Hegseth appears to use D-Day speech to talk about immigration
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks ahead of a meeting with French Minister of the Armed Forces and Veterans on the sidelines of a ceremony marking the 82nd anniversary of the D-Day landings at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur
In a speech marking the anniversary of D-Day, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared to use the occasion to draw a parallel between the Allied liberation of Europe during World War II and immigration by sea.
What they're saying:
On Saturday, Hegseth said, "different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies."
"Beaches in Spain and Italy and Greece and Bulgaria. Boats and men arrive," he said, adding, "When will European capitals do something about that invasion? Or is it too late? I pray not, and I believe not."
Big picture view:
Hegseth’s comments came during an event to commemorate the 82nd anniversary of D-Day that was being held at the Normandy American Cemetery, in Colleville-sur-Mer, in northwestern France.
The backstory:
His speech did not use the word immigration. However, the description echoed criticism from the Trump administration toward Europe over immigration policies and its claims that far-right voices are being censored.
In December, the Trump administration raised fears that Europe faced the "prospect of civilizational erasure" and could be "unrecognizable" within 20 years.
The other side:
Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister’s office condemned Vice President JD Vance’s claim that immigration was to blame for the killing of Henry Nowak, despite the fact that Nowak and his attacker were both British.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from The Associated Press. This story was reported from Orlando.