Latest news with #TrumpSpeech
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
British Harvard student, 20, 'who Donald Trump targeted in speech' opens up about fears for his future after US President cut off visas
A British Harvard student who believes Donald Trump targeted him in his explosive speech has opened up about fears over his future. Alfred Williamson, 20, has been studying for a double major in physics and government but his stint at the prestigious US university has come under threat after the President cut off visas for international students. The Welsh-born student currently lives in Copenhagen and despite a Boston judge's decision to temporarily block Trump's ban, he does not rate his chances of making a swift return to the Ivy League campus. Williamson also reckons that the President singled him out while announcing his 'dehumanising' immigration measures. 'They're taking people from areas of the world that are very radicalised and we don't want them making trouble in our country,' Trump said earlier this week while pledging to slash Harvard's overseas student intake from 31 per cent to 'around 15 per cent'. 'I saw yesterday that in the middle of the UK, there was a nice young man who wants to go back to school at Harvard and he looked good to me but I want to check.' Williamson told The Times: 'He likely was referring to me, since most students from the UK haven't been as vocal because they're scared of being targeted. But it's impossible to know.' The student has positioned himself in sharp contrast with some of his quieter colleagues, taking part in protests on campus with the Harvard Students for Freedom group. He said he would be particularly quick to speak out against the moves if they ended up blocking his Palestininian and Pakistani friends from coming to the US. Williamson has thought about returning to the UK to study at Oxford or Cambridge but explained that he is determined to remain at Harvard. He added that Trump's policies had actually served to unite typically disagreeing political camps within the university, in opposition to the measures. Many students have said they are worried about complaining, for fear of being targeted by the U.S. authorities, and while Williamson said he shared those fears, he felt he had an obligation to speak out. 'When people start to self-silence, we are no longer living in a democracy,' he told Reuters in Copenhagen on Wednesday. 'For me, it's absolutely critical that I voice my opinion so that we preserve these values that America was founded on. In fact, the ideals of freedom and rights.' Since taking office in January, the Trump administration has repeatedly attacked Ivy League schools, accusing Harvard of fostering violence, antisemitism and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party, without providing evidence. Last week, his administration revoked Harvard's ability to enrol international students and said it would force current foreign students to transfer to other schools or they would lose their legal status, in a dramatic escalation of the dispute. 'When the news hit, I was in complete and utter shock,' said Williamson, an undergraduate who is working towards a double major in physics and government and who described his first year as the best year of his life. 'I didn't know how to respond; I didn't know what to feel; I didn't know what to think; I didn't know if I'd be an illegal immigrant suddenly, or as they describe people like us, aliens. It was very devastating news.' Harvard, where international students make up more than a quarter of enrolment, filed a lawsuit last week challenging the order. A federal judge has issued a temporary two-week injunction, but the uncertainty persists. Williamson said he hadn't heard anything about his visa, but knew that some classmates had struggled to get renewals. He said he appreciated Harvard's response, and the support it had shown to international students at the university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump's most prominent institutional targets. 'That's the only way you can deal with someone like Trump,' he said. 'He will make demand after demand. One demand will turn into three, and three will turn into five.' But he said the current situation is deeply uncomfortable: 'We're being used like pawns in the game that we have no control of, and we're being caught in this crossfire between the White House and Harvard, and it feels incredibly dehumanising.'
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
How long will it be before Melania steps aside for MelanAI?
