Latest news with #June14
The Independent
16 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Army leaders defend parade and border spending as Congress presses for answers
Army leaders on Wednesday defended spending as much as $45 million to add a parade to the service's 250th birthday celebration on June 14 in Washington, saying it will help boost recruitment, as Congress members argued that the money could be better spent on troops' barracks or other priorities. Members of the House Armed Services Committee also said they are concerned that the Defense Department is shifting about $1 billion from a variety of accounts — including base housing — to cover the costs of shoring up the defense of the southern border. Spending for the parade has become a flashpoint since it comes at a time when the Trump administration is slashing funding for personnel and programs across the federal government, including the Defense Department. While the Army has long planned for a festival on the National Mall to celebrate its 250th birthday, the parade was just recently added. President Donald Trump has long wanted a military parade in the city, after seeing an elaborate one in France on Bastille Day during his first presidential term, and June 14 is also his birthday. U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Calif., questioned whether the additional cost of the parade was appropriate since all the military services are facing 8% budget cuts, and said perhaps it could be used to improve troops' quality of life or warfighting capabilities. He prodded Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll on what he would prioritize if Congress wrote him a blank check for $45 million. Driscoll replied that he thinks the parade offers a chance to tell the public about the Army. 'I believe very specifically that telling that story will directly lead to a recruiting boom and will fill up our pipeline for the coming years," he said. At the same time, he and Gen. Randy George, chief of staff of the Army, told lawmakers that the service has now met its recruiting goal for the year — with 61,000 recruits. Army officials have predicted for months that they would hit the target early after making a series of changes to recruiting programs, recruiters and policies over the past several years. That prompted Rep. Wesley Bell, D-Mo., to ask why the parade was needed for recruiting if it's already surging. Driscoll said the Army believes the parade 'will empower an entire new generation of America's youth to catch the spirit to serve their nation.' Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisc., defended the parade spending, saying 'you cannot put a price tag on patriotism.' House members on both sides of the aisle pressed the Army about a recent request to shift money from across the budget to support the southern border. The biggest concern, they said, is that it takes money away from base housing, which has been plagued with persistent problems, including mold, rodents and raw sewage in barracks. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., agreed the nation needs a strong border, but said lawmakers worked for the past year on a broad effort to address the housing problems. 'I feel like a decision was made that undermined this whole effort that we spent the last year doing.," he said. Pressed on the issue by Carbajal, George acknowledged that redirecting the money has an impact on the barracks. 'If we took $1 billion out of barracks, we would be able to fix less barracks," he agreed, but also said, ''You have to make choices, congressman."
CBS News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Army anniversary parade on Trump's birthday could cost up to $45 million
A military parade to mark the Army's anniversary next month — coinciding with President Trump's birthday — is estimated to cost between $25 million and $45 million, an Army spokesperson told CBS News. The parade in Washington, D.C., is expected to include over 100 vehicles and thousands of soldiers who will be housed in federal buildings. It could also involve 50 helicopters, prompting "extensive coordination" with the Federal Aviation Administration, the spokesperson said. The event will take place as part of the Army's 250th anniversary celebrations on June 14 — the same day as Mr. Trump's 79th birthday. Reports about a possible military parade began circulating last month. Initial plans obtained by the Associated Press two weeks ago called for more than 6,600 soldiers, seven bands and 150 vehicles, including tanks as well as Stryker and Bradley fighting vehicles — though at the time, the Army said the plans had not been finalized. Mr. Trump confirmed the plans earlier this month: "We're going to have a big, beautiful parade," the president told NBC's "Meet The Press." The president also said the event isn't tied to his birthday. When asked about the price tag, Mr. Trump said it would be "peanuts compared to the value of doing it." "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," Mr. Trump told NBC News. The plans have drawn some criticism from Democrats. Earlier this month, Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee called the plan wasteful, writing in a statement, "The egotist-in-chief wants taxpayers to foot the bill for a military parade on his birthday." Mr. Trump's interest in the pageantry of a military parade dates back years. During a 2017 visit to France during his first term, the president praised the country's annual Bastille Day parade and suggested "we're going to have to try and top it" on the Fourth of July. A year later, the administration began drawing up plans for a parade to recognize Veterans' Day. But after reports circulated that the event could cost as much as $92 million — and some Democratic lawmakers blasted the idea as "self-aggrandizing" — Mr. Trump postponed the event and blamed local elected officials for driving up the price. "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," Mr. Trump posted on X, then known as Twitter, in 2018.
