On November 11, 2025, President Trump and Vice President Vance attended the 2025 National Veterans Day Observation, co-hosted by the Veterans Administration, as distinguished guests (full video below) and co-hosted by AmVets (American Veterans org) the first WWII veterans group chartered by Congress. Each gave a short speech.
At about 16 minutes and 28 seconds into the video, the Vice President is introduced and gives a short speech:
Well, thank you, Doug. You're doing a great job at the VA. And I want to say just a couple things. I've learned a couple things from working so closely with the president of the United States. The first thing is that he loves our nation's veterans and has committed our nation's administration to putting our veterans first every single day. And the second thing I've learned about the president of the United States is that he really hates when somebody who's speaking before him goes on for too long. And so with that in mind, I have prepare prepared a very brief and very inspiring 1 hour and 45 minute speech on this beautiful Veterans Day out here in the cold. But let me just give three very brief messages.
First, to our nation's veterans, thank you. Thank you for serving and sacrificing. We've all got so many good stories of people that we served with over the years. During my four years of the Marine Corps, I met the very best of America. people who are willing to put on a uniform and risk their lives for their entire country. Just yesterday morning, I met people who lost limbs, who lost very, very important family members, who lost their psychological health going out there and serving the United States of America. So whether you gave a little bit or whether you gave a lot, every single person who put on the uniform of this nation deserves our gratitude on this day especially, but every day. And so from the vice president and the entire administration to our nation's veterans, thank you for your service. Thank you for your sacrifice and thank you for making us proud every single day.
The second message is to the nation's political leaders. I happen to believe that the most valuable resource that we have isn't the incredible wealth of natural resources of this country. As amazing as it is, the most important natural resource that we have is that we have hundreds of thousands of young people every single month who sign up to put on the uniform and risk their lives for their fellow citizens. That is a resource we cannot squander. That is a resource we must protect. And so to every elected official who's here today, our obligation, our sacred responsibility to our veterans is to make sure that the American military is the bravest and best fighting force anywhere in the world. And to make sure that every time we ask our nation's military to go off to war, we give them the training. We give them the resources. and we give them what they need to kick the enemy's rear end and to come back home safely and quickly. That is our obligation to you.
And my third and final message to the American people, I'm asked all the time how to best honor our veterans. And this day in particular gives you an opportunity. And it doesn't have to be difficult and it doesn't have to be complicated. If you find yourself at a restaurant this evening and you see somebody wearing a uniform, buy them a meal if you're able or buy them a beer. If you see a veteran of our nation's armed forces, if you know somebody in your family, give them a call and say thank you. I heard already this morning from my mother-in-law who sent me a message early California time and it touched my heart. Just knowing that we have loved ones who recognize our service, who care about it, and who care enough to go out and say thank you. So to the American people, if we want to keep on ensuring that the very best and brightest sign up for our military, the very best way to do it is to make sure that the veterans know that we are grateful to them.
That brings us to 20 minutes and about 26 seconds into the video where the Vice President introduces the President as the next speaker to great applause:
And so it's with great pride that I am introducing a man who is proud of our veterans, who fights every single day for the veterans, and who is proud to be the commander and chief of the United States Armed Forces, President Donald J. Trump.
At about 20 minutes and 57 seconds, President Trump takes the stage saying:
Thank you, JD. Thank you very much to our great vice president. It was a good decision I made.
This morning on these hallowed grounds where generations of American heroes rest in eternal glory, we gather to fulfill the sacred duty of every free man and woman. On Veterans Day, we honor those who have worn the uniform, who have borne the battle, who have stood to watch and whose ranks have formed the mighty wall of flesh and blood, bravery and devotion that has defended our freedom for 250 years.
Today to every veteran, we love our veterans. We say the words too often left unsaid. Thank you for your service. Thank you very much. And we want to also say thank you for carrying America's fate on your strong, very broad, proud shoulders. Each of you has earned the respect and the gratitude of our entire nation. We love you. We salute you. And we will never forget what you have done to keep America safe, sovereign, and free. Thank you very much.
