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I recently returned from commemorating the 82nd Anniversary of D-Day in Normandy—a much anticipated trip since I participated in the 80th Anniversary. I left with a sense of humility and gratitude for having walked the hallowed grounds of Normandy, and with admiration for the Greatest Generation and their sacrifices and actions that changed human history. The connection with Americans, grateful Normans, Europeans who still remember all too well the war, and participants from all over the world who were all there to mark this historic event was remarkable.
Normandy is a place for deep connections. I stood in the door of a vintage C-47 flying low over La Fière Drop Zone listening to the engines roar. Eighty-two years earlier, young paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne jumped into the darkness, many landing in flooded fields or directly into the path of German fire. In the clear light of that June morning in 2026, the hedgerows and pastures looked deceptively serene. What did those young paratroopers see and feel as they jumped into the unknown?
I had the chance to revisit Omaha Beach. The sounds of the waves on that rocky beach can be surreal, an echo of history. If you’ve been there, you remember it. I wondered whether those waves sounded exactly the same on June 6, 1944 as young soldiers and sailors endured withering fire from German positions and refused to be turned back—their sacrifice and refusal to fail now legendary.
In the square of Sainte-Mère-Église, the energetic heart of every Normandy commemoration, I looked up at the church steeple where a mannequin still marks the spot where John Steele hung entangled 82 years ago prior to being captured by the Germans. I imagined the dark sky filled with silk canopies and German ground fire as American paratroopers fought to secure the first town liberated in Normandy and as long-suffering and hopeful Normans awaited the outcome.
Those images are powerful. Normandy is a place that both haunts and inspires, and it invites reflection. It is a powerful reminder of the immeasurable human suffering caused by tyrants and extraordinary cost of freedom. It is hard to visit without connecting with that past; the courage and resilience of the occupied and oppressed, and the audacity and selfless sacrifice of the liberators.
There are so many other images there that make those connections—the American Cemetery with endless rows of white crosses, Pointe du Hoc rugged cliffs and Ranger Monument, Pegasus Bridge, the La Fière causeway and bridge, and many others. Given the scale of D-Day, almost every town, village, beach, road, and bridge witnessed thousands of human stories that shaped the outcome—some well-known, many now faded into history.
The memories and lessons of Normandy transcend time. The threats confronting America today are different from those of 1944, but several enduring lessons remain relevant.
American Leadership Matters
There are things that only America can do, alliances that only America can lead, and geopolitical outcomes that only America can achieve. Eighty-two years ago, the world faced a dangerous shift in the global order. American leadership in WWII was decisive—not only in securing military victory, but in establishing a new world order that has endured for 82 years.
No other country then or now could have led such a global effort, and it cemented America’s emergence as a superpower. Threats in Europe and the Pacific have new faces, but American leadership is as vital today as it was then. Like the authoritarians of that era, Russia and China are actively working to reshape the current world order to their advantage. Both are moving to fill perceived vacuums created by shifts in America’s global posture. Only America can lead the effort to deter them.
If the current world order is to survive and prosper, American leadership on the global stage remains essential.
Alliances Win
America’s leadership role in WWII was crucial, but so were the contributions of its allies and partners. British and Canadian forces played vital roles in D-Day. The French Resistance fought bravely and enabled the work of the American OSS and British SOE. The Soviet Union—then an ally of necessity, now an adversary—played a key role in defeating Nazi forces on the Eastern Front, while other nations—including Poland, Norway, Belgium, and France—made meaningful contributions.
The Allies clearly needed America to enter the war in Europe, but America clearly needed a strong alliance to ensure victory. Global competition has changed—our adversaries are fighting a different war—but reliable partners are still important. Today, alliances are less about planning invasions and more about deterring authoritarian aggression, and building a competitive edge across military, economic, technological, information, and cognitive domains.
America needs its partners. In return, those partners look for a strong and trusted America. Filling that role must remain a national priority.
America’s Story and a National Purpose
Great nations need more than military power to prevail; they also require a compelling national purpose. WWII roused America from its isolationist slumber. The brutal occupation and oppression across Europe, combined with the surprise attack at Pearl Harbor, shattered America’s belief that it could keep major wars at a distance. Powerful themes emerged that were necessary to mobilize an entire nation: “Arsenal of Democracy”, “Four Freedoms”, and the call to defeat fascism.
These ideas fueled a national call to arms, unprecedented mobilization, and prepared America for rationing at home, mass deployments overseas, and the loss of so many Americans who would not return home. America had a compelling national purpose, and it communicated that purpose through a powerful national narrative—we might call that narrative America’s Story. That story included ideals of freedom, democracy, collective security, and the promise of a better postwar order that enabled America to forge and unite an alliance that had previously faltered. That same narrative power remains essential today.
Our adversaries, who seek to reshape the world order, understand the power of America’s story and are working to tell their version of it to their advantage. A persuasive, authentic national narrative—America’s Story—is a national imperative.
Warfare Remains a Human Endeavor
D-Day was a remarkable display of technological innovation. Some technologies were used for the very first time or the first time under such extreme combat conditions. Notable successes, such as the Mulberry Artificial Harbors, the PLUTO undersea fuel pipeline, and improved electronic capabilities that enabled unprecedented coordination of Allied air power played key roles.
Even the highly successful deception operation, Operation Fortitude, relied on technological advancements in jamming and radar deception. In contrast, swimming tanks, gliders, and pathfinder equipment—also rushed into service to achieve surprise and an early advantage—did not meet full operational expectations.
Ultimately, capitalizing on technological advances and compensating for technology failures required human innovation and decisions at the speed of war. In the end, the human dimensions of D-Day—judgment, decision-making in the face of uncertainty, problem solving, detecting and countering deception, courage, and resilience—played a greater role than technology in winning the day and securing victory in Europe.
This is still true today even as AI, robotics, cyber, cognitive tools, and other technologies accelerate the evolution of warfare. A risk is that humans cede decision-making to technology in exchange for greater speed and precision at the expense of judgment, leadership, ingenuity, and moral responsibility. Walking Normandy and seeing the impacts of these human dimensions remind us that while technology, geopolitics, and adversaries change, the human qualities that ultimately shape history do not.
It is these human qualities—not technology itself—that remain America's enduring strategic advantage.
My sincerest thanks to Liberty Jump Team, Corsicana Texas, for an exceptional visit to Normandy for the 82nd Anniversary of D-Day. I’m definitely looking forward to the 83rd.
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