We may have to hit them even harder: Trump warns Iran

President Donald Trump used a commencement address at the US Coast Guard Academy to praise the graduating class defend his administrations immigration and economic policies and issue fresh warnings to Iran saying Tehran would never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weaponAddressing the graduating class of 2026 in New London Connecticut on Wednesday local time Trump described the United States as the hottest country anywhere in the world and told cadets they were entering service at a moment of renewed American strengthWe will not let Iran have a nuclear weapon Thats all Its very simple Trump said They will not have a nuclear weapon and they want to make a deal so badlyTrump said the US had hit them very hard and added We may have to hit them even harder but maybe notThe President repeatedly linked the Coast Guards recent operations to US efforts against Iran illegal narcotics trafficking and maritime enforcement He said Coast Guard tactical teams had helped seize sanctioned Iranian oil vessels and claimed the service played an important role in Operation Epic Fury to ensure that the Iranian regime never obtains a nuclear weaponTrump also highlighted maritime interdictions and antidrug missions saying the Coast Guard had seized over 206 million lethal doses of illicit narcotics since he returned to office He called the service central to what he described as a maritime Wall of SteelIn remarks blending military praise with campaignstyle political rhetoric Trump attacked the previous administrations border policies claiming the US had gone from the worst border in history to the strongest border weve ever hadHe also promoted his tariff policies and manufacturing agenda saying We have 18 trillion being invested in our countryTrump argued that tariffs were bringing semiconductor and automobile manufacturing back to the United States Throughout the speech Trump frequently broke from prepared remarks to interact with cadets and praise individual achievementsHe recognised Distinguished Graduate Matthew Lanzilotta for achieving the highest military and academic scores in the class and invited fitness standout Thomas Rhodes to the stage after describing him as the only cadet to earn perfect scores on every fitness test for four consecutive yearsTrump also highlighted Mike Kedish whom he described as the first Coast Guard Academy graduate to ever go straight from the core of cadets into the Coast Guard special forces The President praised Coast Guard rescue operations during hurricanes and natural disasters and called the service the only service explicitly dedicated to saving livesHe said Coast Guard personnel had saved more than 5200 lives in the past year and assisted over 19000 people to safety Trump also announced major investments in Coast Guard infrastructure including new cutters helicopters and icebreakers He said the US was working with Finland to develop a larger fleet of Arctic icebreakersRussia has 48 and we have one very old one he said Were making 11 totalThe Coast Guard Academy in New London is one of the five US federal service academies and trains officers for the maritime branch of the armed forces Graduates are commissioned as ensigns in the Coast Guard upon completion of their studiesTrump who previously addressed the academy during his first term became the first US president to deliver a second commencement address at the institution During the speech he repeatedly praised the cadets discipline resilience and patriotism telling them You will fight fight fight and you will win win winThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever