Biden takes veiled swipe at Trump in warning at D-Day anniversary
President Joe Biden took a thinly veiled swipe at his rival Donald Trump on Thursday when he said it was 'unthinkable' to bow down to bullies and warned democracy has not been at such a risk since World War II. Biden, speaking to American veterans of D-Day at Normandy, compared the current struggle in the Ukraine to the war against Nazis that the Allies defeated 80 years ago. But his comments came at a time he is facing a rematch against a man he has called a 'threat' to democracy and many countries in Europe face elections that could upset the current geopolitical order. 'To surrender to bullies, to bow down to dictators, is simply unthinkable,' Biden said in his speech at the American cemetery at Normandy. 'Were we to do that, it means we would be forgetting what happened here on these hallowed beaches.'
'We're living at a time when democracy is more risk across the world than a point since the end of World War II, since these beaches were stormed in 1944. Now we have to ask ourselves, will we stand against tyranny, against evil, against crushing brutality of the iron fist? Will we stand for freedom, will we demand democracy, will we stand together? My answer is yes and only can be yes,' he said. Biden also reiterated and rallied allies to support Ukraine, arguing its neighbors will be at threat if it falls and warned that 'autocrats of the world are watching closely to see what happens.' 'Isolationism was not the answer 80 years ago and is not the answer today,' he said. 'We will not walk away.' 'Democracy has never guaranteed - every generation must preserve it, defend it, and fight for it - that's the test of the ages,' Biden said. He also addressed the World War II veterans directly, turning to salute those who sat behind him on stage.
'The men who fought here became heroes not because they are the strongest or toughest job or fiercest - although they were - but because they're given an dangerous mission knowing - every one of them knew the probability of dying was real but they did it anyway they knew beyond any doubt there are things that are worth fighting and dying for: Freedom is worth it. America is worth. The world is worth it,' he said. The American veterans were seated on stage for Biden's remarks, many of them wrapped in blankets. The day was sunny but there was a chill in the air. Uniformed soldiers and attendants watched over them, adjusting their blankets and making sure they were comfortable. French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the veterans 'home' and presented 11 of them with the French Legion of Honor, which is the country's highest order of merit and was established by Napoleon Bonaparte.
'In the summer of 1944, you were barely 20, maybe even younger. You had a family, friends, a wife, dreams, plans and a future. And you left everything behind and risked everything for our independence and freedom. For that, thank you,' Macron said. Before the memorial ceremony for the 80th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, Biden and First Lady Jill Biden had an emotional meeting with D-Day veterans, saluting their service and making jokes with them. The veterans were in their late teens and early 20s when they stormed the beaches and are now in their late 90s or 100s. In a lighthearted moment during Thursday's somber event, veteran Robert Gibson, who is 100, told the 81-year-old president: 'Don't get old.' Another veteran, when he gave Biden a hug, asked him: 'When do you sleep?' Biden gifted each of the men a special challenge coin to mark the occasion.
The coin features: An image of troops approaching the beaches of Normandy and B-17 aircraft flying overhead; The number 9388 etched in the sand, which represents the number of Americans who are buried in the cemetery; and the quotation: 'They also serve who only stand and wait,' which is a line from Milton often used by President Biden to encapsulate the service and sacrifices of military families. This year's D-Day anniversary is thought to be one of the last major anniversaries that will see D-Day veterans attend. The men and women who fought in the conflict are now in their 90s or older. Less than 1% of of the 16.4 million Americans who served during World War II are alive today. Biden was one year old when the invasion took place. It's thought Biden will be the last U.S. president at a major D-Day anniversary event who was alive when D-Day occurred. His predecessor, Donald Trump, was born two years after D-Day.