And we're also honored to be joined by a great man. He will go down as a great man someday. Speaker Mike Johnson. Speaker, wherever you may be, speaker, we love you, speaker. There he is, right there. Good. Got a good location. He always gets a good location. And congratulations to you and to John and to everybody on a very big victory. We're opening up our country. Should have never been closed. Should have never been closed.
I want to thank Secretary Doug Collins who's outstanding, just done a fantastic job for the veterans. We have a 92% approval rating. We took that up from 38% from a certain previous administration that we won't mention. Also, Secretary of War, we like the sound of that better than the other. Secretary Pete Hegseth. Pete, thank you very much. Thank you, Pete. Great job. Our great Attorney General Pam Bondi. Pam, thank you very much. Thank you. Secretary Doug Burgum. Doug, thank you. Thank you very much for being here, Doug. The number one energy person anywhere in the world. Acknowledge. I was I was amazed that he took the job and he did it without hesitation. what he gave up, what Doug gave up, what all of them gave up, nobody would ever know. Secretary Chris Wright, number one anywhere in the world acknowledged. And drill, baby, drill, Chris, right? Drill baby drill. The energy prices are way down. They're going further. Secretary Linda McMahon, education, moving education back to the states. Linda, right? Getting it back to the states where it belongs. Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer. Thank you, Lori, very much. Director Russ Vought. Director, thank you. What a good job he's doing. Cutting, cutting, cutting, but fairly cutting. Director Tulsi Gabbard, thank you. Director Ambassador Jameson Greer, what a job he's done. We've taken in trillions of dollars in tariffs, and we want to keep it that way. It's been good for our country, I can tell you. including national security. General Dan Caine, General, thank you. He's a real general. And congratulations on wiping out the nuclear capability of Iran in about uh a matter of seconds once they got there. They traveled a total of 37 hours, but once they got there, they were very quick. And also to many other very distinguished guests, we have an amazing group of people. I would like to name every one of you, but I think a lot of people would be upset. It's a little cold.
The pages of American history are filled with the tales of titans, icons, innovators, and trailblazers who built this country into the greatest, most ambitious, and most prosperous nation the world has ever seen. And we brought it to new levels. I'll tell you, we were going in the wrong direction for a period of time. But we've never been hotter than we are right now. London is the hottest country anywhere in the world. Yet, every captain of industry, every pioneer of science, and every star whose brilliance has lit up the lights of Broadway all share one thing in common. They only had the chance to soar because the veterans had the courage to serve. They took care of those people. They took care of all the stars. The stars that you read about wouldn't be here without our veterans. Everything we have, everything our country has achieved has been purchased by the muscle, spine, and steel of the United States military. We owe it all to the fierce and noble men and women of the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, and the United States Marines.
Here's a guy. Our service members, our own words are the greatest possible tribute to their immortal valor. Shortly before the battle of Bull Run, Major Sullivan Ballou of Rhode Island became a big name, didn't he? Wrote to his dear wife Sarah. He said, "I know how great a debt we owe to those who went before us." He said, "And I'm willing, perfectly willing, darling, to lay down all my joys of this life to help maintain this government and to pay that debt." Just one week later, Major Ballou did just that. He gave his life to save our country. On the night before he jumped into the dark skies over Normandy on D-Day, Colonel Bull Wolverton knelt with his men in prayer. Our dear God, he said, "We ask only this, that we, if we die, we must die and we as men would die without complaining, without pleading and safe in the feeling that we have done our best for what we believed was right. We must do what is right." Colonel Wolverton, too, died for us so bravely in battle.
Today we remember with overwhelming gratitude the more than 1 million American service members who have made the supreme sacrifice and laid down their lives for the good old USA. Generation after generation, America's warriors have left behind the comforts of home and family to face violence, evil, and death so that our families could know joy, goodness, and peace. We honor them so strongly. Our heroes have lived through unthinkable nightmares so we could live the American dream. And the American dream is coming back again, stronger than ever before. And you'll see that as the next few years evolve.
