US President Donald Trump is getting what he wants for the nation’s birthday: a celebration featuring fireworks, fighter jets and tanks that makes him the center of attention.
Trump was yesterday evening to speak from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, remaking the capital’s Fourth of July festivities into a display of military might mixed with presidential politics.
The White House said that Trump’s message would not be political — Trump is calling the speech a “Salute to America” — but it comes as next year’s presidential election campaign is heating up.
Photo: EPA-EFE
The city was to host a parade in the morning before the evening program on the National Mall, which was to include flyovers by fighter jets, bombers and even Air Force One, and the Trump speech.
Trump has promised the “show of a lifetime,” but it would not go entirely the president’s way. Forecasts suggest scattered thunderstorms and some aides privately feared that crowds would not meet the president’s expectations — evoking his 2017 inauguration.
Protesters have a permit to display an inflatable version of the president that depicts him as a baby in a diaper with small hands. A similar blimp has greeted Trump on trips to London, but the Washington version would not be allowed to leave the ground.
Gates were to open at 3pm for his event — six hours before fireworks begin — with temperatures expected to reach up to 31°C.
Trump is effectively rebranding a celebration that attracts thousands of families to watch the fireworks, but almost never includes presidential speeches on the National Mall.
Critics have said that his revisions risk turning Washington’s celebration into a de facto Trump rally that is likely to draw counterprotests.
US Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat who represents the District of Columbia in the US Congress, said that Trump’s plans “look like a political event” and predicted a light turnout for his speech.
“I think the president is in for another flop, and he’s going to have to explain a flop that he set up,” Norton said. “He’s still smarting from the thin crowds at his inauguration. All I can say is: You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
The White House rejected the idea that the celebration would be political.
Trump on Monday told reporters that the event would be “about this county and it’s a salute to America.”
He said he hoped for a large turnout.
Asked if he could give a speech to all Americans, Trump said: “I think so, I think I’ve reached most Americans.”
He went on to criticize Democrats on healthcare and taxation.
Trump conceived the event after his plans for a military parade on the US’ Veterans Day were stymied by complaints from local officials about the cost.
The president has been enamored of the idea of a Washington celebration with a military component since attending the 2017 Bastille Day parade in Paris, which included an aerial display, thousands of marching soldiers and hundreds of military vehicles.
Trump’s remarks are expected to last about a half-hour, an administration official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
His speech would celebrate the US’ independence, the flag and the military, the official added.
Trump was to reserve space for special guests — the Trump campaign and US Republican National Committee have received tickets, while the US Department of Defense, with 5,000 tickets of its own, was to send several top officials, including Acting US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.
The fireworks generally last about 15 minutes, but this year were to span 35 minutes after a donation by two pyrotechnic companies valued at US$750,000.
Due to the flyovers, the US Federal Aviation Administration was to suspend commercial air traffic at nearby Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport for the first time during an Independence Day celebration.
The event was also renewing a long-simmering feud with local officials in Washington.
The city government has said that it is still owed about US$7 million from costs associated with Trump’s inauguration, but the administration official said that the city government has not asked for funds from upcoming federal budgets.
Trump on Wednesday said on Twitter that the cost of the event “will be very little compared to what it is worth,” while the administration official declined to say how the bill would be covered.
Norton said that Trump is “doubling up, tripling up on what he owes the District of Columbia.”
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