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Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
8 unhinged moments from Donald Trump's bizarre birthday tank parade
The long-awaited spectacle, on paper a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the US Army, was sparsely attended - with far fewer than the expected 250,000 Trump fans turning up for his 79th birthday bash Donald Trump seemed to struggle staying awake as his $45 million birthday parade of tanks and troops rolled through a humid Washington DC on Saturday night. The long-awaited spectacle, on paper a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the US Army, was sparsely attended - with far fewer than the expected 250,000 Trump fans turning up for his 79th birthday bash. Elements of the parade - including a parachute display - were moved earlier as dark stormclouds gathered over the National Mall, threatening to soak the 7,000 soldiers marching the two-mile route in 30 degree heat. In the end the weather mostly let them alone - but the chest-beating display of American pomp came at the end of a fraught week for America, and alongside huge protests against Trump's authoritarian behaviour. Everything is fine. Here's what you need to know. 1. Trump struggled to stay awake Trump appeared to struggle to keep his eyes open from time to time. There also was a very weird moment towards the end, where Trump and Melania just stood in the middle of the stage for several minutes in silence, until a uniformed military officer appeared to tap Trump on the shoulder and suggest he might like to try leaving the stage. 2. He came on stage to God Save the King When Trump came on stage for his birthday speech, the US Army band played not 'Hail to the Chief', but 'God Save The King'. In America, the tune of our national anthem is shared with the patriotic song 'My Country 'Tis of Thee'. But if you were looking for signs that Donald already considers himself a monarch, there were plenty to find at Saturday's parade. 3. Nobody looked like they wanted to be there The President sat between gurning Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth - wearing a gaudy camouflage tie and Stars and Stripes pocket square - and a scowling Melania throughout the parade. A few seats away, Secretary of State Marco Rubio looked decidedly bored, sitting sideways on his chair and yawning. 4. The sponsor shoutouts were very weird Among many jarring juxtapositions in Saturday's parade was the list of Trump-friendly sponsors who got shoutouts throughout the display of military sacrifice. "Ladies and Gentlemen," the host said in a booming voice as tanks and troops filed past the President. "Please thank our sponsor, [crypto firm] Coinbase." Later there were shoutouts for datamining firm Palantir and the UFC. Even weirder were the tents where serving soldiers in uniform were handing out free cans of Phorm Energy, a truly vile beverage co-owned by UFC boss Dana White. The variety on offer at the parade was called "Screamin' Freedom". 5. The parade was impressive - but not quite North Korea While the hardware on show was huge and intimidating, the parade itself was not on the same level of grandeur and precision as those seen in dictatorships. Similar displays in North Korea feature huge blocks of troops in tight, formal formation and strict, disciplined marching. Saturday's parade appeared more relaxed, with soldiers ambling down Constitution Avenue, often not in lockstep with each other. But the festivities ended with a genuinely impressive display of American firepower - a huge firework display next to the Washington monument. NK1 6. Millions were protesting against it Thousands of protests filled streets across the United States at the same time as the parade, under the banner of "No Kings". Organisers said millions of Americans marched in hundreds of events, which largely passed without violence or incident. Huge crowds marched, danced, drummed, and chanted shoulder-to-shoulder in New York, Denver, Chicago, Austin and Los Angeles. Atlanta's 5,000-capacity event quickly reached its limit, with thousands more gathered outside barriers to hear speakers in front of the state Capitol. Officials in Seattle estimated that more than 70,000 people attended the city's largest rally. The demonstrations come on the heels of the protests over Trump's mass deportation raids that began last week - and Trump ordering the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, where protesters blocked a freeway and set cars on fire. "Today, across red states and blue, rural towns and major cities, Americans stood in peaceful unity and made it clear: we don't do kings," the No Kings Coalition said in a statement Saturday afternoon after many events had ended. Thousands gathered in downtown LA, where organisers handed out small American flags and people carried protest signs saying "fight oligarchy" and "deport the mini-Mussolinis." 