Thread by @USWPColby

On Saturday, I had the great honor to join @SecWar @MinisterVautrin and many distinguished civilian and uniformed leaders to commemorate the 82nd anniversary of D-Day at the American Cemetery at Omaha Beach. It was a stirring but also sobering reminder of the price of what General Eisenhower in his immortal message to the Allied Expeditionary Force called “security for ourselves in a free world.” 1/

I take it as a personal reminder of the importance of what we do. We must think clearly and soberly about building our strength and readiness in line with a wise and sound strategy, one that is clear-eyed and prepared to make difficult but needed changes. Our allies and we did not do that well enough before World War II. And courageous men paid the ultimate price to right that failure. 2/

Under @SecWar leadership, we are committed to living out the reality of that hard-won lesson. We are building our own military strength, revamping our defense industrial base, and enlisting our allies in getting back to the basics in the spirit of NATO 3.0. And that message is resonating. 3/3

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