Latest news with #VictoryDayforWorldWarII
Boston Globe
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Nation's vets deserve more than parades and empty promises
Advertisement No, this nation has never been Russia or North Korea, which mark the anniversaries of their military victories with giant displays of their current military might. Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up Well, not until now, anyway. Now the current occupant of the White House, who has But this June 14, a day originally planned to mark the 250th birthday of the US Army with a festival along the National Mall, Trump has now given himself a Advertisement The Army estimates the cost of the extravaganza at $25 million to $45 million. And if Trump has his way, it certainly won't be the last such display of military might. Earlier this month the president said he would rename May 8 as 'Victory Day for World War II,' a day widely celebrated in Europe as V-E Day. Of course, it wasn't the end of World War II at all, and to say so dishonors the thousands of Americans who continued to fight and die in the Pacific theater until August. And Nov. 11, Veteran's Day, he vowed to rename, 'Victory Day for World War I,' Lost in the shuffle of all that celebrating of long-ago victories and conspicuous displays of current-day military hardware is the nation's ongoing obligation to care for its living veterans, especially those who depend on the government for services they have been promised — care that is congressionally mandated. Advertisement The Trump administration thus far successfully has pushed for The Department of Government Efficiency had planned to cut Veterans Affairs by some The administration insists it is increasing veteran benefits by some 4 percent this year but not necessarily within the VA system. But it's not just personnel on the line. Among the many research contracts halted in Trump's assault on Harvard is a project at Harvard Medical School on assessing the likelihood of A recent investigation by This nation owes its veterans more than pretty words, empty promises, and parades. And it owes them respect for their service whether the wars they fought were won or lost, popular on the home front or not. On this day set aside for remembering those who never came home, let us also vow to provide care and comfort to those who did. Editorials represent the views of the Boston Globe Editorial Board. Follow us
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump says he wants to change name of Veterans Day: Here's what he wants to call it
President Donald Trump wants to rename Veterans Day to "Victory Day for World War I" as a way to celebrate the United States' military victories, he said in a social media post on May 1. He also said he's pushing to recognize May 8 as "Victory Day for World War II." "We are going to start celebrating our victories again!" Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social. Veterans Day is a federal holiday recognized each year on Nov. 11. It marks the date when fighting ceased in World War I, though it also generally honors American veterans for their willingness to serve, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. May 8 is not a federal holiday in the United States, though it is recognized as Victory in Europe Day in several European countries. Trump said on social media that he's pushing to rename Veterans Day and to formally recognize May 8 in the United States as a way to acknowledge Americans' efforts in World Wars I and II. "We won both Wars, nobody was close to us in terms of strength, bravery, or military brilliance, but we never celebrate anything − That's because we don't have leaders anymore, that know how to do so!" he wrote on Truth Social. Federal holidays − including their names − are created through the legislative process in Congress. Technically, federal holidays are applicable only to federal employees and the District of Columbia, meaning states individually determine their legal holidays, according to the Congressional Research news: After 100 days, one thing is clear: The stock market is leery of Trump's tariffs Veterans Day is one of the 11 federal holidays observed in the United States each year, according to the Office of Personnel Management. The day recognizes the end of fighting in World War I, according to the VA. Though the war between Germany and the Allied Powers officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919, fighting ended seven months earlier on Nov. 11, 1918, according to the VA. Because of the significance of the date, Veterans Day falls on Nov. 11 regardless of the day of the week. In addition to recognizing the end of fighting in World War I, it also serves as a general celebration of America's veterans, according to the VA. Nov. 11 was first made a federal holiday in 1938 and was known as Armistice Day until 1954, when Congress renamed it Veterans Day, according to the VA. Though Trump said he's pushing to make May 8 a holiday, the date is not federally recognized in the United States. It generally marks Victory in Europe Day, when Germany's military sources surrendered to the Allies, including the United States, in World War II, according to the Department of Defense. Melina Khan is a trending reporter covering national news for USA TODAY. She can be reached at MKhan@ This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Trump wants to rename Veterans Day to 'Victory Day for World War I'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Trump's New World War II Celebration Disrespects Those Who Sacrificed for Victory
