Rebecca Schneid
President Donald Trump returned to the United States Military Academy at West Point on Saturday to give the commencement speech to the graduating class of 2025. Adorned in his trademark “Make America Great Again” hat, Trump spoke to the 1,002-strong class for just under an hour.
During his address, he lauded the United States Army as the “greatest and most powerful Army the world has ever known.” Beyond this, he stated that he is the one responsible for the Army’s might.
“And I know because I rebuilt that army, and I rebuilt the military,” Trump told the crowd. “We rebuilt it like nobody has ever rebuilt it before in my first term.”
Trump went on to push his American-first ethos, saying: “We’re getting rid of the distractions and we’re focusing our military on its core mission: crushing America’s adversaries, killing America’s enemies, and defending our great American flag like it has never been defended before.”
In his rally-style speech, Trump celebrated the achievements of the students, while also lauding his own presidency—including his cracking down on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.
West Point has found itself in the center of the DEI-related pushback, especially related to the banning of books and educational programs that the Trump Administration says promote DEI.
In February, West Point disbanded its Society of Black Engineers club as well as multiple other clubs listed under “affinity” groups on the club directory. This followed Trump’s Jan. 20 Executive Order titled “Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing” and a Jan. 21 Executive Order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.” A subsequent Jan. 29 instruction from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth saw the announcement of a new task force.
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