Most First Ladies Wear Combat Boots, Some Don’t!

Courageous first ladies have visited war zones since the 1940’s. This article refers to them all as first lady because it references the time while they were in office. As a point of fact, Michelle Obama never visited U.S. troops overseas and Hillary Clinton claimed to visit a war zone by using a narrative which has been proven to be false. As of December 2018, Laura Bush is the only living former First Lady who visited a war zone while in office. Most recently, First Lady Melania Trump visited the troops in Iraq for Christmas. It’s important to recognize and remember these outstanding first ladies.

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s WW2 Tours in the 1940’s

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt traveled to England in 1942 to meet with American and British troops. Roosevelt visited the South Pacific in 1943 to build troop morale including the Guadalcanal. While there, Roosevelt joined troops in a bomb shelter during an air raid alert. Roosevelt traveled heavily during 1944 to bases in the Caribbean islands. However, she took criticism for traveling during wartime when others were limited. It’s estimated Roosevelt visited with over 400,000 troops in her travels.

Pat Nixon Visits South Vietnam in 1996, Literally in the Line of Fire

In 1969, Pat Nixon was the 1st First Lady to enter an active combat zone. President Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon took a dangerous trip to South Vietnam attempting to build moral. While visiting an Army hospital, Mrs. Nixon spoke to many wounded patients. Pat also visited an orphanage during the trip. When leaving the orphanage Nixon lifted off in an open-door helicopter which flew over the jungle where U.S. troops were fighting. Mrs. Nixon stated that she experienced fear going into the combat zone. Historian Carl Sferrazza noted, “Pat Nixon was literally in the line of fire.” undoubtedly, a harrowing experience for Pat Nixon.

First Lady Barbara Bush Visits Saudi Arabia in 1990

In 1990, President George Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush visited Saudi Arabia just prior to Operation Desert Shield beginning. The Bush entourage traveled from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf. Marine One helicopter transported the first family during the visit. President George and Barbara Bush had Thanksgiving dinner with the troops two times during their visit. The Secret Service and press accompanied the first family in helicopters armed with 50-caliber machine guns. Barbara Bush stated the trip was “pretty exciting and pretty moving.” Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf said the Bushes’ visit was “wonderful for the troops.”

First Lady Hillary Clinton’s False Narrative About Bosnia in 1996

In 1996, First Lady Hillary Clinton traveled to Bosnia where hostilities had ended several months earlier. While running for President in 2008, Clinton made false claims regarding her trip to Bosnia. Clinton stated, “I remember landing under sniper fire. There was supposed to be some kind of a greeting ceremony at the airport, but instead we just ran with our heads down to get into the vehicles to get to our base.”The Washington Post debunked this claim immediately providing a video of the event. The Clinton campaign also touted her trip was the “first since Eleanor Roosevelt that a first lady traveled to a potential war zone.” This claim was also debunked by the Washington Post and assigned four Pinocchio’s for the Tuzla tale.

First Lady Laura Bush Visits Afghanistan in 2005

According to White House archives, First Lady Laura Bush first visited Afghanistan in 2005. Mrs. Bush landed at a U.S. military base near Kabul and traveled with a heavily armed entourage to various destinations. Laura Bush praised the courage of Afghan women and pledged help from the U.S. for the war-torn country. At a training institute sponsored by the U.S. government, she met with teachers and students. Bush also toured a women’s dorm at the University of Kabul and met with the first lady of Afghanistan, Zinat Karzai. Under heavy security and short on time, she ended her first visit by having dinner with the U.S. troops.

In 2008, Laura Bush was accompanied by a special team of secret service members who flew with her to Bamiyan Province. Mrs. Bush and her entourage flew over one hundred miles on a U.S. Army CH-47D Chinook heavily armed helicopter from Kabul having to employ combat flying techniques to reach their destination. White house correspondent Mark Knoller reported Mrs. Bush saying, “You know, I’ve kind of gotten used to flying on Marine One, but it’s not every day you get to ride in a helicopter staffed by the men and women of the 101st (Airborne) and that was really pretty terrific.” Mrs. Bush clearly spent some time in a combat zone while being the First Lady.

First Lady Melania Trump Visits Iraq for Christmas 2018

First Lady Melania Trump became the only First Lady to visit Iraq since the war started over 15 years ago. President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania departed Christmas night from Washington. They landed at Al Asad Air Base on Wednesday the 26th under blackout conditions for security reasons. The Washington Examiner reported, “Melania Trump’s trip to Iraq marked first war zone visit by a first lady in over a decade.” President Trump and the first lady received a warm welcome from the troops. During a speech with hundreds of troops present, first lady Melania Trump expressed her gratitude and thanked them for their service to our country.

President Trump and the First Lady took photos and signed memorabilia for the troops. While speaking, President Trump expressed his concerns about putting his wife’s life in danger. He stated, “I had concerns for the first lady, I will tell you.” After spending several hours in Iraq, the president and first lady departed to Germany to visit troops while refueling.

Fake News Backfires on MSM

Since 2016, the fake news has falsely criticizing President Trump for not visiting the troops during Christmas. On December 25, 2018, NBC published this article titled “ Trump becomes the first president since 2002 not to visit troops on or before Christmas.” One of many articles by the left wing media which are completely false! President Trump and Melania Trump both visited troops at Walter Reed Hospital during Christmas in 2017. President Trump has made many phone calls to veterans and their families since 2016.

Sadly, main stream media continued to smear President Trump and the First Lady with fake news. However, they failed to mention that former President Barack Obama and Michelle never visited the troops in a war zone during Christmas. In fact, Michelle Obama never visited a war zone in 8 years. The Obama’s spent their Christmas holiday’s in Hawaii which cost taxpayers an estimated 35 Million dollars over 8 years. President Trump and Melania spent Christmas day at the White House, then traveled to Iraq unannounced to the press.

While fake stories were circulated, President Trump and the First Lady were already in Iraq. Soon as the Fake News discovered the president’s location they tried to change the narrative. Immediately, CNN and the left wing media attacked the president for signing hats for the troops. They criticized the First Lady for wearing combat boots. Reporters from Fake News CNN and guest Democrats criticized the troops for showing support for President Trump and the First Lady while in uniform. The D.O.D. and military responded saying there was no violations of the U.C.M.J. The main stream media and radical Democrats tried to ruin Christmas. However, their actions made them look despicable instead.