President Trump on Wednesday traveled to Delaware’s Dover Air Force Base to observe the dignified transfer of U.S. service members killed in the war with Iran.
Three of the Army soldiers died after Friday’s Iranian drone attack at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan: 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii; Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas; and Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of New York City.
Another, Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, died Sunday following the controlled detonation of a downed Iranian attack drone at Erbil Air Base in Iraq.
The latest deaths bring the U.S. toll in the war to 18, and more than 500 have been wounded in action.
Mr. Trump and first lady Melania Trump were previously at Dover in March, when they joined the dignified transfer for six U.S. service members killed in an Iranian drone strike in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, during Operation Epic Fury.
Before Wednesday’s visit, Mr. Trump announced on Truth Social he was heading to Dover to “honor our heroes!”
Polls show a majority of Americans oppose the war. But speaking to reporters before his trip, he shot down the idea that Americans are against the war, arguing they are against higher gas prices and Iran getting a nuclear weapon.
He also said attending the dignified transfers for the families is “one of the hardest things to do as president — but it has to be done.”
A White House official said Mr. Trump would “privately meet with the families of our fallen heroes” before the dignified transfer.
Asked what he would tell the families, the president said, “All I am going to say is we love you, we love your child. There is no games, no nothing, and all you can do is throw out your heart.”
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