SPEAKING beneath the iconic granite carvings of four former US presidents in Keystone, South Dakota, US President Donald Trump said the country must remain “big, bold, noble, and great” while portraying progressive political movements as a growing threat to national stability.
“We stand beneath the monument of these heroes, a true group of unbelievable people, and we rededicate ourselves to being a nation as big, bold, noble, and as great as these American giants, and that's not easy to do, but we're going to do it,” Reuters cited him saying.
He went on to warn of what he described as ideological extremism emerging within the country.
“There is now a resurgence of the communist menace in our land, including from newcomers to our country who embrace ideas totally opposed to our way of life and our great success,” he said. “We're not going to let this happen.”
Trump also tied his remarks to immigration, suggesting that “newcomers” were contributing to the ideological shift he criticised, and indicated that such individuals should be removed from the country.
“We resolve and swear for all to hear that the citizens of the United States of America will vanquish communism quickly ... We will send them quickly away, and we will continue to build our country bigger and better, stronger than ever before. America will never be a communist country!” he said.
The president’s remarks come amid a series of recent Democratic primary victories by progressive and democratic socialist candidates in several US states, including New York, Colorado, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Trump has previously described those electoral outcomes as “the greatest threat to our country since its founding”, and reiterated concerns about their political impact ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
He also linked the ideological debate to broader electoral strategy, warning Republicans to remain vigilant ahead of November’s midterms.
“We can only lose the midterms if we allow ourselves to lose the midterms,” he said.
The speech was delivered as the United States prepared for Independence Day celebrations, with Trump later scheduled to address a separate event on the National Mall amid extreme heat conditions affecting large parts of the country.
At Mount Rushmore, however, temperatures were comparatively mild, recorded at around 18 degrees Celsius. - July 4, 2026
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