Trump to Generals: I've Never Had Such a Silent Room

President Trump followed up defense chief Pete Hegseth's speech to the nation's top generals with one of his own, though he didn't lay out any new military initiatives. The president spoke for about 70 minutes and hit a wide range of topics. Some highlights via CNN, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and USA Today:

• Training grounds: Trump said he suggested to Hegseth that "we should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military," referring to places where Trump has authorized National Guard troops. "We're going into Chicago very soon," he added.
• Retaliation: Trump told the generals that if military vehicles were struck by bricks or other objects during protests, "you get out of that car, and you can do whatever the hell you want."

• Silence: Trump was struck by his silent reception at the start of his speech—the generals weren't sending a message, just sticking to military protocol. "I've never walked into a room so silent before," Trump said. "Don't laugh, don't laugh, you're not allowed to do that," he joked. "If you don't like what I'm saying, you can leave the room. Of course, there goes your rank, there goes your future, but you just feel nice and loose, OK?"
• Name change: Trump said he expected more pushback from Democrats over the decision to rename the Department of Defense the Department of War. He suggested he'd worn out his critics.
• Submarines: At one point, Trump recalled how he deployed two nuclear submarines near Russia after comments by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. "It was really a stupid person ... mentioned the word nuclear," he said. "I call it the n-word. There are 2 n-words, and you can't use either of them."