Washington Post
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Trump is planning a $45M military parade on his birthday
Politics Trump is planning a $45M military parade on his birthday May 15, 2025 | 8:41 PM GMT The Sidebar panel discusses what to expect from President Donald Trump's $45 million military parade set to take place on June 14th.
Washington Post
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
As Army plans parade for its 250th anniversary, protesters prepare, too
As the U.S. Army plans a parade in Washington with thousands of soldiers, hundreds of vehicles and dozens of aircraft to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its founding on June 14, protesters are making preparations of their own. 'The National Protest Against Trump and the War Machine plans to mobilize thousands from across the country to protest the military parade,' according a permit application filed with the National Park Service last week. The Army's celebration coincides with the 79th birthday of President Donald Trump, who has long mused about showcasing the might of America's armed forces on the streets of the capital. 'A military parade celebrating Trump and the Army is an outrageous insult to the American people,' reads the permit application. 'What really makes America great is its working people — U.S.-born and immigrant alike — not billionaires and the military that enforces their domination of the rest of the world.' Andy Koch, a Minneapolis-based organizer with the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, said he wanted to help coordinate a protest as soon as he heard about the Army's plans. 'It's just kind of over the top,' said Koch, 35. He and other organizers have requested permission to host the rally in Meridian Hill Park in Northwest Washington, he said. 'Then our intention would be to march within sight and sound of the military parade.' Details for the parade itself have yet to be finalized, though the Army anticipates 150 vehicles, 50 aircraft and 6,600 soldiers taking part. 'The procession will tell the story of the history of the Army, beginning with the Revolutionary War and concluding with the modern-day Army,' spokesperson Heather Hagan said in a statement to The Washington Post. An application submitted earlier this spring by called for the parade to begin at the Pentagon's north parking lot at 6 p.m., cross the Arlington Memorial Bridge into D.C. and continue on Constitution Avenue NW, ending at 15th Street. The Army's Golden Knights will parachute down to the Ellipse, a flyover will zoom overhead and fireworks will decorate the night sky. Set to begin at 8 p.m., a 'concert will consist of 5-7 musical acts' with 'well known performers' who are 'likely from the country music world,' according to the application. The Army is working with local law enforcement, the National Park Service, District Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Park Police and D.C. Water, which will assess the roads and bridges, Hagan said. The Army began planning a 250th celebration event in Washington in early 2024, an Army official with knowledge of the event previously told The Post. The celebration will mark the anniversary of the Continental Congress's vote to officially create the Continental Army to defend the colonies from the British. But the overlap of the Army's festivities with Trump's birthday has prompted ire, especially at a time when his overhaul of the federal government includes slashing the Department of Veterans Affairs and curtailing remote work allowances upon which federal workers whose spouses serve in the military had relied. The upcoming show of pageantry has stirred mixed feelings in Koch's own family. He has family members who are veterans, he said. Some applaud Trump. Others are angry. The last time troops paraded in D.C. was in 1991, when 800,000 people jammed the nation's capital to honor Gulf War service members and watch a seven-block-long display of military equipment. According to the permit application, the protest will include an estimated 100 organizers, 1,000 volunteers and 10,000 to 20,000 participants. 'President Trump is eroding the people's democratic rights, our union rights, vilifying immigrants, gutting social services, and much more as part of his right-wing, racist agenda,' reads the application.
