Barack Obama stood before the 200 graduates at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. They may have been sitting there, in their crisp white uniforms, but they would soon go out and enforce maritime law, command ships and lead search and rescue missions. What words could the commander in chief give these graduates that they could take to heart as they serve their country? Obama said, “I’m here today to say that climate change constitutes a serious threat to global security, an immediate risk to our national security. And make no mistake, it will impact how our military defends our country. And so we need to act — and we need to act now.” Instead of mentioning the growing threat of ISIL that will be around longer than his administration, instead of warning about Russia’s belligerence, Obama tried to connect his longtime environmental crusade with national security. In fact, he blamed climate change for civil war in Syria: “Understand, climate change did not cause the conflicts we see around the world. Yet … [i]t’s now believed that drought and crop failures and high food prices helped fuel the early unrest in Syria, which descended into civil war in the heart of the Middle East.” Obama’s address was full of lies. This speech merely diverted from his failed security policies to focus on his socialist climate change agenda.

Update: In his speech, Obama said, “[W]hat we also know is that severe drought helped to create the instability in Nigeria that was exploited by the terrorist group Boko Haram.” But in an email to The Patriot Post, meteorologist Joe Bastardi says that claim is simply unfounded: “Rainfall in Nigeria and where Boko Haram operates has been well above normal the past 10 years, blatantly opposite of his statement.”