Joe Biden marks national day to honor Vietnam War vets: He and First Lady visit memorial to those who died in conflict he avoided with student deferments
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden made a brief visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to observe National Vietnam War Veterans Day.
The first lady laid down a bouquet of white flowers at the base of one section of the black granite memorial wall.
The first couple then moved to another section of the wall where they both used white paper to trace a veteran's name. The name of the soldier was Dennis F. Shine, the White House later said.
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Monday to mark National Vietnam War Veterans Day
President Joe Biden is seen making a tracing of a veteran's name at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Monday
The first couple left a bouquet of white flowers at the base of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Monday to mark National Vietnam War Veterans Day
First lady Jill Biden lays flowers at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in honor of Vietnam War Veterans
President Joe Biden (left) and first lady Jill Biden (middle) walk alongside the reflective Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Monday
A reflection of President Joe Biden is seen from the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C., Monday
As President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden left the White House for the brief excursion, a handler was walking Major Biden outside
Spectators on the National Mall cheered for the president and first lady, according to the White House pool report.
Neither of them spoke.
Unlike his sons, Biden never served in the military.
He never was drafted to serve in Vietnam, because he had five deferments when he was a college and a law student, and then a medical exemption.
In 2008, when he was running for president a second time, a spokesperson said Biden was 'disqualified from service because of asthma as a teenager.'
Biden's trip to the National Mall followed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough, who visited earlier Monday.
In a video message that he tweeted, McDonough also showed footage of the Vietnam Women's Memorial, which isn't as widely known as the large wall.
'Not everybody knows this memorial is here, it's very powerful, very moving and it's a very fitting, at the end of women's history month, that we just stop here for a moment to pay our respects also and express our gratitude on behalf of a grateful nation to the women veterans from the Vietnam War - to say to them thank you,' McDonough said.
The first couple, both wearing masks, braved the chill for the ceremony remembering the Vietnam vets
Spectators on the National Mall cheered for the president and first lady, according to the White House pool report
Unlike his sons, Biden never served in the military. He never was drafted to serve in Vietnam, because he had five deferments when he was a college and a law student, and then a medical exemption
The first couple later moved to another section of the wall where they both used white paper to trace a veteran's name. The name of the soldier was Dennis F. Shine, the White House later said
Biden's trip to the National Mall followed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough, who visited earlier Monday
The women's memorial is a statue that shows three women caring for a wounded soldier.
Biden traveled to the National Mall at a time when the National Park Service is trying to keep crowds away, as it's 'peak bloom' for the cherry blossom trees that line the Tidal Basin and are present in nearby parks.
Traffic to a portion of the Tidal Basin has been cut off to decrease the number of people traveling down to the area as public health experts warned Monday of increasing COVID-19 numbers.
Biden's travel to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wasn't listen on his official schedule.
As the White House pool reporters were being loaded in van, journalists spotted Major Biden, the president's rescue dog, being walked on the South Lawn.
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