(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump has asked the Pentagon to plan a grand parade of the U.S. armed forces in Washington this year to celebrate military strength, officials said Tuesday.
The Washington Post, which was first to report the plan, said Trump wants an elaborate parade this year with soldiers marching and tanks rolling, but no date has been selected.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed the request Tuesday evening. She said Trump wants the Pentagon to “explore a celebration” that will allow Americans to show appreciation for the military.
A Pentagon spokesman, Charlie Summers, said Pentagon officials are aware of the request and are “looking at options.”
Muscular military parades of the kind that are common in authoritarian countries like China and North Korea are not quintessentially American. The U.S. traditionally has not embraced showy displays of raw military power, such as North Korea’s parading of ballistic missiles as a claim of international prestige and influence.
U.S. military members commonly participate in parades on the Fourth of July and other holidays to mark appreciation and remembrance of military veterans, but these typically do not include gaudy displays of military hardware.
In her brief comment on Trump’s order to the Pentagon, Sanders did not elaborate on what sort of event he envisions.
Although Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has not commented publicly on the idea of a Washington military parade, the idea is not an obvious fit with his emphasis on focusing strictly, if not exclusively, on military activities that either improve the lethality of the armed forces or enhance their preparation for combat, or both.
The Post report said a Jan. 18 meeting between Trump, Mattis and top generals at the Pentagon marked a tipping point in Trump’s push for a parade. It quoted an unidentified military official as saying, “The marching orders were: I want a parade like the one in France.” It was thus interpreted as a presidential order, the Post said, adding that the cost of shipping tanks and other military hardware to Washington could run in the millions of dollars.
The Post also reported that the Pentagon would prefer to hold such a parade on Veteran’s Day in November, in part because it would coincide with the 100th anniversary of the victorious end of World War I. It would thus be less directly associated with the president and politics, the Post said.
John Kirby, a retired Navy rear admiral and former spokesman for the State Department and the Pentagon, reposted on Twitter Tuesday night an article he wrote for CNN’s website last summer after Trump mentioned he had been dazzled by the Paris parade. Kirby said a big military parade in Washington is a bad idea.
“First of all, the United States doesn’t need a parade down Pennsylvania or any other avenue to show our military strength,” he wrote. “We do that every day in virtually every clime all over the world.”
It has long been conventional wisdom that the U.S. does not need to boast of its military strength because it already is recognized as the leader of the NATO alliance and a model of military professionalism that countries across the global seek to emulate.
Last September, at a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump announced his idea of staging a grand parade of the armed forces in Washington on July 4.
Trump reminisced about watching France’s Bastille Day military parade when he visited Paris in July. He said the two-hour parade was a “tremendous thing for France and for the spirit of France,” and said he wanted one on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington that would be grander than the one he saw in Paris.
Poster Comment:
Maybe the tanks can roll on into Maryland and take on the Anacostia commies, and then onward to Baltimore, Trenton, and NYC?
#1: Fred Mertz To: hondo68 (#0)
It may get emotional for some of the observers.
Fred Mertz posted on 2018-02-07 00:00:12 Reply Private Reply
#2: Gatlin To: Fred Mertz, hondo68 (#1)
“Emotion” ...
How does it feel to be emotionally detached to your mother country and how difficult is it to understand that patriotism is an emotion, a reaction of the profoundly complex relationship between an individual and his homeland? How difficult is it to realize that the intricate bond between an individual and county is a value system formed in the process of thought and feeling of loyalty for the love of his country?
It is not surprising to find that some people will not carry forward the patriotism produce and even think patriotism has become of no importance. They fail to understand that patriotism is of realistic significant value for safeguarding our national sovereignty and interest. It helps in life to deal with complex domestic situations and world challenges.
When those who feel no love for their native land, never have a sense of pride for the land where they live....no parade or anything else will for reason be good to them. For those, it will never generate patriotism. Since patriotism is a matter that can’t be injected into people’s mind, it is an emotion that grows automatically and is implanted through heritage.
I don’t expect you to understand this, Fred, neither will hondo and a few others here. But some of us do, the same as President Trump does.....and this intensely patriotic individual especially understands it:
God bless America ...
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 05:48:42 Reply Private Reply
#3: Deckard To: Gatlin, hondo68, Fred Mertz (#2)
We can see where Trump is headed now.
