COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France — President Trump delivered a powerful speech that wove personal stories and big ideals to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day but his thunder was stolen by the boisterous heroes he was there to honor.
More than 30 veterans were seated behind the president as he arrived to deliver his address at the Normandy American Cemetery which stands on a bluff above Omaha Beach, where some 32,000 U.S. servicemen came ashore.
“Hey, you’re our president, too,” shouted one of the veterans as Trump began shaking hands. “Come on up this way.”
They rose shakily to their feet to salute their president. Some grabbed his arm to make sure they could greet him properly, speaking close to his ear.
“There’s a lot of people back home in Pennsylvania that want to vote for you,” shouted another to peals of laughter.
It was a vivid reminder of the enduring spirit of what the president called the “greatest Americans.”
In his speech, Trump praised their bravery and heroism as he recounted how 7,000 vessels sailed with 130,000 American warriors from England to help liberate Europe from the Nazis.
“To the men that sit behind me and to the boys that rest in the field before me, your example will never grow old,” he said. “Your legend will never die.”
Their effort, he said, ensured a future for the United States and the “survival of our civilization.”
Remembrances took place throughout the day at military cemeteries along the coast where fallen soldiers were buried.
After 75 years, it marks one of the last times that veterans of the largest sea-borne invasion in history will be present.
Trump and Emmanuel Macron addressed a crowd at Colleville-sur-Mer, just above Omaha Beach where survivors said the golden sands turned red with blood on June 6, 1944.
The invasion proved a decisive moment, beginning the retreat of German forces back from the French coast all the way to Berlin.
Trump’s speech was punctuated with standing ovations as he introduced veterans with exceptional stories, such as Army medic Ray Lambert who at the age of 23 was one of only six men who made it from his landing craft on to the beach.
“He dragged out one man after another,” said Trump. “He was shot through the arm. His leg was ripped open by shrapnel. His back was broken. He nearly drowned.”
The crowd erupted in applause to honor the 98-year-old man who had worked through D-Day saving lives until he collapsed.
Trump’s trip to the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France has seen his hosts gently use the commemorations to underscore the importance of multilateral partnerships to a president who came to power with an America First message. He used his speech to issue reassurance.
“To all of our friends and partners — our cherished alliance was forged in the heat of battle, tested in the trials of war, and proven in the blessings of peace,” said Trump. “Our bond is unbreakable.”
In a sign of that bond, Macron awarded the Legion d’honneur, France’s highest award for merit, to five American veterans. He embraced each as he bestowed the honor.
“We know what we owe to you veterans: our freedom,” Macron said. “On behalf of my nation, I just want to say, thank you.”
The two presidents and their wives laid a wreath before a flypast of French and American warplanes.
The audience included visitors on World War II tours, locals who wanted to show their thanks to the American fallen, as well as some of the last living veterans of D-Day.
“I have all kinds of friends buried,” William Tymchuk, 98, told the Associated Press. He served with the 4th Canadian Armored Division which saw some of the heaviest fighting after the landings. “They were young. They got killed. They couldn’t come home,” he said.
Bob Crook, 63, a retired Marine on a Normandy tour with friends from Altoona, Pa., said: “They always say it was America’s greatest generation. It sure was.”
John Kerry, the former secretary of state, said his close family ties to the region — his mother’s home along the coast was destroyed by the Germans — meant the day was filled with meaning.
“But it’s about the bigger issue what was at stake at that moment, when tyranny, fascism, the lack of tolerance, when sectarianism and religious extremism and other extremes were being used to kill people,” he said.
“And this is about democracy and freedom and what it takes … what the price is that you have to pay sometimes — which is a good thing to remember as we think about some of the challenges that we face today.”