In May 1945, spring had only recently arrived at the remote prison in Manchuria, where the Japanese kept their highest-ranking American prisoner, Army General Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV. During the three years since he had surrendered the Philippines for fear the Japanese would have massacred what remained of his garrison, Wainwright had endured beatings, starvation and temperatures as low as minus 49 degrees. The pain from an old lower back injury he aggravated during the second week of that month would become so debilitating he had no idea whether he would survive a war he feared might last at least two more winters. News of Germany's surrender that same week did not reach Wainwright and, even if it had, would have brought no end to his struggle. 'If this keeps up, I know I can't survive. Thin and weak as I am and no proper food, I doubt if I can endure this pain for any long period of time,' Wainwright wrote in his diary more than a month later on June 19. Wainwright's prison diary — which now resides at an Army archive in Carlisle, Pennsylvania — offers a poignant rebuke of President Trump's plan to rebrand Victory in Europe Day, marking the surrender of Germany on May 8, into something called 'Victory Day for World War II.' As every high school student should know, World War II did not end until Japan finally surrendered four months and two atomic bombs later. The president argues the revision is necessary because Americans have forgotten how to celebrate their history. 'We never celebrate anything,' he wrote on the social media platform Truth Social. 'That's because we don't have leaders anymore, that know how to do so!' Apparently not, as Trump has unwittingly proved by issuing an official proclamation for his newly named holiday and making no mention of the war in the Pacific or the more than one hundred thousand Americans who died in that theater. If this is what the president meant when he issued an executive order promising to restore 'patriotism' to history classrooms, he has the concept exactly backwards. By skipping ahead to the part of the story where the United States achieves ultimate victory, the president does not celebrate America's achievements but diminishes them. By contrast, Trump's predecessor Harry Truman knew exactly how Americans should celebrate the original V-E Day: by rededicating themselves to the task of achieving victory in the Pacific. 'We can repay the debt which we owe to our God, to our dead, and to our children, only by work, by ceaseless devotion to the responsibilities which lie ahead of us,' Truman said. 'If I could give you a single watchword for the coming months, that word is work, work, and more work. We must work to finish the war. Our victory is only half over.' To prematurely celebrate the anniversary of America's final victory in the largest war ever fought is to insult those who heeded Truman's call: the Americans still battling for an island called Okinawa; the servicemembers preparing to redeploy from Europe for the Pacific; the generals planning a massive invasion of Japan's main islands of Kyushu in the fall of 1945 and Honshu in early 1946; the policymakers trying to predict how many thousands of Americans would die in these operations; and the scientists racing to test an atom bomb that would upend all these calculations by persuading an enemy that didn't believe in surrender to do so. Even Americans with the best sources of information could not know how the war might end, but Wainwright, like his fellow prisoners of war, had only the worst sources — that is, the occasional tidbit from prison guards in Manchuria, where he received no letters, newspapers or other sources information from the outside world. Nevertheless, Wainwright tried his best to guess when the war would end and arrived at an estimate of no earlier than 1947. By June of 1945, he had good reason to doubt whether he would live to see it. The pain from the injury to a joint between his lower back and pelvis had become so severe that he could neither rise from bed nor fall asleep. 'It is very bad, and seems to get worse,' he wrote. A man who had never known desperate odds before might have given up, but Wainwright was not such a man. Even when his commanding general, Douglas MacArthur, had received orders to escape the Philippines after the Japanese invaded the archipelago at the start of World War II, Wainwright had made a vow to stay and share the fate of the tens of thousands of starving and besieged American and Filipino forces fighting together under the United States flag. The memory of the doomed five-month stand that he had made with them gave him the fortitude he needed to confront adversity again in Manchuria. 'I will make a fight for life, as I fought against overwhelming odds in the Philippine Islands,' Wainwright wrote in his diary. 'No one called me yellow then, and, by God, I won't be now.' There is a much-needed lesson in these words for Trump. Through his thoughtless attempt to abridge the end of World War II so as to make it easier to celebrate, he would cheat Americans of a richer and more valuable inheritance: the story of the full measure necessary to achieve victory in both Europe and the Pacific and a reminder that at no point before was the outcome ever guaranteed. Until the end, it had required struggle and sacrifice. Trump likes to talk only about winning. But when the moment of supreme triumph finally came in the Pacific on September 2, 1945, the organizers of the ceremony aboard the USS Missouri made certain to include a reminder of the hardships and humiliations America had endured along the way. If Trump looks at photographs, he will see MacArthur signing the instrument of surrender and, behind him, an emaciated general: the newly liberated Wainwright. His war had finally ended. And so had America's. At a time when freedom and democracy face new threats — and the outcome once again looks far from assured — let Americans mark the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, as their forebears at the time marked the original, by vowing to carry on the cause for which so many sacrificed so much.
