND DIED
FOR?
FOR? >> WE HAVE NEVER THINK THAT.
WHAT THEY DID WAS SO MONUMENTAL
AND ENABLES US TO HAVE ARE OUR
DEBATES AND DIFFERENCES OF
OPINIONS.
OPINIONS. WE DO HAVE TO REMEMBER THE
VALUES THAT FREEDOM ISN’T FREE.
NO ONE SAID IT BETTER THAN
RONALD REAGAN, RONALD REAGAN HAS
THE BIGGEST VOICE FOR WELCOMING
PEOPLE TO OUR COUNTRY AND THAT
WE CANNOT CLOSE THE DOOR OR ELSE
WE WON’T BE THE COUNTRY THAT
LEADS THE WORLD.
>> I WAS HERE WHEN RONALD REAGAN
WAS HERE IN 1984.
FOR ALL THE DISAGREEMENTS OVER
HOW TO HANDLE MISSILE
DEPLOYMENTS, THERE WERE A LOT OF
TENSIONS THEN.
TENSIONS THEN. WE DIDN’T HAVE THE DIVISIONS
WITH EUROPE THAT WE HAVE NOW.
AMERICA IS LESS RESPECTED IN
EUROPE THAN AT ANY TIME IN
POST-WAR HISTORY.
POST-WAR HISTORY. >> LET’S THROW ON THE POSITIVE
POSSIBILITIES.
POSSIBILITIES. I THINK EVERY ONE SHOULD RE-READ
RONALD REAGAN’S SPEECH OF THAT
DAY.
DAY. IT’S BEAUTIFUL.
IT’S BEAUTIFUL. IT TALKS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF
ALLIANCES AND WORKING TOGETHER.
THE LARGEST DELEGATION FOR
INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL FOR THIS
VISIT, WE HAVE NEARLY 60 FROM
THE HOUSE AND AROUND 20 FROM THE
UNITED STATES SENATE, BIPARTISAN
DELEGATIONS
DELEGATIONS DELEGATIONS.
DELEGATIONS. ONE THIRD OF THEM ARE VETERANS.
IT’S PRETTY EXCITING TO BE ABLE
TO ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT HAPPENED
THEN WITH THE ABILITY TO THANK
THOSE WHO HAVE MORE RECENTLY
FOUGHT FOR OUR FREEDOM.
THEN WE HAD SO MANY PEOPLE WANT
TO COME.
TO COME. WE HAD TO GET TWO THEN THREE
PLANES.
PLANES. JUST AN ENDLESS INTEREST IN
BEING HERE.
BEING HERE. WE COME WITH GRATITUDE.
WE COME PRAYERFULLY.
WE COME PATRIOTICALLY.
WE WILL ALWAYS TRY TO LIVE UP TO
THE STANDARDS THAT YOU FOUGHT
FOR.
FOR. >> LOOKING AT THAT BIPARTISAN
DELEGATION OF DEMOCRATS AND
REPUBLICANS JOINING TOGETHER TO
CELEBRATE THE IDEALS AND THE
SACRIFICES, WE’RE SO DIVIDED AS
A COUNTRY RIGHT NOW.
DO YOU WORRY ABOUT THE POLITICS
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. ITCH
ITCH IMPEACHMENT AND EVERYTHING ELSE
ON THE TABLE AND HOW THAT CAN
FURTHER DIVIDE US.
>> WITH ALL DUE RESPECT TO YOUR
QUESTION, I’M NOT HERE TO TALK
ABOUT IMPEACHMENT.
ABOUT IMPEACHMENT. WE ALWAYS STRIVE TO WORK IN A
BIPARTISAN WAY.
BIPARTISAN WAY. THIS IS NOT A DEPARTURE FROM
WHAT WE SET AS A STANDARD.
WE TRY TO BE AS BIPARTISAN,
NON-PARTISAN AS POSSIBLE.
THAT’S A COMFORT TO VETERANS.
>> WHAT DO YOU HOPE THE
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE WILL BE HERE
TODAY?
TODAY? WHAT DO YOU WANT TO HEAR FROM
HIM?
HIM? >> I HOPE IT WILL BE A MESSAGE
OF UNITY.
OF UNITY. THE UNITY WE HAD TO DEFEND
CIVILUATION.
CIVILUATION. THERE WAS A LOT AT STAKE.
PEOPLE CAME TOGETHER.
ALL DIFFERENT KINDS FROM
DIFFERENT COUNTRIES IN EUROPE
AND THEY WERE VERY DIFFERENT
FROM EACH OTHER AT THE TIME.
IT WAS NO EUROPEAN UNION.
HOPEFULLY, A RENEWED SPIRIT OF
COLLABORATION AND RECOGNITION OF
OUR DEPENDENTS ON EACH OTHER.
MY FAVORITE QUOTE, WE ALWAYS
TALK ABOUT JOHN F. KENNEDY IN
HIS SPEECH.
HIS SPEECH. THE VERY NEXT LINE IN THAT
SPEECH, WHICH I SAW IN PERSON AS
A STUDENT, THE VERY NEXT LINE
SAYS TO THE CITIZENS OF THE
WORLD, ASK NOT WHAT AMERICA CAN
DO FOR YOU BUT WHAT WE CAN DO
WORKING TOGETHER FOR THE FREEDOM
OF MAN KIND.
>> DO YOUR WORRY ABOUT NATO AND
THE OTHER INSTITUTIONS THAT HAVE
TIED US TOGETHER WITH EUROPE AND
KEPT THE PEACE FOR MORE THAN 70
YEARS?
YEARS? >> I WAS PROUD TO WORK WITH
SENATOR McCONNELL AND WE WORKED
IN A BIPARTISAN WAY WITH
DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN
LEADERSHIP A COUPLE OF MONSTH AG
TO INVITE THE SECRETARY GENERAL
TO SPEAK.
TO SPEAK. HE WAS MAGNIFICENTLY RECEIVED.
IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THE
SECRETARY GENERAL OF NATO HAD
EVER BEEN INVITED.
IT WAS IN 70th ANNIVERSARY.
>> WAS THAT A SIGNAL OF SUPPORT?
>> STRONGLY BIPARTISAN.
STRONG
STRONG WE WANTED TO OBSERVE THE 70th
ANNIVERSARY BUT WE WANTED TO
REMOVE ALL DOUBT IN ANYONE’S
MIND OF OUR COMMITMENT TO THE
ATLANTIC CHARTER, THE
TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONSHIP AND
THE IMPORTANCE OF NATO AND HOW
IT HAS KEPT THE PEACE.