They have volunteered to give their last breath to all of us so that we could breathe free. And today we know without any doubt in our hearts that after two and a half centuries, America stands tall because America's veterans stood so strong. And soon our country will be stronger than ever before. The American veteran has forged a legacy of gallantry and daring without parallel in human history.
In September 2009, Army Captain William Swenson was driving through the Afghan mountains when his convoy was ambushed by over 60 Taliban insurgents. He and his comrades were pinned down for hours without artillery or air support. A fellow soldier was shot in the chest and Captain Swenson crossed an open field to aid his brother in arms. People said, "Don't do it, Captain. Don't do it. He did it. When the terrorists closed in around them and demanded their surrender, Captain Swinson threw a grenade at the enemy and rallied his men to break their advance. He then carried the wounded soldiers hundreds of yards to a rescue helicopter before charging back three times back and forth, back and forth into the fire to save the wounded and bring them home. Even after seven hours of fighting, he refused to leave any man behind. Retired Lieutenant Colonel William Swenson is here with us in Arlington. And for his actions that day, he proudly wears the Congressional Medal of Honor. Colonel Swenson, thank you very much. Thank you very much. Please. Thank you. Thank you very much. the ultimate honor. Thank you.
Another person who shows the medal of the American veteran is [General] Dale Stovall. As an Air Force helicopter pilot in Vietnam, Captain Stovall was assigned to rescue a downed American airman deep in hostile territory. Despite the extreme peril, Captain Stovall took off in his HH 53C helicopter and soon came under intense fire, forcing him to turn back. But the captain refused to abandon his mission. The next day, he willingly plunged back into the danger while taking fire from all directions. He didn't have a chance, he felt, but he said, "I got to do it." He rescued the downed American pilot who had been stranded on the ground for 23 days and brought him back home alive, completing the deepest rescue behind enemy lines in the entire Vietnam War. For this and 11 other harrowing rescues, he was brave guy. Dale received the famous Air Force Cross and the Distinguished Flying Cross and two silver stars, making him the fourth most combat decorated Air Force Academy grad of all time. He retired as a brigadier general after 31 years of service. General Stovall, you are a legend. Please. Thank you, General Stovall. Thank you very much. Thank you. You look good, General. You look I wish I look that good. You look good. Thank you very much, General.
America's warriors never quit, never surrender. They fight, fight, fight, and they win. That's what we do. We win battles.
I, as a Veteran, and many Veterans I know, do not appreciate the idea of usurping Veterans Day with a "Victory Day." Veterans Day is to honor those who put their lives on the line 24/7 to protect our country from its enemies, both from without and from within; both Veterans who died (in service or after service), and those Veterans who are currently living. In my opinion, usurping Veterans Day is like a slap in the face to all who served and continue to serve. So, President Trump, I implore you to PICK A DIFFERENT DAY to celebrate war victories!
As you know, today is not only Veterans Day, but it's my proclamation that we are now going to be saying calling Victory Day for World War I, Victory Day. You know, I was recently at an event and I saw France was celebrating Victory Day, but we didn't. And I saw France was celebrating another victory day for World War II. And other countries were celebrating. They were all celebrating. We're the one that won the wars. And I said, "From now on, we're going to say victory day for World War I and World War II." And we could do for plenty of other wars, but we'll start with those two. Maybe someday somebody else will add a couple of more because we won a lot of good ones. But when I see other countries celebrating victory day, I watched it. I watched UK, I watched Russia, they were selling celebrating victory day, World War II, and I said, "We got to have a victory day." Nobody even talked about it in our country. But from now on, we're going to be celebrating Victory Day for World War I, for World War II, and frankly, for everything else.
Under the Trump administration, we're restoring the pride and the winning spirit of the United States military. That's why we have officially renamed the Department of Defense back to the original name, Department of War. And remember, we won World War I, we won World War II, we won everything in between, we won everything that came before. And then we brilliantly decided to change the name of this great this great thing that we all created together. And we became politically correct. We don't like being politically correct. So we're not going to be politically correct anymore. From now on, when we fight a war, we only fight for one reason, to win. We fight to win.