CBS News
03-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Army plan for potential parade on Trump's birthday includes "thousands" of troops, says defense official
The Army is planning for a potential military parade on President Trump's birthday on June 14 that would include "thousands" of troops, as well and Bradley and Stryker fighting vehicles, the White House and a defense official confirmed. According to planning documents obtained by the AP, the parade calls for over 6,600 soldiers, at least 150 vehicles, 50 helicopters, tanks, seven bands and possibly a couple thousand civilians. The documents, dated April 29 and 30, have not been publicly released. They represent the Army's most recent blueprint for its long-planned 250th anniversary festival on the National Mall and the newly added element — a large military parade that Mr. Trump has long wanted. The Army anniversary coincides with Mr. Trump's 79th birthday, which falls on June 14. A parade of this size is likely to cost tens of millions of dollars. The price would include moving the military vehicles, equipment, aircraft and troops from across the country to Washington, D.C., and the need to feed and house thousands of service members. High costs halted Mr. Trump's push for a parade in his first term, and the tanks and other heavy vehicles that are part of the Army's latest plans have raised concerns from city officials about damage to roads. Asked about plans for a parade, Army spokesman Steve Warren said Thursday that no final decisions have been made. Col. Dave Butler, another Army spokesman, said the Army is excited about the plans for its anniversary. "We want to make it into an event that the entire nation can celebrate with us," said Butler. "We want Americans to know their Army and their soldiers. A parade might become part of that, and we think that will be an excellent addition to what we already have planned." Others familiar with the documents, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans have not been finalized, said they represent the Army's plans as it prepares for any White House approval of the parade. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. There has been no formal approval yet. Changes to the plans have been made in recent weeks and more are likely. Much of the equipment would have to be brought in by train or flown in. Mr. Trump weighed in on the military Thursday night, though he didn't mention plans for June 14. Writing on Truth Social, Mr. Trump said, "We are going to start celebrating our victories again!" He said he would rename May 8 — known as Victory in Europe Day — as "Victory Day for World War II" and change Veterans Day, on Nov. 11, to "Victory Day for World War I." Some equipment and troops were already going to be included in the Army's birthday celebration, which has been in the works for more than a year. The festival was set to involve activities and displays on the National Mall, including a fitness competition, climbing wall, armored vehicles, Humvees, helicopters and other equipment. A parade, however, would increase the equipment and troops involved. According to the plans, as many as 6,300 of the service members would be marching in the parade, while the remainder would be responsible for other tasks and support. The Army's early festival plans did not include a parade, but officials confirmed last month that the Army had started discussions about adding one. The plans say the parade would showcase the Army's 250 years of service and foresee bringing in soldiers from at least 11 corps and divisions nationwide. Those could include a Stryker battalion with two companies of Stryker vehicles, a tank battalion and two companies of tanks, an infantry battalion with Bradley vehicles, Paladin artillery vehicles, Howitzers and infantry vehicles. There would be seven Army bands and a parachute jump by the Golden Knights. And documents suggest that civilian participants would include historical vehicles and aircraft and two bands, along with people from veterans groups, military colleges and reenactor organizations. According to the plan, the parade would be classified as a national special security event, and that request has been submitted by the National Park Service and is under review. And it is expected that the evening parade would be followed by a concert and fireworks. One of the documents raises concerns about some limitations, which include where troops would be housed and "significant concerns regarding security requirements" as equipment flows into the city. It says the biggest unknown so far is which units would be participating. In his first term, Trump proposed having a parade after seeing one in France on Bastille Day in 2017. Mr. Trump said that after watching the two-hour procession along the famed Champs-Elysees that he wanted an even grander one on Pennsylvania Avenue. That plan was ultimately dumped due to the huge costs — with one estimate of a $92 million price tag — and other logistical issues. Among those were objections from city officials who said including tanks and other heavy armored vehicles would tear up the roads. Trump said in a social media post in 2018 that he was canceling the event over the costs and accused local politicians of price gouging. This year, as plans progressed for the Army to host its birthday festival in Washington, talk about a parade began anew. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser acknowledged in April that the administration reached out to the city about holding a parade on June 14 that would stretch from Arlington, Virginia, where the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery are located, across the Potomac River and into Washington. Bowser at the time said she didn't know if the event was being "characterized as a military parade" but added that tanks rolling through the city's streets "would not be good." "If military tanks were used, they should be accompanied with many millions of dollars to repair the roads," she said. In 2018, the Pentagon appeared to agree. A memo from the defense secretary's staff said plans for the parade — at that time — would include only wheeled vehicles and no tanks to minimize damage to local infrastructure. contributed to this report.
02-05-2025
- Politics
Trump says he'll rename Veterans Day
President Donald Trump said in a social media post that he is renaming Veterans Day, which is on Nov. 11, as "Victory Day for World War I" and May 8 as "Victory Day for World War II.'
