Politico reports the Pentagon is moving ahead with plans to stage the military parade Trump has wanted ever since the French treated him to one last year on Bastille Day.
...The president has directed the Department of Defense to organize a parade that would take place on Nov. 11 – Veterans Day – according to an unclassified Feb. 20 memo written by National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster.
The memo, which was summarized to POLITICO by a senior administration official, was sent from McMaster to Secretary of Defense James Mattis. It says that Trump wants Mattis to brief him on “concepts of operation for this event.”
The memo also said that the parade route should begin at the White House and end at the Capitol.
As someone who participated in the March For Science last year, I’m familiar with the route. The logistics of assembling everything such a parade will require are going to be a nightmare. If Trump wants a start at the White House, it’s likely the National Mall is going to have to be used for a staging area. The other problem will be where they go after arriving at the Capitol.
Depending on how many marchers and vehicles (tanks, rocket launchers, trucks, etc.) are going to be involved, the streets of Washington are going to be tied up for hours. No word yet on where Trump will have the reviewing stand. No word yet on how many Russian units will be invited to participate (snark).
The fact that the parade will be going near this statue is a bit of irony that will be lost on Trump and GOP chickenhawks, who will be falling all over themselves over how great this is going to be, and how much they ‘love’ the troops.
(What are the odds the talking points will include “This is for all the Vietnam veterans who never got a parade” and “Such a nice change after Obama, who hated the troops”? No doubt, Cadet Bonespurs will be sure to work that in, between sessions of patting himself on the back.)
Robert Bateman, U.S. Army, ret. had a write up months ago of just how bad an idea this is going to be.
Only those who have not seen war have any desire to celebrate war. Parades, such as the one the current chief executive demands, are anathema to those who actually served. From the lowest rank to the highest, there is nothing more detested than the idea and reality of a parade. This would seem to be a key indicator of how far out of touch with the military President Trump is at this point. His only quasi-experience with service was at an “academy” that parroted the military. But at the core, it was a school for rich kids. If Donald Trump went to Basic Training, he would have had a traumatic bowel evacuation. And there would be no talk about a parade.
Bateman goes on to describe just how much of an ordeal it would be just for the troops alone. Adding in the tanks and everything else? The details would be even more involved. And presumably, there will be flyovers as well. Perhaps the briefing for the president* should include a mention that ‘victory parades’ don’t always turn out well.
On the other hand, depending on how things go November 6, 2018 — Election Day — November 11, 2018 might be a good day for a Victory Parade after all...