President Joe Biden shared a poignant yet harrowing story about his uncle, Ambrose Finnegan, who served in the military during World War II. Biden recounted how Finnegan's plane went down over New Guinea, an area known for its cannibalistic practices at the time, during a reconnaissance flight. Despite efforts to locate him, Finnegan's body was never recovered.
Biden's emotional recollection of his uncle's fate came during a visit to a war memorial in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where he paid tribute to Finnegan by touching his engraved name. The president expressed his family's enduring sorrow over the loss, noting that although parts of the plane were found, his uncle's remains remained unaccounted for.
According to the Pentagon's Defence POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Finnegan's plane crashed into the ocean off the coast of New Guinea on May 14, 1944, under circumstances that remain unclear. While one crew member survived and was rescued, Finnegan and two others were lost in the crash. Despite subsequent search efforts, no trace of the missing crew members or the aircraft was found.
Biden's recounting of his uncle's tragedy took on added significance as he criticized former President Donald Trump's reported remarks disparaging fallen US troops. Biden, visibly moved as he spoke about his late son Beau, a US Army veteran who passed away from brain cancer in 2015, condemned Trump's alleged disrespect for military service members.
Referring to Trump's reported decision to skip a military ceremony near Paris in 2018, Biden emphasized the solemn duty of a commander in chief to honor and respect the sacrifices made by service members. While Trump has denied making the comments attributed to him, Biden's impassioned defense of military personnel underscored his commitment to upholding their legacy and ensuring their sacrifices are never forgotten.