7. The TV news split screens were far from ideal While he made no mention of current events in his speech, the event came at the end of a fraught week for America. Most will have seen Trump's birthday parade on TV news, as a split-screen juxtaposed with either the manhunt for Minnesota assassinations suspect Vance Boelter, crowds howling in protest or missile strikes in Iran and Israel. 8. There were in the crowd The crowd was quite diverse - with a handful of people attending with "No Kings" banners and quite a lot of non-Trump supporting DC locals turning out for the spectacle. But the largest contingent were MAGA die hards, many of whom had travelled hundreds of miles for their guy's birthday. Michael Neill, a 21-year Army veteran who travelled from New Hampshire for Trump's birthday told the Mirror he thought the parade was "great." "I think it's great that the Army after 250 years is having a parade in our nation's capital," he said. "That shows strength, but it also shows that we love our military." Mr Neill went on to say he believes President Trump won the 2020 election, and that Joe Biden was "executed for treason" while in office, and replaced by an actor. "The movie Mission Impossible, the masks? Thats a real thing, folks," he said. "Theres a lot of masks going on and we're about to find out." Gregory, who came from New Jersey to the parade in a bright white shirt, suit and tie, said he was there to celebrate the birthday of "America's dad - Donald J Trump." Get Donald Trump updates straight to your WhatsApp! As tension between the White House and Europe heats up, the Mirror has launched its very own US Politics WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news from across the pond. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. And some in the crowd wanted to see Trump stay in office longer than the constitution allows - much longer, in fact. Asked if he wanted to see Trump's name on the ballot in 2028, Edward X Young from New Jersey - who has attended 112 Trump rallies - said: "I hope so." But Rose, his friend from Pennsylvania, who wore a blue T-shirt bearing slogans related to the Q-Anon conspiracy theory, went further. "I think Donald Trump is going to be the last President," she said, adding she doesn't think the 2028 election will take place. "I think the Democrats have destroyed our democratic process with elections, Mr Young said. "They've corrupted jt so bad. Let's face it, this is the greatest President in the history of our country....I want Trump for king." Later, Rose asked me if I thought Princess Diana was still alive. She did not.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Trump's immigration raids split White House
Donald Trump's hardline stance on immigration has caused a split in the White House, pitting the policy's chief architect against politicians under pressure from farming lobbies. The president's administration has been ramping up immigration raids to fulfil Mr Trump's campaign pledge to carry out the 'largest deportation program' in US history. Under the direction of Stephen Miller, Mr Trump's deputy chief of staff, agents trying to hit targets of 3,000 arrests per day have chased migrant workers through fields in Southern California. But on Wednesday, Brooke Rollins, the agriculture secretary, warned Mr Trump that farming groups were concerned raids on agriculture would decimate an industry that relied on immigrant workers, the New York Times reported. She said farmers relied on migrants to work long hours and that farm groups were concerned they would stop turning up for work out of fear. More than 40 per cent of US farmworkers are undocumented immigrants, according to a 2022 report by the US Department of Agriculture. The following day, the US president responded to a post on Truth Social that said migrants in the farming and hospitality industries were 'very good, long time workers'. He wrote: 'Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace. 'In many cases the Criminals allowed into our Country by the VERY Stupid Biden Open Borders Policy are applying for those jobs. This is not good. We must protect our Farmers, but get the criminals out of the USA. Changes are coming!' New guidance issued by Tatum King, a senior official at the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), instructed agents to put a 'hold on all work site enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture [including aquaculture and meat packing plants], restaurants and operating hotels', according to the newspaper. But White House aides such as Mr Miller, were reportedly furious, exposing divisions within the administration over its immigration policy and Mr Trump's priorities to boost deportations while retaining his political support. Agricultural associations, whose members are typically Republicans, are understood to have been raising concerns with their Senate and congressional offices about the raids. The Trump administration had initially focused on targeting criminal migrants but has shifted gears in recent weeks. Mr Miller is credited as the mastermind who pushed for raids to be expanded to places where immigrants congregate and workplaces in a bid to drive up the numbers. Last month, Mr Miller set quotas for a t least 3,000 arrests a day, a steep jump from the roughly 660 daily arrests during Mr Trump's first 100 days in office. He is understood to have directed ICE chiefs to start targeting spots where migrants congregate, such as farms, stores like Home Depot, and workplaces. Following a spate of raids in Los Angeles, protests erupted in the city, which has spread across the US.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: US Export-Import Bank considers $120 million loan for Greenland rare earths project