I imagine students at the US Military Academy at West Point are trained to handle unexpected situations, but I'm not sure anyone could have prepared them for the bonkers speech Donald Trump delivered to graduates on Saturday. I wish I could point you to a government transcript, but the White House recently started removing official transcripts of the president's public remarks, replacing them with curated videos instead. I imagine (just a hypothesis!) that this is to make Trump seem more coherent. One of the 'highlights' of the disjointed ramble Trump delivered at West Point was his thoughts on trophy wives: 'I must tell ya. A lot of trophy wives, doesn't work out [sic],' he mused in the middle of an anecdote about a divorced real estate developer (not him). This has raised a few eyebrows; particularly as Michael Wolff's 2018 book about Trump claimed the president used to boast that Melania was his 'trophy wife.' I don't know if Trump ever really thought that Melania was some sort of compliant accessory to be paraded around. If he did, I'm sure he's now seen the error of his ways. Melania has made it clear to everyone that she is unbothered, unbossed, and entirely uninterested in pretending to care about either her husband or her role as first lady. It's claimed that as of early May, Melania had spent fewer than 14 days at the White House. Trump is her useful idiot husband, she's not his trophy wife. Melania is certainly collecting her own trophies, however. I've got to hand it to the woman: she's mastered the art of making enormous amounts of money with the minimum amount of effort. Last year, she released what columnist Pamela Paul described as a 'book-adjacent object' titled Melania, which one imagines she did not write herself. Last week, she announced that the audiobook was narrated with an AI-generated version of her voice. Now we've officially got an AI Melania voice, can it be long before we get a full-on MelanAI? A realistic AI-powered robot who does all the boring first lady things that Melania clearly hates doing – and doesn't swat Trump's hand away in public.
Fox News
5 days ago
- General
- Fox News
Jasmine Crockett mocks Trump West Point speech quipping 'get him some ADHD medicine'
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, had harsh criticism of President Donald Trump's West Point commencement speech on MSNBC Sunday. MSNBC host Alex Witt asked Crockett to respond to clips from Trump's speech at the United States Military Academy at West Point over the weekend. In response, Crockett said the speech proved Trump was not qualified to be commander in chief and compared him to someone out of an "insane asylum." "He literally sounds like someone who has broken out of the insane asylum," Crockett said. "Like he'd just be all over the place. Like, get him some ADHD medicine, if nothing else, because I don't know where he's ever gonna go." She argued the graduates, the troops, the country and the world "deserve better" and called on Republicans to intervene and begin questioning Trump's mental capabilities. "It is time for Republicans to start calling him out and start questioning his mental acuity and whether or not he is equipped to serve mentally. We know when it comes down to his criminality, he is not qualified to serve, but this is just deplorable," Crockett said. Trump spoke to the 1,002 graduating cadets of the West Point Class of 2025 in New York on Friday. During his speech, he railed against previous foreign policy initiatives and announced a $1 trillion military buildup. The speech marked the first military commencement address of Trump's second term. Crockett and Trump have frequently traded barbs as the former rose to become a prominent figure in the Democratic Party. On her X account, Crockett has gone as far as to label Trump a "buffoon" and a "mofo," the abbreviated version of the word "mother---er." Earlier this month, Trump called Crockett "low IQ" and mocked the idea of her being the future of the Democrats.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump Couldn't Resist Shading Biden in Solemn Memorial Day Speech
President Donald Trump couldn't get Joe Biden off his mind on Memorial Day. The president took a veiled swipe at his predecessor while delivering an otherwise solemn speech honoring fallen soldiers, just hours after he launched a fresh Truth Social tirade against Biden. Trump opened his remarks at the Arlington National Cemetery with a tribute to the servicemen laid to rest there, but things quickly took a turn. 'Those young men could never have known what their sacrifice would mean to us, but we certainly know what we owe to them,' he said. 'Their valor gave us the freest, greatest, and most noble republic ever to exist on the face of the Earth, a republic that I am fixing after a long and hard four years. That was a hard four years we went through.' The crowd broke into applause as Trump went on—but even he seemed to acknowledge that it wasn't the right time to hash out old grievances. 'Who would let that happen? People pouring through our borders unchecked, people doing things that are indescribable and not for today to discuss,' he said. 'We're doing so very well right now, considering the circumstances… We will do better than we've ever done as a nation, better than ever before. I promise you that.' Trump's brief segue into politics in the middle of his speech appeared to be a continuation of his early Monday morning post on Truth Social, where he fumed at Biden and the judiciary in an all-caps rant. 'HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY TO ALL, INCLUDING THE SCUM THAT SPENT THE LAST FOUR YEARS TRYING TO DESTROY OUR COUNTRY… THROUGH AN OPEN BORDER THAT ONLY AN INCOMPETENT PRESIDENT WOULD APPROVE,' he wrote. Biden's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast. Trump also accused 'USA-hating' judges, many of whom have blocked the implementation of his sweeping agenda, of being 'on a mission' to keep alleged criminals in the U.S. 'HOPEFULLY THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT, AND OTHER GOOD AND COMPASSIONATE JUDGES THROUGHOUT THE LAND, WILL SAVE US FROM THE DECISIONS OF THE MONSTERS WHO WANT OUR COUNTRY TO GO TO HELL,' he said. Trump used his speech to tout a multimillion-dollar military parade honoring the Army's 250th anniversary, which is set for his birthday next month. 'In some ways, I'm glad I missed that second term where it was because I wouldn't be your president for that,' he said, drawing laughter from the audience. 'Can you imagine I missed that four years, and now look what I have. I have everything. Amazing the way things work out. God did that.'
