US President Trump paid tribute to fallen service members during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday. In his address, he honored the “great, great warriors” and briefly touched on politics, saying he is “fixing” the nation after “a long and hard four years.”While Memorial Day is typically a solemn occasion, Trump began the day with an all-caps post on Truth Social attacking former US President Biden, calling him the “scum” who spent the last four years trying to destroy the country with radical leftism and leaving the border open. He also called federal judges who blocked his deportation policies “monsters who want our country to go to hell.”Yet at Arlington, where over 400,000 service members are buried, Trump told the stories of several fallen heroes. He honored Navy senior chief petty officer Shannon Kent, who died in a 2019 suicide bombing in Syria; Air Force senior master Sgt Elroy Harworth, who died in the Vietnam War; and Army Cpl Ryan McGhee, who died in Iraq at age 21.“We just revere their incredible legacy,” Trump said. “We salute them in their eternal and everlasting glory.”Vice president JD Vance also spoke, urging caution in sending troops to war and saying that Memorial Day should not be treated as a happy holiday. Later in his remarks, Trump referred to the US 250th anniversary next year as a “big, big celebration,” joking that missing his second term means he now gets to be president for it. He also mentioned the upcoming World Cup and Olympics.Trump concluded by placing a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The president paused after placing the wreath, then stepped back and saluted during the playing of taps, joined by Vance and defence secretary Pete Hegseth.
