President Donald Trump marked the nation’s 250th anniversary on Wednesday with a call for Americans to reconnect with the “indomitable spirit” that forged the country, delivering the message at the dedication of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota.

Speaking from the Burning Hills Amphitheatre in Medora, Trump praised the 26th president as the ultimate embodiment of that national character. “There could be no better place to begin this rediscovery than with the life, times and passions of Theodore Roosevelt,” Trump said in remarks broadcast live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 streaming platform.

The president painted a vivid picture of Roosevelt’s persona, describing him as a man whose very being radiated American confidence. “His chest swelled with American optimism, confidence, enthusiasm and pride,” Trump continued. “His heart beat with an unyielding sense of America’s destiny and pride.”

Trump arrived in North Dakota aboard the refurbished Air Force One jet, a Qatari‑donated aircraft featuring a new red, white, dark blue, and gold color scheme selected by the president. The jet will serve temporarily until Boeing delivers a new model in 2028. From there, Trump traveled by train adorned with red, white, and blue bunting and marked with “1776‑2026” to the library site, which is set to open Saturday. His motorcade was joined by horseback riders dressed as Roosevelt’s Rough Riders—the volunteer cavalry regiment Roosevelt led up San Juan Hill during the Spanish‑American War.

During his address, Trump reflected on Roosevelt’s deep admiration for Abraham Lincoln. “Abraham Lincoln was the person that he most respected, most admired, most looked up to,” Trump said. “He has a beautiful picture of Lincoln that he had in one of his rooms, one of his very important rooms where he lived. And it’s at the library.”

Trump credited Roosevelt with transforming the nation through sheer vision and determination. “By the end of [his] 60 years, TR had transformed his country by the reach of his vision … and by the force of his will into one of the greatest places, one of the greatest empires, one of the most incredible countries ready to take its rightful place as the strongest and most respected nation anywhere in the world.”

The president also distilled five key lessons from Roosevelt’s life: Americans should never surrender to defeat; a great and free nation must possess courage; the country thrives when it rejects failure and embraces merit; America must think on a grand scale; and Americans must stand united as one people. “Theodore Roosevelt understood that whatever our background, we are all Americans,” Trump said. “We’re Americans first, united under one flag, and we don’t wipe our hands on a flag.”

That last remark appeared to reference Darializa Avila Chevalier, the Democratic candidate running in New York’s 13th Congressional District, who has faced criticism over a 2019 social media post in which she reportedly wrote, “I forgot to get napkins so I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me.”

Trump also shared that he toured the library and even had a conversation with Roosevelt—at least in his imagination—about the Panama Canal. “I said, what did you think about the Panama Canal? Do you consider that your greatest achievement? How do you feel about the fact that the Democrats gave the Panama Canal away to Panama for $1?” Trump said, referring to former President Jimmy Carter’s implementation of the Torrijos‑Carter Treaties, which transferred canal control to Panama.

The president highlighted the canal’s staggering human cost and its subsequent value. “We lost 38,000 people building the Panama Canal — our people,” Trump said. “It opened and from Day 1, it was very successful. And we gave it away. It was the most expensive thing we ever built. And it was also the most profitable thing we ever built. That’s a nice combination.”