Last Updated Jun 1, 2018 1:02 PM EDT
President Trump said the U.S. has never been more proud of the Coast Guard, during a change of command ceremony on Friday.
“I don’t think any brand has gained more momentum … than the United States Coast Guard,” Mr. Trump said, after praising their response to hurricanes last year.
“They’ve never seen a water dump like that I think in history,” Mr. Trump said of Hurricane Harvey in Texas.
The president lauded the Coast Guard for helping secure the nation’s border, stopping drug traffickers and saving lives. He also praised Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, saying she’s doing a “great job.” Recent reports claimed Mr. Trump berated Nielsen over illegal southern border crossings, reports she didn’t deny.
In the ceremony, Vice Adm. Karl Schultz replaced Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft.
The event comes on the day Mr. Trump is expected to receive a letter delivered by top North Korean official Kim Yong Chol. Chol spent Wednesday night and Thursday meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York. Pompeo says he still doesn’t know whether the summit will take place on June 12, but he said that “real progress” had been made. Mr. Trump is still hopeful a summit about denuclearization could take place as scheduled, after calling it off last week.
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