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Trump peppers Memorial Day speech with personal boasting and partisan attacks
Donald Trump honored the sacrifices of US military veterans in the traditional presidential Memorial Day speech at Arlington national cemetery, but also peppered his address on Monday with partisan political asides while talking up his own plans and achievements. The US president laid a wreath and paid tribute to fallen soldiers and gave accounts of battlefield courage as tradition dictates, from prepared remarks, after saluting alongside his vice-president, JD Vance and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, who both served in Iraq. But Trump also veered off into rally-style personal boasting and brief partisan attacks during the solemn event. 'Those young men could never have known what their sacrifice would mean to us, but we certainly know what we owe to them. That valor gave us the freest, greatest and most noble republic ever to exist on the face of the earth,' he said of those killed in military service. Then he went on: 'A republic that I am fixing after a long and hard four years. That was a hard four years we went through.' The president continued with an anti-immigration statement that chimes with his agenda, though without directly mentioning his predecessor, Democratic president Joe Biden who served between Trump's first term and the Republican's return to the White House this January. 'Who would let that happen? People pouring through our borders unchecked. People doing things that are indescribable and not for today to discuss,' Trump said. It was a nod to his Truth Social platform on Monday morning where he posted a tirade against judges who hold up his deportation aims, chiefly because of his ignoring due process obligations, as 'monsters' and again attacked undocumented immigrants, using sweeping disparagements. At Arlington, he added, to cheers from supporters in the crowd: 'We will do better than we've ever done as a nation, better than ever before. I promise you that.' Drawing attention to airmen lost in a raid over Vietnam and to a soldier lost to a suicide bombing in Iraq, while family members listened to the speech at the cemetery on the outskirts of Washington DC, Trump said: 'These warriors picked up the mantle of duty and service, knowing that to live for others meant always that they might die for others. They asked nothing. They gave everything. And we owe them everything and more.' 'The greatest monument to their courage is not carved in marble or cast in bronze – it's all around us, an American nation 325 million strong, which will soon be greater than it has ever been before,' he said. 'It will be.' He also used the solemn occasion to promote the celebration next month of the US army's 250th anniversary, which he said 'blows everything away, including the World Cup and including the Olympics, as far as I'm concerned'. Both events – the soccer World Cup next year, and the next summer Olympics in 2028 – are set to be held in the US within the span of Trump's second term. Trump said: 'We have the World Cup and we have the Olympics. I have everything. Amazing, the way things work out. God did that – I believe that,' he remarked of the timing. He added that 'in some ways I'm glad I missed that [consecutive] second term' because then he wouldn't have been president for these milestones. He then returned to honoring fallen soldiers. Trump also said on Monday he is considering taking a further $3bn of grant money away from Harvard University and giving it to trade schools across the US, while a former president of Harvard and current professor there, Drew Gilpin Faust, warned that American freedoms and democracy were at risk. At Arlington, Hegseth referenced men who sacrificed their lives for the nation but made no reference to women. Hegseth has systematically and bluntly attacked all diversity efforts in the US military. Vance, however, noted that the national cemetery is the 'eternal resting spot for our nation's sons and daughters'. Trump has previously attracted heavy criticism for various actions and remarks that were disrespectful to fallen and wounded military veterans.
