AS US SEETHES OVER RACISM, TRUMP TALKS OF EVIL OF SLAVERY

WEST POINT: As the nation struggles to confront its complicated racial legacy, President Donald Trump preached unity to West Point graduates and told them never to forget the legacy of soldiers from generations ago who fought “a bloody war to extinguish the evil of slavery.’’

His appeal to reconciliation and remembrance came at a time when his own relationship with the military is under strain, and the commander in chief and Pentagon leaders have faced unrelenting criticism over their response to the protests that overwhelmed the country after George Floyd’s death.

Trump appeared to allude to those tensions as he addressed more than 1,100 graduates at an unusual outdoor ceremony held during a global pandemic.

“What has historically made America unique is the durability of its institutions against the passions and prejudices of the moment,” Trump said. “When times are turbulent, when the road is rough, what matters most is that which is permanent, timeless, enduring and eternal.”

In the past two weeks, Trump has yelled at defence secretary Mark Esper for publicly opposing his call to deploy active-duty troops to quell the protests stemming from the killing of Floyd, who was black, by a white Minneapolis police officer. AP