Obama greets Marines on Christmas Day

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama on Tuesday continued their Christmas tradition of meeting with Marines stationed at a nearby base.

The president, on vacation in Hawaii, greeted service members and their families at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, delivering a short address and posing for photographs with the troops.

{mosads}“One of our favorite things is always coming to the base on Christmas Day and having a chance just to meet you, those of you who have families here, and to say thank you for the extraordinary work and service that you guys do each and every day,” said Obama.

The president told the military families that his “greatest honor” was being commander in chief.  

Obama also honored those troops still serving abroad.

“Obviously, we’re still in a wartime footing. There are still folks, as we speak, who are overseas, especially in Afghanistan, risking their lives each and every day,” he said. 

“It’s not easy.  But what we also want you to know is that you have the entire country behind you,” he added. 

Obama is scheduled to leave Hawaii on Wednesday to return to Washington and resume efforts to craft a deficit-reduction deal before January’s “fiscal cliff” hits.