The president chatted with each veteran and, when he heard it was one's birthday, he rallied everyone in the pavilion to sing happy birthday to him. During the meetings, Biden saluted each veteran and shook his hand. Several of the veterans got up from their wheelchairs to greet the president. Jill Biden offered many a helping hand, supporting them as they stood. Biden met 41 veterans of the Normandy campaign and, of those, 33 were present on D-Day itself. There is a total of 180 WWII veterans at the ceremony. The Bidens spent about 30 minutes with the veterans after they arrived in Normandy on Thursday morning to mark the 80th anniversary of 150,000 allied troops storming of the beaches there. After their presidential meeting, the veterans were wheeled on stage for the ceremony. The crowd gave them a prolonged standing ovation as they appeared. Biden spoke at the American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, where there are 9,388 graves of American dead, most of them in the form of white Latin crosses.
After the speech, he and Jill Biden laid a wreath at the grave of a fallen soldier from Biden's home state of Delaware. Private First Class John S. Greenfield, from Delaware, who enlisted in the U.S. Army on May 13, 1942 and served in the U.S. Army 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division during World War II. He was born April 23, 1914 in Talleyville, Delaware and resided in Wilmington, Delaware. He'll also meet with American veterans who fought in D-Day. French President Emmanuel Macron will join him at the event. Additionally, Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks will sit front row at the ceremony. Hanks starred in 'Saving Private Ryan,' which depicted the D-Day invasion. He and Spielberg produced 'Band of Brothers,' which followed Easy Company through World War II, including its participation in D-Day.
The 172.5 acre cemetery was established by the U.S. First Army on June 8, 1944 as the first American cemetery on European soil in World War II. A French and American flag decorated each grave site. Many buried there lost their lives on D-Day. There are also names of 1,557 service members inscribed on the Walls of the Missing. Within the graves are 307 unknown personnel, three Medal of Honor recipients, and four women. Forty-five sets of brothers are commemorated or buried in the cemetery. A father and son are also buried alongside each other. The cemetery, which sits above Omaha Beach, was quiet in the early morning hours before it was filled with the 10,000 people to mark the anniversary. Thursday was a sunny, beautiful day - a sharp contrast to the weather 80 years ago, when troops battled the wind and rain to reach the beaches.
The only sounds were the birds in the trees and the waves of the English Channel. A few rabbits ran on the outskirts of the cemetery proper. The area was French farmland before it was gifted to the United States for the burial of American dead. A Navy destroyer sat off-shore, a single reminder of the 6,939 vessels that stormed the beaches 80 years ago. B-52 bombers flew overhead. The Normandy landings, code named Operation Neptune , was the largest sea, air and land invasion in history. It was the start of the downfall of Adolf Hitler and the defeat of Nazi Germany. The assault began with Allied aircraft bombing German defenses in Normandy, followed by around 1,200 aircraft that carried airborne troops. As the sun rose, ships began putting troops ashore on five codenamed beaches: Utah , Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword. By the end of the day, nearly 160,000 Allied troops had landed in Normandy. There were thousands of casualties.
Also on Thursday King Charles and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will part in a ceremony later in the day to honor them and the British troops who also landed on Sword beach, while Prince William will participate in a ceremony for the Canadian troops who landed on Juno beach that will also include Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Later in the day, Biden will join international leaders in marking the solomn anniversary, which comes as the allies show solidarity to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who will be among the guests. It will take place on Omaha Beach, site of some of the heaviest, deadliest fighting between U.S. forces and the German occupiers in France. Russia was not invited even though the role of the Soviet Red Army played a critical role in the defeat of Hitler. A decade ago, President Vladimir Putin attended the 70th anniversary celebration.
Biden will return to Normandy on Friday to deliver a second speech, this time at Pointe du Hoc, where Army Rangers scaled the cliffs as German gunfire rained down on them. He will make what the White House is billing as a major speech, where he will warn about the threats to democracy and the rise of dictators. 'It's going to be action-packed and, I think, extremely moving,' Sullivan said, adding that it's an 'opportunity for him to say thank you directly to the veterans who saved democracy, saved the free world, and set the stage for the decades of peace and prosperity that followed.'