President Donald Trump speaks at the University of Alabama
President Donald Trump spoke at a pre-commencement event to graduates and supporters in Coleman Coliseum at the University of Alabama.
It appears President Donald Trump will be in New Jersey during Memorial Day 2025 weekend, concluding his trip with a commencement speech at West Point. The New York military academy was the subject of a scathing New York Times op-ed from veteran professor Graham Parsons who resigned amid an expansive educational overhaul of the school by the Trump administration.
Trump, who often ramps up his summer ventures to New Jersey once his Florida Mar-a-Lago club shutters for the season, is slated to speak to cadets on Saturday, May 24 before spending the remainder of the weekend at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster.
Here’s what you need to know about his visit to New Jersey, when and how to watch him speak at West Point, and why Parsons said he had to step down after 13 years of teaching.
When will Trump be in NJ?
President Trump is expected to arrive via Air Force One, touching down at Morristown Airport on Friday, May 23. He will more than likely stay at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, his “Summer White House,” through Sunday, May 25, according to a notice posted by the Federal Aviation Administration. It does not indicate he will stay on Monday, May 26, which is Memorial Day.
The early alert does not mention Trump, but indicates there will be VIP movement, which historically pertains to presidential level flight activity.
Where is Trump National Golf Club Bedminster? Here’s a map of Trump’s NJ home
Bedminster is in Somerset County in Central Jersey, roughly 40 miles west of Trump Tower in Manhattan. The township is 27 square miles and had a population of just over 8,100 in 2023, according to U.S. Census data.
Why is Trump at West Point?
President Donald Trump will give the graduation address for the Class of 2025 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point this year — a year after former President Joe Biden addressed the Class of 2024. In April, Trump said on Truth Social he had agreed to give the commencement address at two “really GREAT” schools, including at the University of Alabama, which he did earlier this month.
When is West Point graduation 2025? Here’s the date, time and how to livestream West Point 2025 graduation
Here are the graduation details for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point’s Class of 2025:
When: Saturday, May 24, 2025Where: Michie Stadium, the academy’s outdoor football stadiumTime: 10 a.m.Livestream: Will begin at 9 a.m., with a link that will be provided on West Point website. Several media outlets will also livestream the event.Did Trump graduate from West Point?
President Trump did not attend West Point, but did spend his high school years at New York Military Academy, which is near West Point, according to the New York Times.
Graham Parsons’ resignation: Why did West Point professor resign?
West Point philosophy professor Graham Parsons announced in a New York Times op-ed on May 8 he would resign from the academy. He criticized the school for changing its “core principles,” remarking how the Trump administration’s policies led to a “sweeping assault on the school’s curriculum and faculty members’ research.”
“Once a school that strove to give cadets the broad-based, critical-minded, nonpartisan education they need for careers as Army officers, [West Point] was suddenly eliminating courses, modifying syllabuses and censoring arguments to comport with the ideological tastes of the Trump administration,” Parsons wrote.
Parsons’ letter correlated to Trump’s recent executive order. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued a blunt response to the professor’s announcement on the X platform: “You will not be missed Professor Parsons.”
Lori Comstock is a New Jersey-based journalist with the Mid-Atlantic Connect Team.
