President Donald Trump is denying the massive military parade set for Saturday has anything to do with his 79th birthday as the Army marks its 250th year, while declaring it a ‘time to celebrate.’
Trump addressed the buildup to the the big event Monday as new video shows a tranche of military hardware rolling into Washington, D.C. for the parade.
Asked what he was anticipating for the event, Trump ran through the colliding events on the calendar.
‘So the Army is a year older than the country. So next year we celebrate 250 years, but we’re celebrating the Army on Flag Day. And it’s not my birthday – it is my birthday – but I’m not celebrating my birthday,’ Trump stressed.
‘I’m celebrating Flag Day. It happens to be the same day, so I take a little heat, but Flag Day is the appropriate day, and we’re celebrating 250 years in the Army, great service.’
Trump also recalled watching other countries including France and Russia mark the end of World War II on Victory in Europe Day, bringing up the millions of casualties sustained by Russia and once again claimed ‘Hitler made a speech at the Eiffel Tower’ – although there is no record of one.
‘We win World Wars from Fort, Robert E. Lee, from Fort, Bragg – from all the different forts. And what do we do? We change the name of the forts because we want to be politically correct,’ Trump complained.
At that point he shared a concerning chink in U.S. readiness.
‘You know, we’ve rebuilt our military largely – little low in ammunition. That’s because it goes out very fast to other countries, one in particular, but we’re we’ll get that back very quickly,’ Trump said, making an obvious reference to Ukraine, which was subjected to withering Russian drone attacks on Kharkiv over the weekend.
‘It’s going to be a parade, the likes of which, I don’t know if we’ve ever had a parade like that. It’s going to be incredible. We have air, even though it’s the Army, we have a lot of those Army airplanes flying over the top, and we have tanks all over the place, and we have thousands and thousands of soldiers going to bravely march down the streets. It’s going to be a beautiful day, I think,’ Trump said.
Dozens of tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, along with Strykers and other armored vehicles will all be part of the show of strength in the Nation’s capital.
Footage released by the Army shows a long line of military vehicles heading toward the nation’s capital by commercial rail – with one shot showing the Washington Monument in the background.
The images were shot from above by helicopter, providing stunning overhead views as the lethal materiel rumbles across DC’s Anacostia River. Another shot shows the city’s Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in the background.
The new video revealing the scope of the equipment being mustered comes as Trump deployed 300 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles amid protests and mayhem there despite opposition from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said it would escalate the situation.
Trump ordered the arrest of everyone wearing face masks and called to ‘bring in the troops’ to L.A.
Local authorities in Washington have already warned of the damage that 60 ton tanks could do to Washington’s roads, at a time when it is struggling to preserve federal funding.
The White House says the cost of the parade will be between $25 million and $45 million, at a time when the Department of Government Efficiency formerly associated with Elon Musk has been slashing contracts in search of $1 trillion in cuts.
The Army posted its video with the comment: ‘Right on schedule!’ with a stopwatch emoji.
‘Equipment arrives for our 250th Birthday Festival & parade on 14 June at the National Mall. Stay tuned to Army social media all week for more news on preparations!’
The event is also set to include flyovers, fireworks, and a concert.
The Army has released information on the array of equipment that the parade will feature – M1A2 Abrams tanks, UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, and the Paladin, a self-propelled Howitzer.
Strykers, Infantry Squad Vehicles, and Joint Light Tactical Vehicles will also be on display, along with powerful M777 lightweight howitzers. Apache and Chinook helicopters will also be on display.
Part of the parade route will run down Constitution Avenue just south of the White House with a ‘birthday festival location’ on the National Mall.
Trump returned to the White House from Camp David Monday, where he confirmed the location of another project that will put his mark on the White House.
‘We’re putting a flagpole over there – under budget,’ Trump said, as a construction excavator dug a hole on the South Lawn.
Trump has said he is personally funding two 100 foot flag poles at the White House.