If President Donald Trump was expecting a grand display of military might and loyalty on his 79th birthday—a parade to match his ego—he didn’t get it.
Instead, what was billed as a celebration of both the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary and the president’s birthday turned out to be disappointing and underwhelming. The turnout was sparse while soldiers marched out of sync, visibly wilting in the humidity of Washington, D.C. Even worse, it rained—despite Trump later insisting it hadn’t.
And now, it seems Trump wants someone to blame for the flop. Acknowledging the weather, the massive protests happening nationwide, or that Americans had better things to do would be too simple. So, according to journalist and biographer Michael Wolff, Trump pointed the finger at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Wolff, who did not disclose his sourcing, told the Daily Beast that Trump was furious the parade wasn’t the “menacing” spectacle he envisioned.
“He’s pissed off at the soldiers,” Wolff said. “He’s accusing them of hamming it up ... showing a convivial face rather than a military face.”
Maybe Trump’s annoyed because he’s used to soldiers who’ve been prescreened for loyalty. This time, they reportedly weren’t intimidating enough for his liking. So, according to Wolff, Trump “reamed out” Hegseth on the phone.
“The tone was all wrong,” Wolff claims Trump said. “Who staged this? Why didn’t it send the message?”
That message, of course, was that Trump is commander in chief of a powerful military machine, and he expects that power to be fully displayed. Instead, he got a parade that felt more like a half-hearted Fourth of July block party.
Of course, if Trump is looking for a scapegoat, Hegseth’s an easy target. His record is a mess. After all, who could forget Signalgate? He skated after accidentally revealing details of a planned strike on Houthi rebels in a group chat that, somehow, included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief. Then, he discussed the same mission in another unclassified thread—one that included his brother, his wife, and his personal lawyer.
He also set up an unsecured internet connection—what’s known as a “dirty” line—in his Pentagon office so he could run Signal on his personal computer. Signal, of course, isn’t cleared for classified communication, let alone military operations.
But maybe none of that crossed the line. Maybe it’s screwing up Trump’s birthday that does.
The White House denies there’s any tension. Communications director Steven Cheung went scorched earth on Wolff, telling the Daily Beast that he’s a “lying sack of shit” with a “peanut-sized brain” rotted by “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
Why yes, that is George Washington on a horse next to a military tank during Trump’s birthday parade.
And publicly, Trump pretended everything went great.
“Last night was a tremendous success with a fantastic audience,” he told reporters. “It was supposed to rain ... and it didn’t rain at all. It was beautiful.”
Of course, it did rain. And the event was far from a triumph. The crowd was thin, damp, and visibly unenthusiastic. Soldiers waved wearily from tanks, trying to stir something from the slumped, sweating spectators. Trump, seated nearby, occasionally stood for a half-hearted salute.
All this even though the parade cost taxpayers millions. Estimates suggest the total price tag landed somewhere between $25 and $45 million. That cost is part of the reason Trump didn’t get his parade during his first term. Now, years later, he finally got the show—and it landed with a thud.
Meanwhile, across the country, millions were in the streets for “No Kings” protests—joyful, defiant demonstrations rejecting Trump’s authoritarian slide. Protesters intentionally avoided hosting a “No Kings” event in D.C. to keep the spotlight elsewhere, but the contrast with Trump’s limp parade couldn’t have been starker.
Trump had hoped the parade would project strength and control, a visual reminder of his grip on the country. After all, this is a man who has deployed Marines to Los Angeles., seized control of the California National Guard, erroneously deported American citizens, disappeared dissidents, and turned federal agencies against political opponents. The parade was supposed to cap all that with a message: I’m in charge—and I have the tanks to prove it.
Instead, it flopped. And someone has to take the fall, and that someone sure won’t be Trump.
Campaign Action
