The Trump administration started planning a military-style parade in the D.C. area for the president's birthday.
President Donald Trump attempted to put on a similar parade during his first term in office but had to cancel it because of cost concerns.
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WATCH HEREThe Trump administration has been contacting local leaders in the D.C. area about having a parade. The size and scope of the parade is unclear.
June 14 will be the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. It’s also Trump’s 79th birthday, a celebration that could include a parade, the Washington City Paper’s Tom Sherwood first reported.
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SIGN UP “I would say that it’s in its early stages,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed. “Yes, they have reached out.”
Bowser cautioned that a true military parade with heavy equipment like tanks would come with a cost.
“Military tanks on our streets would not be good,” she said. “If military tanks were used, they should be accompanied with many millions of dollars to repair the roads.”
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“We all know that President Trump likes big, grandiose events,” said Sherwood, a former News4 reporter and analyst. “And this is his chance to have a parade that he can oversee from the Pentagon to in front of the White House.”
Infrastructure like the 14th Street Bridge would have to be tested to see if it could support the parade, officials said.
Trump wanted a parade in 2018 during his first term, but it didn’t work out, Sherwood said.
“The military leaders said it would cost too much, nearly $90 million; Mayor Bowser ridiculed the idea on the Twitter system and said it would cost us $20 million just for public safety,” Sherwood said. “So, he canceled it — angrily canceled it. But this time around, it doesn’t sound like he is gonna cancel.”
Arlington leaders say they also got a heads up about the parade planning.
