Welcoming the new CINC.
Via WACH:
The Salute Our Armed Services inaugural ball was a star-studded affair on Friday evening, literally, with hundreds of military service members from four-star generals to cadets, to police officer and fire fighters.
Trump arrived at the ball around 11 p.m., to a rousing applause. “You are special people. You are great people. I have your back. We are going to do great things for our country,” Trump told the crowd. Troops deployed in Afghanistan, at the Bagram Air Base were hooked up to the event via satellite and gave their congratulations to their new Commander in Chief.
Prior to the ball, President Donald Trump met with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the heads of each military service branch. According to Adm. John Richardson, Chief of the Navy, the discussions allowed the new Commander in Chief and the heads of military get to know one another. More serious talks will follow, he assured.
The Senate also confirmed Gen. James Mattis to be Secretary of Defense, and Gen. John Kelly to be the Secretary of Homeland Security. “The generals get approved first. Maybe that’s the way its supposed to be,” Trump said.
Amid the crowds of hundreds of service members, veterans, first responders, and their families, was a who’s who of Trump’s national security team.
Gen. John Kelly, was just confirmed as the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security earlier this afternoon. He told Sinclair Broadcast Group, “I am am absolutely thrilled and honored to once again be serving the nation.”
As the Trump presidency gets underway in the coming weeks, Kelly is most excited about “getting to know the quarter-million professionals in the Department of Homeland Security.”
Gen. Mattis was surrounded by admiring service members, and received an overwhelming applause when Donald Trump announced his successful confirmation.
The military ball is one of only three inaugural balls that President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump attended, a decision that has sent a message to the attendees of the event. That message is that the new president will make the military a priority.