Donald Trump's July Fourth Celebration Will Not Feature Military Equipment
Donald Trump will be taking part in his second annual Independence Day concert this year, but the event will be celebrated differently than last year. The celebration will not have military equipment including tanks on static display in the country's capital.
Two defense officials have confirmed that the impending will not showcase military equipment in Washington, D.C., America's capital. Pentagon spokesperson Army Lt. Col. Chris Mitchell said Defense Secretary Mark Esper made an Interior Department request for the Salute to America official, providing ceremonial, musical, and aerial support to the upcoming event.
This year's celebration will feature a military flyover at Mount Rushmore, as originally reported by POLITICO. Aside from that, there will be an aerial salute to cities including Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston for the vital roles they played in American Revolution, Mitchell added. Nearly 1,700 service members will be supporting the festivities.
Mitchell kept details about the flyovers, which is expected to involve heritage aircraft and Defense Department under wraps. Another defense official noted that the request for the Washington, D.C., event involved the Thunderbirds demonstration team of the Air Force, and the Navy's Blue Angels are slated to fly over the Mount Rushmore on July 3.
It will be the first time the Salute to America event will feature the Thunderbirds. The 2019 celebrations involved a Blue Angels flyover. Aside from the Thunderbirds, the D.C. event request included F-22 and F-35 fighter jets, a presidential aircraft, Coast Guard aircraft, an AH-64 Apache and CH-47 Chinook helicopters, V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor, and B-2 stealth bomber.
As far as presidential aircraft is concerned, the event will either feature Marine One or Air Force One, according to the defense official, who requested anonymity to talk about the ongoing planning. The two defense officials also confirmed that the July Fourth celebration will not have static displays on the mall of Bradley fighting vehicles and other military ground equipment, unlike last year.
While it has not been confirmed yet, eliminating the static displays will not only reduce costs but will also attract a lesser number of people. Last year's event wasn't easy on taxpayers' pocket with a price tag of over $13 million, which was double the cost of previous celebrations, GAO reported earlier this week. The president's attendance and inclusion of military vehicles at the Lincoln Memorial increased the overall cost.
Mitchell described this year's flights as a sunk cost. According to the Pentagon spokesperson, if these crews and aircraft were not carrying out these flyovers, they would be using these hours for training and proficiency at some other location.