WEST POINT, N.Y.—President Donald Trump returned to the Army’s United States Military Academy—known as West Point—on May 24 to deliver the graduation commencement address to the class of 2025.
Thousands in attendance roared in approval when the president appeared sporting a trademark red Make America Great Again hat.
“Follow your instincts and make sure that you take the path that you love, that you’re doing something that you love,” Trump said during the ceremony.
“You have to do what you love. If you don’t love it, you'll never be successful at it.”
The president addressed the graduating class at the University of Alabama on May 1, but the West Point speech is the first military commencement of his second term.
Trump last spoke at the prestigious academy in 2020 during the last year of his first term.
In his most recent address, he quoted a prior graduate, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, telling the corps to “think big.”
“If you’re going to solve a problem, it might as well be a big problem,” Trump said.
He also channeled golfing legend Gary Player with a call to prioritize work ethic.
“The harder you work, the luckier you’re going to get,” Trump said.
He reminded the cadets of the important role the academy played in the nation’s history.
World War I and World War II were won “right here from West Point,” Trump said.
He reminded the cadets that they are responsible for the success of future warfare operations and noted his administration’s $1 trillion commitment to bolster the military.
“The job of the U.S. armed forces is not to host drag shows, to transform foreign cultures, or to spread democracy to everybody around the world at the point of a gun,” Trump said. “The military’s job is to dominate any foe and annihilate any threat to America, anywhere, anytime, and any place.”
He said the Golden Dome missile defense shield will help protect the nation, forecasting its completion before he leaves the White House in 2029.
Trump highlighted two cadets for their exceptional performances and one for his family’s sacrifice and service, bringing the men up individually to greet them and allow them to address the crowd.
The president also granted amnesty to the cadets who were subjected to minor disciplinary infractions, regarding tardiness, uniform tidiness, and other violations.
Before the ceremony began, rain clouds overhead matched the uniforms worn by cadets as they joined the storied “long gray line” of past graduates.
But storms yielded to blue skies and bright sunshine as the festivities drew closer, with the audience applauding the change of weather that brought warmer temperatures.
The graduating class consisted of 1,002 cadets; approximately 82 percent of the students who enrolled four years ago.
The historic institution’s 227th group of graduates chose the motto “Together We Thrive.”
More than 300 graduating cadets have at least one parent who served in the U.S. military, and 81 are children of West Point alumni.
Cadet Dennis “Ricky” McMahon and his multi-generational military family, including his father Lt. Col. Michael McMahon, who lost his life in Afghanistan in 2004, were honored by the president during the event.
A gold chip from McMahon’s 1985 class ring was melted down with other past graduates’ for inclusion in the 2025 class rings.
“Each of you will carry Michael’s memory with you forever,” Trump said.
All 50 states are represented in the group of newly commissioned second lieutenants, with Texas’s 83 residents narrowly leading the pack over California’s 82, according to a statement from the academy.
International students—who will return to their nations for military service—numbered 14 and include citizens from Jordan, Nigeria, Peru, and Thailand, among other countries.
Members of the student body erupted in cheers when Trump said he had to leave to deal with China.
On his way out of the area, the president’s Marine One helicopter flew over the stadium as cadets were receiving their diplomas.
The class closed out the event by tossing their caps high in the air in a time-honored celebratory tradition.
Children then raced to the stage area to grab a souvenir, quickly donning the strewn caps, smiles and excitement visible across the stadium.
Tears of joy were seen streaming down the faces of graduates, family, and friends, when thousands of attendees joined the young officers on the field.
One attendee said she came to watch her nephew graduate.
“We’re just so proud of everything these ... dedicated military members have accomplished,” Catherine Jones told The Epoch Times. “These are the future leaders that will keep our country safe.”
