THE HILL
 

Obama travels to honor fallen soldiers returning from Afghanistan

By Michael O'Brien - 10/29/09 06:53 AM ET

President Barack Obama traveled overnight to receive the remains of fallen soldiers whose bodies were returning from Afghanistan.

Obama made a midnight trip to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, the first stop back in the U.S. for soldiers who are killed in combat, where he awaited an Air Force C-17 transporting the remains of 15 U.S. soldiers and three Drug Enforcement Agency agents killed in Afghanistan this week.

Obama met at a chapel on-base with family members of the fallen Americans, and boarded the C-17 for a short ceremony to witness the "dignified transfer" of the soldiers' remains.

The previously unannounced trip comes as the president mulls how to proceed with strategy in Afghanistan, and on the heels of the deadliest month in that country.

Joining the president for the transfer were Attorney General Eric Holder, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz, the administrator of the DEA, as well as several other military officials.

Obama stayed at the base until 4:05 in the morning, according to a pool report, and arrived back at the White House at 4:45 a.m.

Source:
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/65337-obama-travels-to-honor-fallen-soldiers-returning-from-afghanistan

Comments (5)

How blatantly obvious could you possibly be? Axe must of decided "The One" needed the obligatory photo-op to show he "really cares, he really cares". I detest this man.BY JudyinNC on 10/29/2009 at 08:42
I thought I couldn't be more disgusted with the new President. After seeing this, I found out I was wrong.BY Richinark on 10/29/2009 at 09:24
Heads up O, you can't fool the guys on the ground doing the heavy lifting, and now the dying while you just party on. It's now been Three Months since you got the Urgent Request for more support for our brave warriors in the field, you know, the ones you "claim" to support and honor. Better take a peek in the mirror O, your mask has slipped a bit and We The People now see the the real you that hides behind it. Must tell you that it is not a pretty sight, but perhaps one that is appropriate for the Halloween season. However much you may dislike Bush, he actually had feelings, not a stone cold emotionless being like you. He deeply felt the loss of every warrior under his command. But, what the [***], the photo op is done, you stood near the caskets and looked concerned, it's back to the party. Who's got the Kobe Beef? Party on dude…BY Casual Observer on 10/29/2009 at 09:27
Mr. President, if you really cared about our troops and the loved ones that have to suffer through your incompetence you would send more support to them as requested. Calling out the media for your feigned show of piety is utterly disgusting.BY AMERICAN on 10/29/2009 at 09:59
He has had what? nine months to do this.Now these pictures come out exactly at a time when Obama is under attack for his troop indecision.Please Mr. President, do not use our heroes coffins as props to defend your indecision.BY Jack Burton on 10/29/2009 at 12:05

Add Comment

Name (required)

E-Mail (will not be published) (required)

Your Comments

Key Blogs

What they are saying today …
Drudge Report
Bannered across Drudge this morning is a question most of us in the Beltway have asked about the snow storm Friday: "When will it stop?" Below, Drudge links to an AP article on the recent trouble facing New York Gov. David Paterson (D), who many thought was about to be rocked by political scandal by a forthcoming story in The New York Times. That story hasn't arrived -- but speculation about its contents surely has -- leading Paterson to say he would depart office only as a result of the ballot box, or if he's carried out "in a box."… Read More »
The Huffington Post
"KEEP TRYING" -- That's the message one HuffPo writer took from the latest WaPo/ABC poll, which showed 63 percent of Americans still favored further action on healthcare reform. Additionally, Ryan Grim posts his recent interview with Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), who predicted his chamber's historic filibuster could "fall of its own weight -- it should fall of its own weight -- or it will fall after some massive conflict on the floor, which has happened in the past where there have been rulings from the chair that have led to reform."… Read More »
The Corner
The Corner's Mark Krikorian points out in a recent post that the private sector -- namely, the National Review -- was able to devise how many immigrants were residing within the United States faster than the U.S. government could produce that data. And offering further proof that former Gov. Sarah Palin's (R-Alaska) crib notes have become something of a political meme is Kathryn Jean Lopez, who notices a famous country singer penning notes on his hand.… Read More »
The Washington Independent
"The story of coals dirty, deadly legacy" headlines The Washington Independent this morning. The story relates the political significance, health effects and community impacts of a fossil fuel that reporter Mike Lillis believes has White House's clear embrace.Earlier, Lillis looked at one element of Democrats' forthcoming jobs bill: A proposed unemployment insurance extension. The bill offers jobless Americans an additional three months of aid -- less than what the White House's budget requests, but on par with the House's extention, passed late last year.… Read More »
Red State
Michael Steele's remark this week -- that he has been subject to intense criticism because of his race -- has earned the scorn of Red State's Eric Erickson, who lambasts the Republican National Committee chairman in a blog post published late Tuesday. "Actually, it could have nothing to do with race and everything to do with outsourcing the RNC to the same consultants who have been bleeding the RNC dry for years," he says of Steele's low popularity. "It could have something to do with management styles. It could have everything to do with the Chairman never meeting a shoe he didn’t want to eat."… Read More »
MyDD
Jonathan Singer on Wednesday explores the current state of President Barack Obama's judicial nominations. But with the help of Slate's Doug Kendall, he finds that the president has both nominated fewer and confirmed fewer judges to federal benches than his predecessor at this point in his presidency. Concludes Singer: "But with a real crisis in the judiciary in the form of dozens of vacancies, one has to wonder why this President has nominated fewer than half of the judges nominated by his predecessor."… Read More »
Blog Summaries Archive »

