Biden Says He Will ‘Never Politicize’ U.S. Troops In Pentagon Visit

“I will never dishonor you. I will never disrespect you. I will never politicize the work you do.” Joe Biden issued this statement during his first visit to the Pentagon as President of the United States. Biden’s remarks during his speech on Wednesday suggest that the new president’s military agenda differs from that of former President Donald Trump.

Biden discussed his commitment to diversity, and other topics, during the press briefing. “Right now, more than 40 percent of our active duty service members are people of color,” the president said. “It’s long past time that the full diversity and full strength of our forces is reflected at every level in this department.”

Biden recently overturned a ban, which barred transgender Americans from serving in the military. In discussing this recent move, Biden said, “This administration is dedicated to ensuring that every single person is treated with dignity and respect.”

The president also discussed his personal experience as the father of a late Iraqi-war veteran, Beau Biden. “This is personal for me. The Biden family is a military family,” he said. “We learned first hand some of what your loved one’s experience when Beau was deployed to Iraq. We dealt with the stress of his absence from the daily joys of life and we worried constantly about his safe return.”