[TOM HANKS]
On Veteran's Day, flags are raised on front porches.
Parades weave their way down main streets.
Speeches are given in town squares.
We tell our veterans how grateful we are for their service and their sacrifice and then,
we go back to our lives.
And these men and women, who served with a courage we can barely imagine, in places we
can barely conceive, go back to theirs.
Four years ago, a pact was renewed that honoring their service shouldn't be about a singe day,
but a single purpose.
It's not about a national holiday, but a national commitment to honor that sacred trust we forge
with every man and woman who chooses to put their lives on the line to defend this country.
[JAMIE BARNETT]
The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter
how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the veterans of earlier
wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.
That was said by our first commander-in-chief, George Washington.
[TOM HANKS]
This is what they carried on patrol in Iraq: dog tags, a 5 lb.
Kevlar helmet, an M4 carbine.
And these are the things they carried too.
[CRAIG MULLANEY]
You think about home all the time.
It's certainly better than thinking about the mud wall hut that you're living in.
[IAN GOLDEN]
When they said they were going to get us home from Iraq, you know, it was like, oh, it's
a campaign policy, just never going to happen.
[BARACK OBAMA]
As your commander-in-chief, and on behalf of a grateful nation, I'm proud to finally
say these two words, and I know your families agree: welcome home.
[SON OF A VETERAN]
I remember I just ran up to him and jumped into his arms.
[MIKE BREEN]
I'll be grateful to the president for getting us out of Iraq with honor and dignity for
the rest of my life.
[JOHN ESTRADA]
We made that promise to go take care of the enemy and to defeat the enemy.
We did.
President Obama made a promise to bring us home honorably, and he did.
[CRAIG MULLANEY]
We had these matchbooks that, when we were on patrol in Afghanistan, we handed out and
on the front of the matchbook was Osama bin Laden.
[MICHELE FLOURNOY]
It was unbelievable, my goodness, we may actually have found him.
[JOE BIDEN]
He said, well, I have overwhelming faith in our special forces.
I'm confident even if he's not there, they'll be able to get in and out.
And so I trust them.
I trust their judgment.
I trust their capacity.
[MICHELE FLOURNOY]
This was a very difficult mission.
It was something that the military unit involved rehearsed repeatedly.
[JOE BIDEN]
Mission go.
Go.
[BARACK OBAMA]
Tonight I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has
conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al Qaeda.
[MICHELE FLOURNOY]
I remember hearing something, and it finally registered that it was actually singing.
And when I stopped and I listened, it was Americans who'd spontaneously gathered across
the street from the White House, and they were singing the national anthem.
[MIKE BREEN]
I kind of basked in it all by myself, thinking about the guys that I'd served with, the guys
we'd lost, the guys that had made it happen.
[TOM HANKS]
Previous employer: America.
Job description: Devastating Al Qaeda.
Securing Afghanistan.
Stabilizing Iraq.
Taking out Osama bin Laden.
Skills: Leading, serving, sacrificing Promotions: Many.
References: President of the United States.
[BARACK OBAMA
I believe that no one who fights for this country should ever have to fight for a job
when they come home.
[BRANDON FRIEDMAN]
The administration has implemented several tax incentives for companies to hire veterans.
[MIKE LUMPKIN]
Their dedication is second to none.
They're focused on teamwork, they understand the mission and they'll see things through
to the end.
[HOWARD FOARD]
I always feel like they're telling me I can't do something, when I used to lead like 50
guys.
Now they're telling me, oh, I'm giving you two people, is that ok, can you handle that?
[MIKE LUMPKIN]
Anything you're going to throw at them as an employer is nothing compared to what they
faced before.
[BRANDON FRIEDMAN]
The unemployment rate among younger veterans has fallen quite significantly.
[HOWARD FOARD]
We've met the enemy.
We can meet a deadline.
[EDWARD MEAGHER]
The sound of a helicopter will trigger it.
A certain sound of an explosion will bring you up short for a second.
So yeah, I think about it.
[JONATHAN KUNIHOLM]
One of the definitions of a veteran is somebody who at some point in their life, wrote a blank
check to the United States of America up to and including their own lives.
And in Afghanistan and Iraq, we all saw people having to honor those checks.
[BARACK OBAMA]
Standing up for our veterans, this is not a Democratic responsibility, it's not a Republican
responsibility, it's an American responsibility.
[SONIA FERNANDEZ]
It's so much easier to get whatever it is that you need, help and to be seen sooner,
because there have been more people that have been hired to help those of us in need.
[KAYLA WILLIAMS]
I think a lot of wounded warriors are reluctant to reach out, but the current administration
has really been reaching out to us.
A lot of the programs that they've instituted in the last four years have really been aimed
at strengthening military families.
[JONATHAN KUNIHOLM]
The real sacrifice is made by the people who didn't come back, who won't ever come back.
[MELINDA KANE]
Remember how I cheered like crazy at your first Little League game, even when you struck
out four times?
I thought you'd tell me not to come anymore, but you didn't.
Remember when I made you take your sister to her first dance?
I thought you'd hate me forever for that, but you didn't.
Remember when you were too old to kiss good night anymore, but I walked into your room
one night and tried anyway?
I thought you'd push me away, but you didn't.
There were so many things I wanted to thank you for when you came home, but you didn't.
[BARACK OBAMA]
You came home and sometimes were denigrated when you should have been celebrated.
It was a national shame.
It should've never happened.
That's why here today we resolve that it will not happen again.
[EDWARD MEAGHER]
When President Obama spoke at the Vietnam Memorial, we were finally welcomed home.
[TOM HANKS]
They come from every corner of the country.
They leave their husbands and their wives, their homes and their lives, and they say
if you want to hurt the United States, you have to get through us.
They stand up for freedom when they barely have the strength.
They don't stand down until the job is done.
Four years ago, a pact was made: to keep faith for those who keep watch, that our nation's
commitment wouldn't end with a tour of duty.
They deserve nothing less.
They've earned far more.