Donald Trump used his Freedom 250 Fourth of July address to boast about US military operations, claiming that the militaries of Iran and Venezuela were 'wiped out.' The president addressed a massive gathering in Washington DC after severe weather forced a two-hour evacuation of the National Mall.
Trump's Military Claims
Upon taking the stage, Trump declared: 'We're doing better now than we ever have before. All over the world they try to be like us - no-one can be like us. Live free or die.' He continued: 'All these talks from the communists, they haven't got a chance. We don't want communists in our country. Never worked and it never will work.'
Trump specifically cited Venezuela and Iran: 'You look at Venezuela, you look at Iran, we wiped it out. We wiped out their military.' He added: 'Our recent victory... sinking the entire Iranian ships to the bottom of the sea. All done in just a moment's time, happened very quickly. We have the greatest military anywhere in the world.'
Second Amendment and Veterans
Trump also discussed protecting the second amendment, the right to bear arms, during his presidency. Chants of 'USA, USA, USA' erupted repeatedly throughout the address. The president introduced multiple American war veterans and flags from various periods during his speech. He described communism as 'like a cancer' and insisted 'you have to cut it out fast.'
Weather Delays
Extreme weather conditions disrupted America's 250th independence anniversary celebrations, with storms forcing a roughly two-hour evacuation of the National Mall. Attendees were commanded to evacuate immediately, with Secret Service agents shouting 'move, move, move' at those hesitant to depart. Trump posted on social media: 'I'm not going to let some rain stop our 250th,' confirming his intention to proceed with his speech. Addressing the crowd, he said: 'You heard it was over and what happened? You came back.'