He is slowly revealing his true nature.
It is not surprising to find that some people will not carry forward the patriotism produce and even think patriotism has become of no importance.
This isn't patriotism - copying the militaristic displays of the former Soviet Union, North Korea and China is simply revolting.
Deckard posted on 2018-02-07 05:56:05 Reply Private Reply
#4: Tooconservative To: hondo68 (#0)
Trump wanted this for his inauguration, was mad he couldn't get a big military parade.
One of the generals argued that the streets in D.C. will not support the weight of tanks. I'm not sure if that is true. NATO forces routinely parade on the boulevards of Europe which seems to be mostly what the EU leaders think a military is used for.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 07:10:14 Reply Private Reply
#5: Gatlin To: Deckard (#3)
This isn't any kind of a astatement - it's bullshit.
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 08:28:26 Reply Private Reply
#6: Jameson To: hondo68 (#0)
There will be no parade....when the Pentagon finishes "looking into it" they will determine that it would have an embarrassingly low attendance....and would be mocked and ridiculed around the world.
Of course since LORM has already made his need for attention public....the ridicule will be forthcoming anyway.
Jameson posted on 2018-02-07 08:29:19 Reply Private Reply
#7: Willie Green To: Deckard, Gatlin, hondo68, Fred Mertz, Tooconservative (#3)
Trump needs a goose-step to help him get it up because viagra doesn't work any more...
Willie Green posted on 2018-02-07 08:40:00 Reply Private Reply
#8: Tooconservative To: hondo68 (#0)
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 08:40:48 Reply Private Reply
#9: Fred Mertz To: Willie Green (#7)
I think the idea would involve deciding on the mix between military hardware and troops in a parade. Heavy stuff like tanks and tracked vehicles would be prohibitive. On the other hand, gathering enough troops for a "big" parade would be difficult, given the small size of the forces/strength levels and the fact that many of them are deployed overseas to protect Empire America.
Just my opinion of course.
Fred Mertz posted on 2018-02-07 10:47:33 Reply Private Reply
#10: A K A Stone To: Jameson (#6)
There will be a parade. Then something more will happen. At the end of the parade the military will go in and remove all the swamp creatures from DC.
Do it do it Trump.
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 11:06:47 Reply Private Reply
#11: A K A Stone To: Deckard (#3)
It's not a parade, but same principal.
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 11:09:49 Reply Private Reply
#12: misterwhite To: Tooconservative (#4)
misterwhite posted on 2018-02-07 11:26:09 Reply Private Reply
#13: Tooconservative To: misterwhite (#12)
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 11:36:18 Reply Private Reply
#14: A K A Stone To: Tooconservative (#13)
At the other end of NBC's Thursday, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade snagged a 12.5/27 metered market rating this year. ... Overall, NBC unsurprisingly won Thanksgiving primetime with a 4.2/16 rating among adults 18-49 and 14.4 million viewers.Nov 24, 2017
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 11:48:00 Reply Private Reply
#15: BorisY To: Willie Green (#7)
On sTeroids
Humping each other
The liberal gay parade
The chelsey unmanning of america
GeTs you all giggly
Tingly Too
Red whiTe blue Donald Trump usa
vs
The obama gay whiTe baTh house
Your love fesT
Hang ouT
No Thanks
boris
Ps
Fredfreacka Too
BorisY posted on 2018-02-07 11:49:06 Reply Private Reply
#16: misterwhite To: Tooconservative (#13)
Yet we have a ton of them every year across America. Big ones.
Would you rather have a Trump-style military parade or a Gay Pride parade? Which one more accurately represents the average American?
misterwhite posted on 2018-02-07 11:49:06 Reply Private Reply
#17: Tooconservative To: misterwhite (#12)
It looks just dreadful. Poor Melania, such a good sport.
France's military on parade is really really gay. I can't imagine why Trump liked it.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 11:51:48 Reply Private Reply
#18: A K A Stone To: Tooconservative (#17)
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 11:53:47 Reply Private Reply
#19: A K A Stone To: Tooconservative (#17)
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 11:54:54 Reply Private Reply
#20: Hondo68 To: Gatlin, yukon taters, Fred Mertz, Deckard (#2)
A globalist swine McCain voter like you, has not a clue to the meaning of National Sovereignty!
