WEST POINT, N.Y. — "No task has ever been too tough for America's Army, and now that 250-year legacy of glory and pride belongs to you," President Donald J. Trump told more than 1,000 cadets while delivering the commencement address to the 2025 graduating class of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., on Saturday, May 24, 2025. "You are the greatest fighting force in the history of the world."
The president noted that each cadet on the field could have taken an easier path.
"You could have done anything you wanted. You could have gone anywhere. You could have gone to any school. … [But instead], you chose a life of service," Trump said.
The president urged graduates to savor the moment, but warned against complacency.
"You can never rest on your laurels. You can never give up. You can have great moments," he said.
"Through every challenge and every battle, you'll stand strong, you'll work hard, you'll stay tough and you will fight, fight, fight and win, win, win," he added.
Highlighting the importance of innovation in modern warfare, Trump cited historical figures like Billy Mitchell, an early advocate for airpower, and former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was once nearly threatened with court martial as a young officer for promoting a new doctrine of tank warfare.
"You have to have the courage to take risks and do things differently," he said.
The president emphasized the need for forward-thinking leaders and innovators because the battlefield is changing rapidly in light of emerging threats, including hypersonic weapons and advanced drone warfare as demonstrated in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
"We've never seen anything like it, and we're learning from it," Trump said of the latest warfare technology.
He also praised the class for its accomplishments, noting that nearly a third of the graduating cadets are children of veterans and that four cadets are Rhodes Scholars.
Last year, for the first time, Army lacrosse became the No. 1 ranked men's team in the entire country, he said.
In football, Army beat Navy in 2022 and 2023, with the help of quarterback Cadet Bryson Daily, also known as "Captain America," Trump said, inviting him to speak on the stage.
"At a time when other top college quarterbacks were thinking about going pro, Bryson's mind was on something else," Trump said. "As he told an interviewer earlier this year, 'I focused on my career as an infantry officer.' That's what he wants to do. So, Bryson, he did the right thing."
Trump also mentioned getting rid of distractions to focus on warfighting and lethality, recruiting successes, sealing the Southern Border and advancing the Golden Dome initiative to protect the homeland from aerial threats.
Yesterday, Vice President JD Vance delivered the commencement address to the 2025 graduating class of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
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