Trump praises US troops in Thanksgiving message

President Donald Trump highlighted how the US military was "really winning" since he took office as he spoke to five branches of the military serving overseas via satellite on the occasion of Thanksgiving Day, the media reported.

After sending out two tweets on Thursday praising his own administration, Trump addressed the troops stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey, Bahrain and on the USS Monterey from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida where he is spending Thanksgiving with his family.

In the teleconference, Trump told members of the US Army's 82nd Airborne Division stationed in Afghanistan: "Everybody is talking about the progress you've made in Afghanistan since I opened it up, and you've turned it around in the last three-to-five months like nobody has seen," CNN reported.

Trump also spoke directly to a Marine Corps unit serving in Iraq, thanking them for their efforts against the Islamic State (IS) terror orgainsation.

"What you are doing with IS is again being talked about -- with armed forces, we're really winning. We know how to win, but we have to let you win. You weren't winning before. They were letting you play even. We want to let you win," Trump said, referencing to his predecessor Barack Obama's administration.

At various times during the conference Trump contrasted his own leadership with that of Obama: "They say we've made more progress against IS than they did in years with the previous administration, and that's because I'm letting you perform your job.

"We're very very proud of you. Everybody in this country is watching and they are seeing positive reports for a change. Instead of the neutral and negative reports."

Later on Thursday, the President and First Lady Melania Trump visited members of the US Coast Guard and their families stationed at Coast Guard Station Lake Worth in Florida, reports CNN.

Speaking to the attendees, Trump called meeting with the troops an "honour" and thanked the Coast Guard for the work they did saving stranded people in the hurricanes in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico this year.

"You saved 16,000 lives. Nobody knows that."

He also commented on the "Cajun Navy" civilians who take their boats out in hurricanes.

"I still haven't figured out how people take their boats out in to a hurricane.

"There is no brand, of any kind, not just talking about a military brand, that has gone up more than the Coast Guard," Trump added.

Thanksgiving is celebrated in many countries but is a national holiday in the US and Canada. It is a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest.

--IANS

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