Their buddies wrap them up in whatever passes as a shroud, puts them on a helicopter as a routine, and sends them home. Their first stop along the way is when they're packed in ice, typically at the airhead and then they're flown to usually Europe – where they're then packed in ice again and flown to Dover Air Force Base. Where Dover takes care of the remains, embalms them, meticulously dresses them in their uniform with the medals that they've earned, the emblems of their service and then puts them on another airplane linked up with the casualty officer escort that takes them home.

A very, very good movie to watch is 'Taking Chance' if you haven't seen it, where this is done in a movie, HBO setting. Chance Phelps was killed under my command, right next to me. It's worth seeing that if you have never seen it. So that's the process.

While that's happening, a casualty officer typically goes to the home very early in the morning and waits for the first lights to come on. And then he knocks on the door. Typically the mom and dad will answer. Wife. If there is a wife, this is happening in two different places. If the parents are divorced, three different places. And the casualty officer proceeds to break the heart of a family member. And stays with that family until, well, for a long, long time, even after the interment. So that's what happens.

Who are these young men and women? They are the best 1 per cent this country produces. Most of you as Americans don't know them. Many of you don't know anyone who knows any one of them. But they are the very best that this country produces. An they volunteer to protect our country when there's nothing in our country anymore that seems to suggest that selfless service to the nation is not only appropriate but required. But that's all right.

Who writes letters to the families? Typically the company commander – in my case as a Marine, the company commander – the battalion commander, regimental commander, division commander, secretary of defense, typically the service chief, the commandant of the Marine Corps, and the president, typically writes a letter. Typically the only phone calls a family receives are the most important phone calls they can imagine, and that is from their buddies.

In my case, hours after my son was killed, his friends were calling us from Afghanistan, telling us what a great guy he was. Those are the only phone calls that really matter. And yeah, the letters count to a degree, but there's not much that really can take the edge off what a family member is going through. So some presidents have elected to call. All presidents, I believe, have elected to send letters. If you elect to call a family like this, it is about the most difficult thing you could imagine. There's no perfect way to make that phone call.

When I took this job and talked to President Trump about how to do it, my first recommendation was, he not do it. Because it's not the phone call that parents, family members are looking forward to. It's a "nice to do" in my opinion in any event. He asked me about previous presidents. And I said I can tell you that President Obama, who was my commander-in-chief when I was on active duty, did not call my family. That was not a criticism. That was just to simply say I don't believe President Obama called. That's not a negative thing. I don't believe President Bush called in all cases.

I don't believe any president, particularly when the casualty rates are very, very high, that presidents call. I believe they all write. So when I gave that explanation to our president three days ago, he elected to make phone calls in the case of the four young men who we lost in Niger at the earlier part of this month. But then he said, you know, "How do you make these calls?" If you're not in the family, if you've never worn the uniform, if you've never been in combat, you can't even imagine how to make that phone call.

But he very bravely does make those calls. The call in question that he made yesterday, a day before yesterday now, were to four family members. The four fallen. And remember, there's a next of kin, designated by the individual. If he's married, that's typically the spouse. If he's not married, that's typically the parents, unless the parents are divorced and then he selects one of them. If he didn't get along with his parents, he'll select a sibling.

But the point is the phone call is made to the next of kin only if the next of kin agrees to take the phone call. Sometimes they don't. So a pre-call is made: 'The President of the United States or the commandant of the Marine Corps, or someone would like to call. Will you accept the call?' And typically they accept the call. So he called four people yesterday and expressed his condolences the best way he could.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481181)

thought of all the IDF brehs who have died.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481210)

fuck CNN. CNN is inflicting severe pain just for eyeballs and to help the DNC. fuck them.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481224)

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/19/john-kelly-frederica-wilson-trump-243956

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481258)

lol THIS is who is upset? jfc

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481265)

He can't help but make a dig at Trump so that he doesn't look like a sycophant.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34481470)

Go to reddit if you want libs to suck your dick and virtue signal.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34482127)

Khan's argument was: If Donald Trump was President 10 years ago, my son wouldn't have been killed in a war that wouldn't have existed [because Trump opposed it] because he never would have been allowed in the country due to the Muslim Ban.

Wut? It's so convoluted and forced. It's not a legitimate argument. It was strictly a "here is a military Muslim family to yell at Trump" ploy from the Dems.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34483692)

National politics often isn't about detailed consideration of points. It's about aesthetics more often. On one side was Khan the Muslim waving the Constitution. He was addressing Trump on the other side. Trump embodies taking a harder line on Muslims including Muslims in the US with surveillance of mosques. It comes down to which side you are on. Take a harder line because of terrorism or be more inclusive and look at the contributions of Muslims like Khan's son.

It was appropriate given the context and so did not seem shameless.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34501905)

I watched this press conference on CNN and immediately after they had some dumb mom of a fallen serviceman come on and talk about how offended she was because a relative said to her at the funeral “he knew what he was getting into.” They just totally fucking ignored what Kelly had to say and the import of Trump’s comments to the wife. Shame on all of them. They’ll just keep parroting their (((message)))

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34482092)

Here's a question for you: so what? Let's say he reviles Trump. So what? Why does that make it right for the media frauds to behave this way?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34484042)

Holy shit

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34482371)

*General Kelly returns to his home planet, never to be seen again*

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34482527)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34483121)

MY Call from the president

MY dead husband

MY

MY

MY

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34483051)

FUCK LIBS THIS DUDE NEARLY BROUGHT ME TO TEARS.

I WOULD FOLLOW THIS GUY INTO BATTLE

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34483167)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scWDnXC7w1o#t=19m48s

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34483713)

kinda puts life in perspectiv

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34484610)

They are literally traitors who should be strung up.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=3768881&forum_id=2#34484649)