Patriotism is not parades, nor a lust for yukons taters.
Hondo68 posted on 2018-02-07 12:06:43 Reply Private Reply
#21: Tooconservative To: A K A Stone (#18)
Scrub through that video of the French parade. Colorful historic uniforms, drab bands, the jeep corps (a bad joke), some wheeled armored cars, a half-dozen medium tanks with more armored cars, 3 choppers, a half-dozen jets trailing tricolor smoke flying over the Arc. How they dragged it out for over two hours is beyond imagination. It's sheer torture.
The display of military might was pathetic actually. Trump is right that we could easily outdo it, even with only National Guard units.
I think the money should be spent on rebuilding the military. We're scavenging parts off planes to keep others in the air. A parade for Trump won't fix that.
Look at that video closely though. There is no doubt that Trump enjoyed that parade more than anyone else there. Trump enjoyed it more than everyone else on the review stand combined. The French officials looked like "I suppose I have to be here because it's my job." You can't imagine any of them attending this parade if they weren't obliged to. But Trump really did enjoy it, right up to where he helped lead the applause for him getting into his Beast and leaving at the end of the clip.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 12:10:59 Reply Private Reply
#22: Tooconservative To: misterwhite (#16)
They're both awful. No thanks.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 12:13:03 Reply Private Reply
#23: A K A Stone To: Tooconservative (#21)
A K A Stone posted on 2018-02-07 12:13:44 Reply Private Reply
#24: Tooconservative To: A K A Stone (#23)
Yeah, it's a real public service. LOL
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 12:18:25 Reply Private Reply
#25: Fred Mertz To: hondo68 (#20)
Tell tater I've participated in more parades than he'd ever dream of. I've also observed them too. Last big one I saw was in DC after Desert Storm I - oh, so long ago.
Fred Mertz posted on 2018-02-07 12:29:50 Reply Private Reply
#26: misterwhite To: Willie Green (#7)
misterwhite posted on 2018-02-07 12:32:24 Reply Private Reply
#27: Hondo68 To: Tooconservative (#4)
Don't know about the weight aspect, but tanks could be outfitted with rubber treads (expensive), or trailered to avoid tearing up the streets. Not that I'm in favor of this stupid idea.
Hondo68 posted on 2018-02-07 12:33:32 Reply Private Reply
#28: Tooconservative To: hondo68 (#27)
Trump would not accept light tanks. He would want yuuuuuuge street-crushing tanks.
I saw today at WaPo an article that says the whole parade thing is just a major trolling of Dems by Trump. Kind of like the anthem-kneeling troll he has going with the NFL.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 12:49:01 Reply Private Reply
#29: Jameson To: A K A Stone (#10)
Will you be "marching" in the Doo-Dah parade again this year?
I know how much you enjoy it!
www.doodahparade.com/
Jameson posted on 2018-02-07 13:00:58 Reply Private Reply
#30: Willie Green To: Tooconservative, hondo68 (#28)
I'm certainly no expert, but if I had to guess, I'd say the regular tank tracks shouldn't hurt the streets (not unless they're recently paved with fresh/soft asphalt, anyway) Tank tracks are made to spread the weight out over a large area.... That's why they don't sink up to their axles in sand or mud like regular wheeled vehicles would. Maybe high speeds and rapid turns might make a difference... but just poking along at a snail's pace in a parade shouldn't be much of a problem...
But I could be wrong....
Willie Green posted on 2018-02-07 13:34:48 Reply Private Reply
#31: VxH To: Deckard (#3)
Yep. I wonder how many parades FLOTUSSA went to with her Soviet Communist daddy-Trump lookalike?
Some folks can remember that one of the differences between the USA and the USSR was that we didn't have parades worshiping the Military Industrial Complex like they did.
Others - Not. So. Much.
VxH posted on 2018-02-07 13:44:07 Reply Private Reply
#32: Tooconservative To: Willie Green (#30)
It sounds like Trump really wants a July 4 parade while the Pentagon would rather go for Veterans Day on Nov. 11. Asphalt would be warmer and softer in mid-day July. But Veterans Day is after the midterm elections so I don't think Trump will go for it.
You could just do a short parade of the heavy tanks/howitzers, put them on the street a few blocks from Trump, roll them past, go a few more blocks to trailer them again. It would limit any street damage and prevent excess wear on the tank treads.
