President Donald Trump’s rambling commencement speech at the Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut was clouded by bizarre occurrences.
With several people needing medical attention and a deceptive mic check, the pre-ceremony festivities appear to have gone awry.
The day began with protesters gathered at the main gate into the Coast Guard Academy, with some holding signs reading “86 47,” a slang term commonly understood to mean to “get rid” of something that MAGA supporters have claimed is a call to assassinate the president.
One protester with a “86 47” sign told CT Insider that Secret Service approached him and asked him what his understanding of the phrase meant.
“It means to me what it means to 99 percent of the people in this country,” Connecticut resident Alan Jacques said. “Get rid of Trump, put him in the trash.”
“And it’s support for James Comey, who is being persecuted,” Kathy Jacques, Alan’s wife, added.
Former FBI Director Comey has been indicted by Trump’s Justice Department for posting a photo of seashells on the beach that spelled out “86 47,” which the DOJ has claimed was a threat to assassinate the president.
The term is commonly used in the service industry as a shorthand for getting rid of or canceling an order.
Secret Service agents also reportedly approached protester Janet Dassau, who was also holding a “86 47” sign.
“Get rid of Trump,” Dassau said when asked by CT Insider about the sign’s message. “Get rid of all his bad decisions, and all his lies and all his minions.”
When reached by the Daily Beast, the Secret Service declined to comment on the incidents. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
Several attendees also required medical attention before the ceremony began, as New London saw temperatures in the upper 90s on Wednesday. Many guests were seated in direct sunlight with little to no shade available.
Dozens of guests were seen using their programs to cover their heads or use them as fans. Some even put ice packs on their heads in an attempt to stay cool.
On top of that, around 10:00 a.m., a man walked onto the stage and confused graduates and others when he began singing the National Anthem into the microphone.
“O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming…” he sang, per CT Insider.
Some of the cadets and other uniformed staff saluted the man, but it soon became clear his tune was just a mic check.
Trump later took the stage as he delivered a long-winded, rambling address.
“We are a confident country again. We have confidence is back,” he told the graduates.
While the president veered away from the tradition of keeping the speech apolitical by airing out his own political grievances, he did give the graduates some advice: “Never, ever give up.”
“Never stop pushing forward. No matter how terrible the storm, no matter how difficult the mission,” Trump said. “Never surrender, keep going, keep fighting, and make the adversary quit first. Let them quit. They’re going to quit.”