Under my leadership, we're also fighting for the great veterans who have always, always been there for us and especially when we needed them and needed them most.
In nine months, the Trump administration has cut the backlog of VA benefit claims in half. That's a big achievement. And Doug is going to get it down to zero. During the Biden administration, the backlog exploded like we had never seen before. And I'm going to eliminate 100% of that backlog. We're moving at that pace. And already, we've processed more than 3 million backlog claims, the most of any year in the history of the VA. We've added more than 1 million extra service hours across the VA centers. And we've opened 20 new facilities in 13 states. Something that people said just not possible to do. We also have brought back VA choice and VA accountability taken away by the Biden administration so that when you have to wait online, you go out and you get yourself a doctor. We pay for the doctor if you have to wait.
I have asked before, and I will ask again, how many of those "backlog claims" were returned either denied or demanding more information? The easiest way to clear backlog is to simply deny the claim. Just because claims are "processed" does not mean the Veteran received the appropriate judgement of the claim!
And the other thing is we fired thousands of people who didn't take care of our great veterans. They were sadists. They were sick people. They were thieves. They were everything you want to name. And we got rid of over 9,000 of them. And then when Biden came in, he hired them back, many of them. But we got rid of them. And I think we got rid of them permanently. We replace them with people who love our veterans, not people who are sick people.
In my November 7, 2025 ANP Article, I mentioned that a lawsuit was filed on November 4, 2025 against the VA for firing those people calling their firing "arbitrary and capricious" and asks that the action be stopped keeping those people from being fired. That lawsuit remains in the courts.
We're also confronting the challenge of veterans homelessness. And earlier this year, I signed an order establishing the National Center for Warrior Independence to house up to 6,000 veterans in need. And we will not stop until we have ended the tragedy of homeless veterans once and for all.
I'd see in New York where people that came into our country illegally, they came in illegally, would be put up in hotels and veterans would be sitting on the sidewalk outside of that hotel where these other people are put in. And many of the people that came in were put in from prisons. They were murderers. They were drug dealers. They were people that we didn't want in our country. They were staying in hotels, luxury hotels, and our veterans were sitting on the sidewalks watching them go in. I said, "That's never going to happen under this administration."
I also signed the VA Home Loan Program Reform Act because no veteran should be kicked out of their home for what they call a late payment. It's not happening.
And I'm pleased to report that since January, the veterans unemployment rate has fallen by more than 26%. That's amazing. Work hard on that.
And I also want to give a very special thanks to all of the veteran service organizations that work so hard. They're all represented here today, but they work so hard on behalf of our great veterans. And one of the heroes who reminds us of why we fight for those who served in uniform.
Army Major and West Point grad Jonathan Turnbull. In 2019, Jonathan was conducting an operation in Syria when a suicide bomber approached and detonated his vest, leaving Jonathan gravely wounded. So, so badly wounded, they thought he had no chance. The injuries were so severe the doctors gave him little time. They just looked they all cried. They knew him. They loved him and they were just crying. They said, "No chance." He was resuscitated three separate times and under he underwent 22 surgeries, but he refused to give up. He wanted to live. He loved his country. He loved his family. He wanted to live. He was going through hell. I visited Jonathan at Walter Reed in 2020, remembered so well. And today, I'm delighted to say that Jonathan is not only alive, he is here with us, back on his feet, and living a great life alongside his beautiful wife, Samantha, and their three incredible children, Jonathan, Samantha. Please, God bless you. God bless you. Thank you. Where are you? There he is. There he is. Beautiful. Thank you very much. Thank you. You're a tough guy. You're a tough one. Nobody could have gone through what you went through. He's doing good, isn't he? Huh, Samantha? Thank you very much both.
