The United States Defence Department has confirmed it is exploring options for a military parade at the request of President Donald Trump prompting four Democratic Senators to demand answers on the estimated cost from the Pentagon.
The Defense Secretary confirmed they were preparing options for the President for a military parade the likes of which has not been seen in the United States since the end of the first Gulf war in 1991.
It was when President Trump attended France’s Bastille Day military parade in Paris last year that the idea was first conceived, an event that impressed him so much, he wants one of his own. These were his thoughts in September last year.
“I do want to say that I was your guest at Bastille Day and it was one of the greatest parades I have ever seen. It was two hours on the button and it was military might and, I think, a tremendous thing for France and for the spirit of France. People don’t know what great warriors they are in France. But when you see that and you see all the victories -it was a tremendous thing and to a large extent because of what I have witnessed, we may do something like that on July 4th in Washington down Pennsylvania Avenue, if I have your approval. I don’t know. We’re going to have to try and top it – but we got a lot of planes going over, a lot of military might.”
The last time the United States held a military parade was under George H.W. Bush at the conclusion of the first Gulf War in 1991 at a cost of 12 million dollars. Even 29 years ago concerns where raised that such displays of military might lend themselves more to dictatorial regimes as was witnessed on the streets of Pyongyang in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea earlier Thursday.
The DPRK marking it’s founding anniversary with a military salute to the country’s leader Kim Jong-UN. While details of a possible US parade remain unclear as Trump’s Defense Secretary Jim Mattis explained.
“I think we’re all aware in this country of the president’s affection and respect for the military. We’ve been putting together some options. We’ll send them up to the White House for a decision.”
Various lawmakers from both parties have criticized the move, with Senate Democrats sending a letter to Secretary Mattis demanding to know cost and the personnel hours it would require to execute.
“Confidence is silent and insecurity is loud. America is the most powerful country in all of human history, everybody knows it and we don’t need t show it of, we’re not NK, we’re not Russia and we’re not china and I don’t wanna be” added Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana
It remains unclear when or where the proposed military parade would take place and what purpose it might serve.
