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Trump's 4 July tanks prompt 'don't panic' warning | Trump's 4 July tanks prompt 'don't panic' warning |
(about 1 hour later) | |
The US military has told Washington DC residents not to panic if they see tanks on the streets for President Donald Trump's Independence Day parade. | The US military has told Washington DC residents not to panic if they see tanks on the streets for President Donald Trump's Independence Day parade. |
At least two Bradley armoured carriers and two M1A1 Abrams Tanks will be moved to the heart of the US capital for the president's "Salute to America". | At least two Bradley armoured carriers and two M1A1 Abrams Tanks will be moved to the heart of the US capital for the president's "Salute to America". |
The National Park Service will reportedly divert nearly $2.5m (£2m) to cover the cost of the event. | The National Park Service will reportedly divert nearly $2.5m (£2m) to cover the cost of the event. |
Mr Trump tweeted his 4 July celebration will be "the show of a lifetime". | |
What will happen? | |
Mr Trump's Fourth of July extravaganza will feature an assortment of tanks as well as a military jet flyover, an extended fireworks show and speech by the president at the Lincoln Memorial. | |
As the armoured vehicles were transported from a railyard in south-eastern Washington DC on Tuesday evening, military officials advised residents not to be alarmed. | |
Army Col Sunset Belinsky told a local CBS News affiliate: "Residents of the Capitol City will see the vehicles move through their neighbourhoods, but should not panic." | Army Col Sunset Belinsky told a local CBS News affiliate: "Residents of the Capitol City will see the vehicles move through their neighbourhoods, but should not panic." |
Col Belinsky did not disclose where the tanks would be displayed on the National Mall in the city centre. | Col Belinsky did not disclose where the tanks would be displayed on the National Mall in the city centre. |
"The Pentagon & our great Military Leaders are thrilled to be doing this," Mr Trump said in a tweet on Tuesday. "Incredible Flyovers & biggest ever Fireworks!" | |
But the weather forecast is threatening to rain on Mr Trump's parade. Afternoon and evening thunderstorms are predicted for Thursday. | |
The event will be open to the public free of charge, apart from a ticketed area for VIPs in front of the Lincoln Memorial. | |
Who's invited? | |
Mr Trump will be joined on Thursday by a Pentagon delegation led by the highest-ranking US military officer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford. | |
But the service chiefs of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps will not attend. | |
The Department of Defence said in a statement it had received 5,000 tickets from the White House. | |
Both the Republican National Committee and Mr Trump's campaign confirmed to US media they had also received passes to hand out. | |
The White House has reportedly also distributed VIP tickets to major donors and political appointees. | |
This week, Mr Trump's re-election campaign sent out an email encouraging supporters to attend the event. | |
But the Democratic National Committee has been given no tickets for the event. | |
It is unclear whether those without a ticket will be permitted into an area protected by Secret Service as the president delivers his speech. | |
Partisan or patriotic? | |
During the Obama administration, a routine military exercise in Texas fostered all manner of fevered talk of an impending military coup. Now tanks are arriving in the nation's capital, Air Force jets are planning a show of force and the US Army is telling local residents not to be alarmed. | |
Conspiracy theorists have been largely silent, however. It's a sign of how much has changed in just a few years. | |
Donald Trump's "salute to the troops", despite being hastily planned, is - like the Trump presidency itself - a norm-breaking development. It's a military-draped political rally on the ground where Martin Luther King Jr once gave his "I have a Dream" speech. | |
The Republican Party is distributing tickets to VIPs, the president is planning an address and the financially strapped National Park Service has diverted funds for the event. | |
Democrats are up in arms about the politicisation of a holiday best known for neighbourhood parades, a kitschy musical show near the Capitol and fireworks displays large and small. | |
The president will dismiss such criticism as unpatriotic and revel in the glow of military might. And, like all Trump-related conflagrations, this will burn bright but eventually fade away. | |
Or maybe it will rain. | |
How much will it cost? | |
Trump administration officials have not disclosed how much taxpayers' money will be used for the 4 July celebration. Military flyovers alone cost tens of thousands of dollars per hour. | |
Mr Trump said in a tweet that the expense "will be very little compared to what it is worth". | |
The National Park Service is diverting a portion of entrance and recreation fees intended to improve parks across the US in order to foot the bill for the parade, reports the Washington Post. | The National Park Service is diverting a portion of entrance and recreation fees intended to improve parks across the US in order to foot the bill for the parade, reports the Washington Post. |
In previous years, the 4 July celebration on the National Mall has typically cost the agency about $2m, according to the newspaper. | In previous years, the 4 July celebration on the National Mall has typically cost the agency about $2m, according to the newspaper. |
The diverted funds are just a small fraction of the National Park Service's $2bn plus budget. | The diverted funds are just a small fraction of the National Park Service's $2bn plus budget. |
But the agency complained in March that it is facing almost $12bn in backlogged maintenance and repair needs - exacerbated by the US government shutdown at the beginning of this year. | But the agency complained in March that it is facing almost $12bn in backlogged maintenance and repair needs - exacerbated by the US government shutdown at the beginning of this year. |
Mr Trump's plans for a military display on Veterans Day in November last year were dropped after defence officials said it would cost about $92m - more than three times the original estimate. | |
What's the reaction? | |
Mr Trump's Independence Day plans have divided opinion. | |
Critics of the president see it as an inappropriately partisan display and a misuse of public funds. | |
Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz decried the event and "enormous waste of resources" on Twitter. | |
"Tanks on the streets...VIP access for donors at a July 4 event", the Democrat wrote. "There is nothing patriotic about any of that." | |
The National Park Service has issued a permit to feminist group Code Pink to stage a demonstration in the vicinity of the event on the day. | |
They plan to display an inflatable balloon depicting Mr Trump as a baby to protest against the "militarisation" of the US holiday. | |
But organisers were denied permission to use helium for the balloon to make it airborne. | But organisers were denied permission to use helium for the balloon to make it airborne. |