Trump to host military parade for birthday amid ‘No Kings' protests
A supporter holds a banner with U.S President Donald Trump's picture near the Washington Monument on June 13. PHOTO: REUTERS
Washington - US President Donald Trump will preside over a huge military parade in Washington on his 79th birthday on June 14, as nationwide 'No Kings' protests underscore America's deep divisions over his second term.
His long-held dream of a parade will come true as nearly 7,000 troops plus dozens of tanks and helicopters rumble through the capital in an event officially marking the 250th anniversary of the US army.
The army says the event could cost up to US$45 million (S$57.6 million).
At the same time, protests by the so-called 'No Kings' movement are expected across the United States against what organisers say is a Trump personality cult.
Organisers said the rallies would be the largest since Mr Trump returned to office in January, adding that they were 'rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarisation of our democracy'.
Thousands more demonstrators are expected to turn out in Los Angeles to protest against Mr Trump's deployment of troops in America's second-largest city following clashes sparked by immigration raids.
Mr Trump says the Washington parade will be 'like no other' – but has promised to use 'very big force' if protesters attempt to disrupt the spectacle.
The highly unusual show of US martial might meanwhile comes a day after Mr Trump boasted about how Israel had used American military equipment in its strikes on Iran's nuclear programme.
Rain on Trump's parade?
But the parade may face disruption from another source – the weather. Thunderstorms could hit Washington on June 14 when the parade is taking place.
The US army said on June 13 that the weather was being 'closely monitored and taken into consideration, but at this point nothing has changed'.
Mr Trump meanwhile said he wasn't bothered. 'It doesn't matter. It doesn't affect the tanks at all, it doesn't affect the soldiers. They're used to it. They're tough,' he said.
The rare military parade is the largest in the United States since the end of the Gulf War in 1991.
Nearly 7,000 soldiers will march past, wearing uniforms dating back through US history to its independence from Britain.
More than 50 helicopters will also be involved including Apache gunships and Chinook and Black Hawk transport choppers.
Around 150 military vehicles – including 28 Abrams battle tanks and 56 armoured vehicles – will rumble past too.
The parade is meant to end with a parachute display as members of the army's Golden Knights team jump in and present Mr Trump with a US flag.
The route will take them past historic landmarks including the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, ending up near the White House.
Mr Trump has been obsessed with having a parade since his first term as president when he attended France's annual Bastille Day parade in Paris at the invitation of President Emmanuel Macron in 2017.
'Vulgar display'
But Mr Trump's opponents accuse him of using the event to feed his ego.
'No Kings' organisers said they expected millions of people in more than 1,500 cities to take part in the protests.
They said it was a 'direct response to Donald Trump's self-aggrandising' parade, 'funded by taxpayers while millions are told there's no money'.
California's Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, who slammed Mr Trump for sending National Guard troops into Los Angeles without his consent, said it was a 'vulgar display of weakness'.
'It's the kind of thing you see with Kim Jong Un, you see it with Putin, you see it with dictators around the world,' Newsom said on June 12. 'To fete the Dear Leader on his birthday? What an embarrassment.'
In Los Angeles, where organisers said they expected 25,000 people to protest against Mr Trump's immigration policies, there would be one huge balloon of him wearing a diaper and another of him wearing a Russian military uniform. AFP
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