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Inside Trump's plan for a grand DC parade on his birthday: 6600 soldiers, 50 choppers and 7 bands
The Donald Trump administration could be throwing one big parade on POTUS' 79th birthday. Here are the details
Donald Trump's birthday could see a grand parade being thrown by the administration. June 14, Trump's 79th birthday, also coincides with the Army’s 250th anniversary, and officials are in talks about holding this parade, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser. The Associated Press cited documents to reveal that the parade could have more than 6,600 soldiers, at least 150 vehicles, 50 helicopters, seven bands and possibly a couple thousand civilians.
According to the AP report, the documents are dated April 29 and 30. They have not been made public yet. The news wire adds that the slides do not mention any price estimates, but the parade could cost millions.
Planning still in progress, says Mayor Bowser
The current status of the planning for the grand parade is still in its "early stages", as per reports. The parade route is expected to originate from Arlington, Virginia. and then span the four-mile stretch towards the White House, according to details from Bowser and the Washington City Paper.
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According to an NY Post report, DC has a team called the Mayor’s Special Events Task Group (MSETG), which coordinates planning of major activities, which may also include the planning for this grand parade. Bowser was quoted telling reports, "I understand that I think it was Homeland Security; maybe the White House reached out to our special events task force, which is what most people wanting to do a parade do in the district.”
“So I would say it’s at its early stages. Yes, they have reached out,” Bowser continued, affirming that talks about the Grand Parade are in full swing.
Parade aspiration nothing new
It is not new for Donald Trump to wish for a big military parade in Washington DC. Back in 2017, while serving his first term, he had wanted military tanks and vehicles to parade the streets of Washington DC on Inauguration Day. However, that plan was scrapped by officials, based on fear that the city's infrastructure could face damage.
His aspirations for a military parade yet again surfaced after he witnessed a French military parade in 2017 on Bastille Day, as per reports. It is yet to be seen if his wishes are fulfilled by the Trump administration and DC officials this time around.
