Latest news with #Army250thAnniversary
The Independent
01-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Trump's birthday military parade could cause $16 million of damage to DC's streets
Donald Trump's birthday military parade could cause as much as $16 million worth of damage to the streets of Washington, D.C., officials estimate. The June 14 parade, which will celebrate the Army's 250th anniversary, is being held on the president's own 79th birthday and will cost around $45 million. That price tag includes the estimated damage. Trump himself has called the cost of the parade 'peanuts compared to the value of doing it.' Organizers say that the parade will consist of around 130 vehicles, including 28 M1A1 tanks, 28 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, 28 Stryker armored fighting vehicles and artillery launchers being towed. A flyover of the U.S. capital will be undertaken by more than 50 helicopters, while 7,000 soldiers will march in the streets. There will also be at least eight bands, three dozen horses and two mules. The Army has said that it will cover all repair costs to the District's streets, which it estimates will be $16 million, according to NBC News. It has already said that it would place thick metal plates as long as 20ft down where tanks will turn on the parade route, at a cost of $3 million. Earlier this week, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said she was 'concerned' about the scope of damage that the tanks and armored vehicles could cause. "These are, for the most part, local streets, and if they're rendered in unusable, we have to make them usable,' she said. "Probably we would fix it and then go seek our money from the Fed," she said. "That gives me some concern about fronting costs and waiting for them to get back." Trump told NBC News' Meet the Press earlier this month that the 90-minute parade would be well worth its eye-watering cost. 'We have the greatest missiles in the world. We have the greatest submarines in the world. We have the greatest army tanks in the world. We have the greatest weapons in the world. And we're going to celebrate it,' Trump insisted.
New York Times
16-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Military Parade in Capital on Trump's Birthday Could Cost $45 Million, Officials Say
The military parade planned for next month could cost up to $45 million and is expected to include up to two dozen M1 Abrams tanks rolling through the streets of Washington, two defense officials said Thursday. The parade, according to the Army's website, will be held on June 14, which is both the date of the Army's 250th anniversary and President Trump's 79th birthday. The officials who spoke about the costs said that the estimate, previously reported by Reuters, did not include the cleanup or repairs from damage to Washington's roads from the tank traffic. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal planning TheArmy has said the parade will include 150 vehicles, 50 warplanes and the participation of more than 6,600 soldiers. The thousands of visiting soldiers in Washington for the parade will stay in unused government buildings and sleep on cots, according to the Army. They will be provided three daily meals and a stipend, the Pentagon has said. The anniversary celebration is expected to include a daylong festival with musical performances and displays of equipment. Mr. Trump also proposed a military parade for Veterans Day in November during his first term, but the notion was derailed by members of his administration over cost concerns. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the parade is intended to honor the sacrifice of American troops who helped secure the country's independence. 'There are a lot of vapid things to celebrate, plenty of reality shows and garbage music and stuff on Netflix,' he said in a speech this month. 'How about we hold up our special operations community? How about we recognize the Army and the Marine Corps?' But some Democratic lawmakers have cast the planned parade as wasteful and over-the-top. Representative Steve Cohen, Democrat of Tennessee, introduced a bill last month that would bar spending federal money on a military parade in Washington 'primarily intended to celebrate the birthday, personal milestone, or private interest of any individual, including President Donald J. Trump.' Mr. Cohen suggested in a statement that Mr. Trump planned to 'waste taxpayer dollars burnishing his insatiable ego.' Protests of the parade are planned in Washington and other American cities. Many countries — including France, China and North Korea — put on regular military parades, but such displays are rare in the United States.
