Trump praises US Armed Forces in Memorial Day message

"On this Memorial Day, we remember the fallen heroes who took their last breaths in defense of our Nation, our families, our citizens, and our sacred freedoms," Trump wrote. "The depth of their devotion, the steel of their resolve, and the purity of their patriotism has no equal in human history.

"On distant battlefields, in far-off oceans, and high in the skies above, they faced down our enemies and gave their lives so that America would prevail. They made the supreme sacrifice so that our people can live in safety and our Nation can thrive in peace. It is because of their gallantry that we can together, as one people, continue our pursuit of America's glorious destiny.

"We owe all that we are, and everything we ever hope to be, to these unrivaled heroes. Their memory and their legacy is immortal. Our loyalty to them and to their families is eternal and everlasting.

"America’s warriors are the single greatest force for justice, peace, liberty, and security among all the nations ever to exist on earth. God bless our fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Coast Guardsmen, Airmen, and Marines. We honor them today, forever, and always."

This came on the heels of a message released by Vice President Kamala Harris in honor of the weekend that simply said "Enjoy the long weekend" and had a picture of her face.

President Joe Biden gave a speech at Joint Base Langley-Eustice in Hampton, Virginia on Friday, and took the opportunity to comment about a little girl's barrettes and how she "looked like a 19 year old."

"I'm especially honored to share the stage with Brittany and Jared and Nathan and Margaret Catherine. I love those barrettes in your hair, man. I tell you what, look at her. She looks like she's 19 years old sitting there like a little lady with her legs crossed," said Biden.

Memorial Day is commemorated every year on the last Sunday in May, and is "a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America." The tradition began after the Civil War, and has been an essential date on the nation's calendar since then.

In May 1868, General John A. Logan's "General Order 11" proclaimed Memorial Day, originally Decoration Day, "for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet church-yard in the land."