'We need you badly': Biden gives first commencement address as commander in chief at Coast Guard Academy Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY What to watch next Replay Video UP NEXT NEW LONDON, Conn. – President Joe Biden challenged the U.S. Coast Guard Academy’s graduating class on Wednesday to “go out and be the future” in a rapidly changing world. “We need you badly – that’s not hyperbole,” he said. “You’re ready.” Biden’s address to the 240 men and women in the academy’s graduating class marked his first commencement address as commander in chief. As a bright morning sun beamed down, Biden saluted as he began to walk through the cordon of cadets that stretched across nearly half of Cadet Memorial Field to get to the outdoor stage. Soon after Biden took his place on the unshaded stage, cannons were fired 21 times.