President Donald Trump has officially canceled his proposed military parade, originally scheduled for November 10, in a series of Friday morning tweets:
The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up! I will instead…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2018
….attend the big parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base on a different date, & go to the Paris parade, celebrating the end of the War, on November 11th. Maybe we will do something next year in D.C. when the cost comes WAY DOWN. Now we can buy some more jet fighters!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2018
- The Department of Defense had previously announced on Thursday that the procession would be postponed until an undetermined date in 2019.
- “The Department of Defense and White House have been planning a parade to honor America’s military veterans and commemorate the centennial of World War I,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said in a statement. “We originally targeted November 10, 2018 for this event but have now agreed to explore opportunities in 2019.”
- The news came the same day that CNBC reported the estimated cost of the parade had ballooned by $80 million to a whopping $92 million. The proposed march would include approximately eight tanks and other armored vehicles such as Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Strykers and flyovers from a variety of military aircraft, all accompanying thousands of active-duty U.S. service members, per the report.
- The CNBC report sparked frustration among veterans groups like the American Legion over the allocation of government money towards the procession through the streets of Washington, D.C. rather than other critical services for veterans.
- “The American Legion appreciates that our President wants to show in a dramatic fashion our nation’s support for our troops,” American Legion National Commander Denise Rohan said in a statement. “However, until such time as we can celebrate victory in the War on Terrorism and bring our military home, we think the parade money would be better spent fully funding the Department of Veteran Affairs and giving our troops and their families the best care possible.”
This is a breaking story and will be updated with more information as it becomes available.
