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Biden’s wife visits troops in Germany

BAMBERG, Germany — Jill Biden, the Second Lady of the United States, observed U.S. Independence Day by visiting American troops in Germany en route to an education conference in Paris.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s wife stressed Friday that supporting soldiers and their families was important to her work, as well as being a personal priority. Her stepson, Capt. Beau Biden, is serving in Iraq with the Army National Guard.

“I am a military mom,” she said after having lunch with soldiers and their families at the Army base in this Bavarian city. “I know what it’s like to have a loved one in a war zone.”

Biden chatted with half a dozen soldiers about their service and military life in Germany, a day before Americans mark Independence Day.

She said expanding services for children and families of soldiers who relocate frequently and more mental health programming were among initiatives she would like to see in the armed forces.

“Military families are under a lot of stress. Especially in a time of war,” Biden said.

Her husband made his first visit to Iraq as vice president Friday. The White House announced Tuesday that he had been tasked with overseeing the administration’s Iraq policy.

Jill Biden’s five-day visit to Europe, her first solo trip abroad since the inauguration, will lead her to a holiday softball game at an U.S. Army garrison in Schweinfurt, Germany, on Saturday.

The following day, Biden, an adjunct professor at Northern Virginia Community College and a teacher for more than 28 years, will travel to Paris to deliver a keynote address at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization conference on higher education.