Briefing Room Blog Roll

The Hill
ABC News: The Note
AMERICAblog
Barack Obama
Beat The Press
Bill Press
BuzzFlash
Capitol Briefing
Capitol Games
The Caucus (NYT)
Clive Crook
Comments From Left Field
CNN Political Ticker
The Corner (NRO)
Crooks and Liars
The Daily Beast
Daily Caller
Daily Kos
DCCC: The Stakeholder
DNC: Kicking Ass
DSCC: From The Roots
Drudge Report
Eschaton
Extreme Mortman
Ezra Klein
firedoglake
FishbowlDC
The Fix (WashPost)
The Foundry
Gkenn Greenwald
Hendrik Hertzberg
Hillary Clinton
Hot Air
Hotline on Call
Huffington Post
Human Events
Instapundit
James Fallows
John McCain
Judicial Watch: Corruption Chronicles
Kaus Files
Left Coaster
Lefty Blogs
Majority AP
Marc Ambinder
Matt Lewis
Matthew Yglesias
Megan McArdle
Michelle Malkin
Minority Report
The Moderate Voice
MSNBC First Read
MyDD
The Nation
National Review
The New Republic
NewsBusters
Newsmax
The NRCC Blog
NRSC Blog
Open Left
Page (Mark Halperin)
The Plank (TNR)
Political Animal
Political Wire
Politicker
Politico's Ben Smith
Politico's Jonathan Martin
Politico's The Crypt
Power Line
Reason
RedState
Right Wing News
RNC Blog
Ross Douthat
Rush Limbaugh
SCOTUSblog
Senate Guru
The Stump (TNR)
The Swamp (Tribune)
Swampland
Swing State Project
Talk Left
TalkingPointsMemo
TAPPED
Tech Policy Summit
techPresident
TechRepublican
The Right Angle
Think Progress
Top of the Ticket (LA Times)
Townhall
TPMCafe
TPMMuckraker
The Trail (WashPost)
Truthdig
USA Today On Politics
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Blog
VF Daily
Washington Wire (WSJ)
Weekly Standard
Wonkette
Yeas and Nays

Briefing Room Blog Topics

 Blog Summaries »   Technology »
 Day's End Round-Up »   Telecom and IT »
 Energy & Environment »   Trade and Agriculture »
 Midday Blog Roundup »  Lobbying »
 Morning Read »   Administration »
 News »   Campaigns »
  Campaigns »   Civil Rights »
   Administration »   Corporate Governance »
   Civil Rights »   Defense »
   Congressional Campaigns »   Economy & Budget »
   Corporate Governance »   Energy & Environment »
   Defense »   Foreign Policy »
   Economy & Budget »   Healthcare »
   Foreign Policy »   Homeland Security »
   Healthcare »   Immigration »
   Homeland Security »   Labor »
   Immigration »   Lobbyists »
   Labor »   Technology »
   Law and Courts »   Telecom and IT »
   Lobbyists »   Trade and Agriculture »
   Presidential Campaigns »  Other »
   Technology »   Administration »
   Telecom and IT »   Campaigns »
   Trade and Agriculture »   Civil Rights »
  Energy & Environment »   Congressional Campaigns »
  Lawmaker News »   Corporate Governance »
   Administration »   Defense »
   Campaigns »   Economy & Budget »
   Civil Rights »   Energy & Environment »
   Corporate Governance »   Foreign Policy »
   Defense »   Healthcare »
   Economy & Budget »   Homeland Security »
   Energy & Environment »   Immigration »
   Foreign Policy »   Labor »
   Healthcare »   Lobbyists »
   Homeland Security »   Presidential Campaigns »
   Immigration »   Technology »
   Labor »   Telecom and IT »
   Lobbyists »   Trade and Agriculture »
   Technology »  Oversight »
   Telecom and IT »   Administration »
   Trade and Agriculture »   Campaigns »
  Legislation »   Civil Rights »
   Administration »   Corporate Governance »
   Campaigns »   Defense »
   Civil Rights »   Economy & Budget »
   Corporate Governance »   Energy & Environment »
   Defense »   Foreign Policy »
   Economy & Budget »   Healthcare »
   Energy & Environment »   Homeland Security »
   Foreign Policy »   Immigration »
   Healthcare »   Labor »
   Homeland Security »   Lobbyists »
   Immigration »   Technology »
   Labor »   Telecom and IT »
   Lobbyists »   Trade and Agriculture »
You need Flash Player 8 (or higher) and JavaScript enabled to view this content

Get latest news from The Hill direct to your inbox, RSS reader and mobile devices.