The Pentagon should try to get Trump to attend one of the big war games and do some parading there. It would be more appropriate and a lot less expensive. And it would make good TV for Trump, maybe more so than a parade passing the White House at considerable expense.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 13:45:20 Reply Private Reply
#33: Gatlin To: hondo68 (#20)
Never said it was ...
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 13:49:12 Reply Private Reply
#34: Gatlin To: hondo68 (#20)
Where did I say anything about national sovereignty?
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 13:51:46 Reply Private Reply
#35: Tooconservative To: Willie Green, hondo68 (#30)
. . .
Many manufacturers provide rubber tracks instead of steel, especially for agricultural applications. Rather than a track made of linked steel plates, a reinforced rubber belt with chevron treads is used. In comparison to steel tracks, rubber tracks are lighter, make less noise, create less maximal ground pressure and do not damage paved roads. The disadvantage is that they are not as solid as steel tracks. Previous belt-like systems, such as those used for half-tracks in World War II, were not as strong, and during military actions were easily damaged. The first rubber track was invented and constructed by Adolphe Kégresse and patented in 1913; rubber tracks are often called Kégresse tracks.
Tooconservative posted on 2018-02-07 13:59:36 Reply Private Reply
#36: buckeroo To: Gatlin (#34)
Patriotism is rooted in, "national sovereignty" but knowing you based on past commentary, you could give a shit.
buckeroo posted on 2018-02-07 14:00:22 Reply Private Reply
#37: Stoner To: Gatlin (#2)
Stoner posted on 2018-02-07 14:09:51 Reply Private Reply
#38: Willie Green To: Tooconservative (#35)
As if our infrastructure isn't crumbling fast enough already, Herr Drumpf wants the tanks to grind it to smithereens... and then refuse to jack-up the taxes to pay for filling in the potholes...
Willie Green posted on 2018-02-07 14:23:41 Reply Private Reply
#39: Gatlin To: buckeroo (#36)
No,
I just asked him where I said it.
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 14:35:49 Reply Private Reply
#40: Hondo68 To: Deckard, crosswalk heroes, Boston SWAT, Fred Mertz (#3)
If we're gonna beat the NORKS at their own game, we'll need to include our SWAT heroes in the parade too!
Hondo68 posted on 2018-02-07 14:39:57 Reply Private Reply
#41: Gatlin To: Stoner (#37)
I have seen this picture a number of times when it was used for different patriotic reasons.
As I viewed the picture each time, I have always had the same reaction as you.
And I also think how nice it would be to meet this man and shake his hand.
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 14:41:04 Reply Private Reply
#42: buckeroo To: VxH (#31)
buckeroo posted on 2018-02-07 14:44:23 Reply Private Reply
#43: Hondo68 To: Gatlin, buckeroo (#34)
In your post #2 above, retard!
Hondo68 posted on 2018-02-07 14:46:34 Reply Private Reply
#44: Gatlin To: hondo68 (#43)
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 14:54:11 Reply Private Reply
#45: buckeroo To: Gatlin, hondo68 (#44)
buckeroo posted on 2018-02-07 15:13:18 Reply Private Reply
#46: Gatlin To: buckeroo (#45)
Gatlin posted on 2018-02-07 15:57:31 Reply Private Reply
#47: Liberator To: A K A Stone (#10)
DING DING DING! You are much closer to the truth.
This gesture/parade is intended exactly to demonstrate who is on who's side and to give pause to the Deep/Swamp/Commie State collaborators.
Gen. Mattis appreciates being appreciated by Trump -- unlike 0bama, who treated him and the military like dogs.
Liberator posted on 2018-02-09 11:05:51 Reply Private Reply
#48: Liberator To: Willie Green (#30)
You always are, aren't you?
Liberator posted on 2018-02-09 11:07:47 Reply Private Reply
#49: Liberator To: hondo68, ALL (#0)
One of my favorite scenes from The Dirty Dozen. And music.
"They're very pretty Colonel -- but can they fight? Where are you from son??...Neeever heard of it."
Maybe the tanks can roll on into Maryland and take on the Anacostia commies, and then onward to Baltimore, Trenton, and NYC?
They need to stay right in DC. They can even stop by the ValJar/0bammy house and beep the tank horn.
Liberator posted on 2018-02-09 11:14:17 Reply Private Reply