President Donald Trump has given a bullish Thanksgiving address to troops overseas, hailing progress in Afghanistan and against ISIS, and telling them they were fighting for "something real," including a stock market at record highs and his promised "big, beautiful fat tax cuts."
Speaking in a live video teleconference from Palm Beach, Florida, with military personnel serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere, Trump told them they were "very, very special people."
He called troops in Afghanistan "brave, incredible fighters" who had "turned it around" in the past three to four months.
"We opened it up; we said go ahead, we're going to fight to win," he said. "We're not fighting any more to just walk around, we are fighting to win."
Trump said the Marines were inflicting "defeat after defeat" on Islamic State, and again credited his change of approach compared to that of the Obama administration.
"They weren't letting you win before; they were letting you break even ... They weren't letting you win," he said.
Trump told the troops they could look forward at home to the benefits of "big, beautiful fat tax cuts," a stock market at record highs, jobs and economic growth.
"We're doing well at home, the economy is doing great," Trump said. "You're fighting for something real, you're fighting for something good."