Hundreds of generals and admirals gathered on Tuesday to listen as President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered sprawling, campaign-style speeches that laid out talking points on cultural issues from the right.
Mr. Trump’s remarks at the event, a highly unusual gathering of commanders from around the world, often veered away from military matters. The president trumpeted positions he has assumed on an array of issues both foreign and domestic.
Addressing an auditorium of impassive uniformed officers, Mr. Trump spoke about topics including his deployment of the National Guard to American cities, his relationship with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, and nuclear weapons.
Here are five takeaways from Mr. Trump’s speech on Tuesday.
Trump repeated a familiar list of grievances.
Former President Joseph R. Biden was frequently mentioned by Mr. Trump. He assailed Mr. Biden’s tenure as a failed presidency that he used to emphasize what he views as his successes, particularly the lower number of migrants crossing the southern border.
Mr. Trump used his remarks to raise false claims that Mr. Biden’s aides had used autopen to approve pardons and sign executive orders on his behalf without actual authorization. He criticized the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan that occurred under his predecessor and blamed Mr. Biden for lower military recruitment numbers — a misleading claim that ignores an increase that began before Mr. Trump took office.
The president also falsely suggested that the U.S. military had not operated under a merit system but recruited and promoted “people that were totally unfit” because of “political correctness.”
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