VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Vice President JD Vance visited Naval Air Station Oceana on Wednesday to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.
The visit is meant to highlight “the Trump administration’s efforts to support American warfighters and veterans,” according to a press release sent to News 3.
Before Vance took the stage, Rep. Jen Kiggans and Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins delivered remarks.
“We’re celebrating the greatest military in the world, we’re celebrating the greatest Navy in the world, if you don’t believe it, just ask folks that have to face us,” Collins said.
Collins expressed gratitude for the service members, thanking them for “projecting peace.” He went on to add that the Trump administration is working to make sure veterans are well taken care of after they’ve completed their service.
After taking the stage, Vance immediately joked about his plans to keep his speech non-partisan. He suggested that he could have made fun of former President Joe Biden’s tenure in office.
The vice president went on to praise the service members at Naval Air Station Oceana and the surrounding military community in Hampton Roads. Specifically, Vance shouted out Carrier Air Wing 8 for their 11-month deployment, which saw service members supporting “Operation Epic Fury” against Iran.
The ongoing negotiations with Iran were touted by Vance, who then criticized the media’s coverage of this development. The vice president said President Donald Trump has differentiated himself from previous administrations in his foreign policy. He added that the Trump administration has been negotiating from a position of strength.
“I think that you deserve to have a clearly defined objective, I think you deserve to have a president of the United States who believes in you and gives you the weapons to win. And I believe that you have a presidential leadership today that will never ask you to go to war unless he’s telling you why your going to war,” Vance remarked.
Vance went on to praise the efforts of both Kiggans and Collins, saying they have been “rockstars” for service members.
The vice president then shifted the focus of his speech to America’s upcoming semiquincentennial anniversary, saying these celebrations wouldn’t be happening without the U.S. military.
“I want to say as we get ready to celebrate 250 years of great American history, I want you all to know that that celebration belongs to you, as much as it belongs to anybody in the United States of America. For 250 years, it is people like you, who have put on the uniform of the United States of America and made sure that our Constitution actually has meaning,” Vance said.
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