June 15 (Reuters) - Critical Metals Corp (CRML.O), opens new tab has received a letter of interest from the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) for a loan worth up to $120 million to fund the company's Tanbreez rare earths mine in Greenland, in what would be the Trump administration's first overseas investment in a mining project. The loan, if approved, would boost U.S. access to minerals increasingly at the center of global economic trade and help offset the country's reliance on market leader China. It also comes after President Donald Trump openly mused earlier this year about acquiring the Danish island territory, an overture that has been repeatedly rejected. In a letter dated June 12 and reviewed by Reuters, New York-based Critical Metals has met initial requirements to apply for the $120 million EXIM loan and, if approved, would have a 15-year repayment term, longer than the company likely would have with private financing. The project would have to be "well-capitalized with sufficient equity from strategic investors" to receive the loan, the letter said. EXIM, which acts as the U.S. government's export credit agency, said in the letter that Critical Metals qualifies for a loan program designed to support companies that compete with China. The Tanbreez project is expected to cost $290 million and the EXIM funds would be used to fund technical work and get the mine to initial production by 2026. Once fully operational, the mine is expected to produce 85,000 metric tons per year of a rare earths concentrate and two minor metals. "This funding package is expected to unlock significant value for our project and our stakeholders," said Tony Sage, the company's CEO. Representatives for EXIM were not immediately available to comment. The move is the latest in a series of supportive actions by Washington toward the Tanbreez deposit and Greenland's mining sector. Reuters reported in January that former President Joe Biden's administration had successfully lobbied privately held Tanbreez Mining not to sell to a Chinese developer and instead sell to Critical Metals. Biden officials were visiting Nuuk as recently as last November trying to woo additional private investment, opens new tab in the island. Trump sent Vice President JD Vance to the island in March. The island's mining sector has developed slowly in recent years, hindered by limited investor interest, bureaucratic challenges and environmental concerns. Currently, only two small mines are in operation. Rare earths have strong magnetic properties that make them critical to high-tech industries ranging from electric vehicles to missile systems. Their necessity has given rise to intense competition as Western countries try to lessen their dependence on China's near-total control of their extraction and processing. Beijing in April put export restrictions on rare earths as part of its trade spat with Trump. The two countries earlier this month reached a truce, although Beijing's control of the sector has exacerbated the West's over-reliance and sparked a global hunt for fresh supplies. Despite the loan potential, Critical Metals would still have to either build a processing facility or find an existing site with spare capacity. The company told Reuters that its goal is to process the material inside the U.S., a goal the EXIM loan would make more achievable. Last year, Critical Metals had applied for funding to develop a processing facility from the U.S. Department of Defense, but the review process stalled ahead of Trump's January inauguration. For the EXIM loan's additional funding requirements, Critical Metals said it is considering offtake agreements, royalty streams and funding from other U.S. governmental agencies. Critical Metals told Reuters earlier this year that it has held supply talks with defense contractor Lockheed Martin (LMT.N), opens new tab, among others. Critical Metals' 10th-largest investor is brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald ( which was formerly led by Howard Lutnick before he joined Trump's cabinet as secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department. Sage told Reuters in January he had never met or talked to Lutnick, but acknowledged Cantor's investment was a positive for his company. EXIM last year extended a letter of interest to Perpetua Resources (PPTA.O), opens new tab for a loan worth up to $1.8 billion for its antimony and gold mine in Idaho.
