In a few days, the nation’s capital will host its largest military parade in decades — filled with thousands of marching soldiers, rows of tanks, parachute jumps and flyovers.
Although Trump’s birthday is not officially linked to the festivities, a large-scale military parade has been on the president’s wish list since his first term. ”
Here’s a by-the-numbers look at the upcoming military parade in D.C. and the key events that led up to it.
July 14 Trump’s interest in a massive military parade appeared after he attended France’s Bastille Day parade in 2017.
The Bastille Day parade is considered one of the biggest and longest-running military parades in Europe.
With thousands of marching soldiers, rows of tanks, parachute jumps, and flyovers, the nation’s capital will host its biggest military parade in decades in a few days.
Saturday’s event is the U. S. . The 250th anniversary of the Army. It also falls on Flag Day and the 79th birthday of President Trump.
A parade was considered more recently, but the Army has been planning a celebration for more than a year. A massive military parade has been on the president’s wish list since his first term, even though the celebrations are not officially connected to his birthday.
We’re going to have a grand military parade in Washington, D.C. “Like no other,” Trump stated in an earlier-this-month Instagram video.
At one point, the president is supposed to receive a folded American flag, but Trump is expected to watch the day’s events from the sidelines. Considering that it is customarily offered to the families of the deceased at military funerals, such a move would be unusual.
Although smaller parades at the town level are more typical, large-scale military parades have not been a part of American tradition outside of war victories and presidential inaugurations.
Some Democratic lawmakers have criticized the parade since it was announced, calling it a waste of money and a vanity project. The display of military power unnerves other critics.
This is a statistical analysis of the forthcoming military parade in DdotC. and the major occurrences that preceded it.
$25 million to $45 million.
Army spokesperson Heather J. estimates that the elaborate military parade and celebrations will cost between $25 million and $45 million. Hagan. The cost of fixing D.C alone could amount to millions of dollars. streets, as roads are often damaged by tanks and other large armored vehicles.
The cost of the military show is “peanuts compared to the value of doing it,” according to Trump, who stated this last month in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press.”. “..”.
“The world’s best missiles are ours. Our submarines are the best in the world. Our army tanks are the best in the world. The best weapons in the world are ours. We will also celebrate it,” he continued.
Six thousand.
It is anticipated that over 6,000 soldiers from all Army divisions will take part in the parade. Members of the Army Reserve, Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), Special Operations Command, West Point, and the National Guard will also be on display.
Earlier this month, Hagan announced that in addition to troops, the parade would include an estimated 50 aircraft, 150 vehicles, 34 horses, two mules, and one dog. The dog, a Blue Heeler named Doc Holliday, is from the 1st Cavalry Division Horse Cavalry Detachment at Fort Cavazos, Texas, and has been a regular at military parades and festivities.
Animals have been crucial in many wars, according to Peter Mansoor, an Ohio State University professor of American military history. Dogs have assisted in detecting explosives. Ammunition has been delivered by mules to units in challenging and mountainous terrain.
“It could have been done with soldiers, but at much greater cost,” Mansoor stated.
The Army’s Golden Knights demonstration parachute team, based at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, is scheduled to make a jump to end the parade, according to member station WUNC.
July 14.
Following his attendance at France’s Bastille Day parade in 2017, Trump showed an interest in a large military procession. Honoring the storming of the Bastille prison in Paris in 1789, a significant event close to the beginning of the French Revolution, the holiday is celebrated on July 14 every year.
According to Trump’s 2017 statement, “It was truly a beautiful thing to see, with a lot of planes flying over and a lot of military might.”. “They had representatives in various uniforms and from various wars. It was incredibly well done. “.”.
Among Europe’s largest and most established military parades is the Bastille Day procession. CNN reported in 2017 that during Trump’s visit, the two-hour show included 241 horses and almost 100 aircraft. According to the U.S., over 3,700 people came to the parade as well. S. Command over Europe.
Historians disagree, however. S. In order to disassociate themselves from Cold War foes like China, North Korea, and Russia, the former Soviet Union, where military parades are emblems of state power, presidents have frequently shunned such events.
Michael Beschloss, a presidential historian, previously told National Public Radio that President Dwight D. Eisenhower was approached by White House officials in the 1950s about holding a military parade similar to that of the Soviet Union, but he turned them down.
In 2018, Beschloss stated, “Eisenhower said absolutely not, we are the pre-eminent power on Earth.”. “We would appear weak if we attempted to mimic what the Soviets are doing in Red sq\.. “..”.
2018.
In 2018 for Veterans Day, Trump was the first candidate to compete in a grand military procession. In order to minimize damage to city streets, that event was planned without tanks. The parade was eventually called off, but it was still anticipated to be expensive.
Trump accused D.C of causing the cancellation. and claiming that the local government overcharged the federal government to hold the parade in the city. D.C at the time. Police costs alone, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser, would total $13 million.
According to some estimates, the total cost could reach $92 million, as NPR later reported, although Jim Mattis, the defense secretary at the time, denied that amount.
1, 800.
on the same day as D.C’s military parade. more than 1,800 cities nationwide are anticipated to host “No Kings” events, which are primarily protests, to protest what the group claims are anti-democratic policies of the Trump administration.
The No Kings website stated, “On June 14th, we’re showing up everywhere he isn’t—to say no thrones, no crowns, no kings.”.
The group also organized nationwide demonstrations on President’s Day and in April to protest a number of Trump’s promises and policies, including mass deportations, a significant reduction in the federal workforce, and cuts to funding for federal programs and research projects.
No Kings stated in a statement posted on the campaign’s website that it purposefully decided against holding a rally in DdotC. The major flagship march will instead be held in Philadelphia “to draw a clear contrast between our people-powered movement and the costly, wasteful, and un-American birthday parade in Washington,” according to the event’s organizers.
Trump said earlier this week that protesters who attempt to interfere with Saturday’s celebrations will suffer severe repercussions.
“For those who wish to demonstrate, they will encounter a great deal of force,” he informed reporters from the White House. “And I’ve never even heard of a protest, but you know, these are people who despise our nation, and they will face extreme force. “,”.
1992.
The final military procession to drive through DdotC. occurred in 1991 as a celebration of the Gulf War’s conclusion and the success of Operation Desert Storm.
More than 200,000 people lined the streets as about 8,800 troops marched. To make it easier for tanks to pass, street lights were removed along the parade route at the time.
Within George H., there was a fairly heated argument. W… Joshua Zeitz, a historian and contributing editor for Politico, inquired about Bush’s administration’s suitability earlier this month on NPR’s Consider This.
Zeitz claimed that Bush finally backed the parade to help Americans get over “Vietnam syndrome,” which is the term used to describe the public’s unfavorable perception of the military after the Vietnam War.
The Defense Department and a coalition of veterans’ organizations contributed to the event’s approximately $12 million cost, according to The New York Times.
In the past, the U. S. has staged military parades to commemorate the conclusion of significant wars, such as World Wars I and II and the American Civil War. However, after the wars in Korea, Vietnam, and, more recently, Iraq and Afghanistan, there were no national parades. ).
Interestingly, since the nation was still dealing with the fallout from the Vietnam War, there was no grand parade in 1975 when the Army celebrated its 200th anniversary.
Reporting was done by Tom Bowman of NPR.