And in conclusion, from the very beginning of our country, our great American flag has always been shielded and protected by a special cast of citizen who has step forward to safeguard liberty's cause. When danger came, when duty called, when almighty God asked, who had the will and the strength to defend the land of the free, each and every American veteran stood up and said, "Here I am. send me. Here I am. They've come from every corner of this nation. From the cornfields of Iowa to the hills and valleys of California. From the steel towns of Pennsylvania to the vast plains of Texas. From the banks of the mighty Mississippi to the five burrows of New York City. With selfless commitment and unyielding conviction, they made themselves America's ramparts and became the shield between our homeland and those who would do us harm with everything they had. They did one thing above all else. They put America first.
On the decks of destroyers beneath the thunder of cannon fire and the cockpits of our beautiful B2 bombers. Aren't they beautiful? Now we respect them so much. What a job they did that in an instant completely obliterated Iran's nuclear capability of which we have just ordered I have to say many more of the updated versions of that incredible piece of art. They defended the American republic, dispensed American justice, crushed the enemies of freedom, and vanquished the forces of wickedness and evil. That's what we've been doing because of what every veteran has done.
Today, the flame of liberty shines bright. The people of our nation sleep safe. The American dream surges forward. And our magnificent destiny stands more splendid and glorious than ever before. So, I want to say thank you once again to every American veteran. You are very, very special people and always in our heart. Thank you very much and God bless you and God bless the United States of America. Thank you very much. Thank you everybody. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.
It is now day 43 of the Schumer Shutdown and the amended CR has been accepted by the Senate and has been returned to the House for a new vote because the Senate amended the House's original bill. Of course, November 11, 2025 was a Federal holiday, so Congress was not in session. However, Speaker Johnson did send out a recall to the entire House on November 10, 2025, so I suspect they will begin their process today, November 12, 2025.
November 12, 2025: Vista Equity Partners plans significant workforce cut, AI adoption.
November 11, 2025: Codexis switches CEOs as it lays off 24% of its workforce.
November 10, 2025: SKT to reduce workforce by up to 30%.
November 08, 2025: Gameskraft on laying off over 80% of its workforce.
November 07, 2025: Opendoor cleaned house, laying off more than 20% of its workers.
All the recent "promises" of an influx of capital in the form of manufacturing plants & AI complexes has not stopped the great bleeding of our businesses that employ so very many people. In addition, in some cases (especially within the tech industry) Americans are being fired so the business can hire lower-cost people from other countries (via the H-1B visa program). Proclamation 10973 Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers signed September 19, 2025 and discussed in my September 20, 2025 ANP Article. And the revisions President Trump has made to that program are currently being challenged in court:
Declare unlawful and set aside sections 1, 2, and 3(a) of the Proclamation;
Declare unlawful and set aside enforcement and implementation of sections 1, 2, and 3(a) of the Proclamation, including the requirement to make a $100,000 payment as a prerequisite to adjudicate an H-1B petition or as a condition for visa issuance or entry into the United States for H-1B beneficiaries;
Declare unlawful and set aside any agency guidance, procedures, or determinations made pursuant to, or in implementation of, sections 1, 2, and 3(a) of the Proclamation, including the Agency Policies;
Enjoin Defendants from requiring the $100,000 payment and from conditioning H-1B petition adjudications, visa issuance, or entry on such payment;
Order Defendants to process H-1B petitions under existing law, without the $100,000 payment condition;
Grant such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.
For the foregoing reasons, the Court concludes it lacks jurisdiction to grant Alawieh the relief she seeks in this action. Her First Amended Habeas Petition and Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief is, therefore, DISMISSED. Each party shall bear their own fees and costs.
The Twenty-First Amendment covering Repeal of Prohibition (18th Amendment discussed in my November 8, 2025 ANP Article), returning alcohol control to the States, was ratified December 5, 1933. It has 3 sections:
Section 1
The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.
Section 2 [Returns control of liquor laws to the States]
The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.
Section 3 [Fully ratified December 5, 1933]
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.
Those are some of the exact words used by Google’s censors, aka 'Orwellian content police,' in describing many of our controversial stories. Stories later proven to be truthful and light years ahead of the mainstream media. But because we reported those 'inconvenient truths' they're trying to bankrupt ANP.
