West Point cancels Tom Hanks ceremony, Trump applauds

President Donald Trump on Monday publicly applauded a decision by the West Point alumni association to call off a planned ceremony honoring actor Tom Hanks, framing the move as a rejection of what he called "woke" culture. The cancellation, announced this month after Hanks was named the year’s recipient of the Sylvanus Thayer Award, was to affect a ceremony scheduled for Sept. 25 at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

In a post on his platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, "Our great West Point getting greater all the time! has smartly cancelled the Award Ceremony for actor Tom Hanks. Important move! We dont need destructive, WOKE recipients getting our cherished American Awards!!!" He added, "Hopefully the Academy Awards, and other Fake Award Shows, will review their Standards and Practices in the name of Fairness and Justice. Watch their DEAD RATINGS SURGE!"

The alumni association said in an email to members that it would not hold the ceremony so the academy could "continue its focus on its core mission of preparing cadets to lead, fight, and win as officers in the world's most lethal force, the United States Army," according to a statement from Retired Army Col....