Tim Kaine: “I rise to follow my leader and talk about this issue of great importance. Let me begin with something I cherish. I have…”

“I rise to follow my leader and talk about this issue of great importance. Let me begin with something I cherish. I have a photo, taken on December 1, 2016, of one of my children in snowy fields in Lithuania in a U.S. military operation with NATO troops called Operation Iron Sword. The photo is of my son taking the oath of office to become a captain in the United States Marine Corps. He was deployed with 1,200 members of his battalion on the border of Russia between the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea, to protect America against a nation that General Joe Dunford, the head of our Joint Chiefs of Staff, describes as our principal adversary. These 1,200 young men and women were deployed far from home, working together with a nation on the Russian border to protect them and to protect our country. My son was not alone with the Marines; there were also troops from many NATO nations and Lithuania and troops from other service branches of the United States. I hope you will forgive me for being a little bit Marine-centric. The Marine motto ``Semper Fidelis'' means ``always faithful,'' but I think that motto applies not just to marines but to all who wear the uniform in the United States, certainly those helping the European allies counter Russian aggression and those 1.3 million people on Active Duty today--``always faithful.'' After the last week, a very profound question has been raised.…”