Trump Remakes D.C.’s July Fourth Celebration to Include Himself
Trump Remakes D.C.’s July Fourth Celebration to Include Himself
(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump’s revamped Fourth of July celebration on the National Mall will include a presidential address from the Lincoln Memorial and a military display with plane flyovers and demonstrations by all five branches of the armed services.
The annual fireworks display will also be relocated to a site near the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial, the Interior Department said in a statement on Wednesday. That will allow more people to gather closer to the site of the president’s speech but will create new logistical challenges for the decades-old event that draws thousands of Americans to downtown Washington.
Trump will be the first president to address the nation on Independence Day from the Mall in recent memory.
“For the first time in many years, the World War II Memorial and areas around the Reflecting Pool will be open for the public to enjoy a stunning fireworks display and an address by our Commander-in-Chief,” the Interior Department said in the statement. “We are excited to open these new areas so that more visitors may experience this year’s Independence Day celebration in our nation’s capital.”
Trump sought to revamp the annual July 4 celebration after his plans for a military parade on Veteran’s Day were stymied by complaints about the cost. The president has been enamored of the idea of a Washington celebration with a military component since attending the 2017 Bastille Day parade in Paris, which included an aerial display, thousands of marching soldiers and hundreds of military vehicles.
But the effort has drawn criticism from Trump’s political opponents, who say the president is recasting a traditionally nonpartisan national celebration to revolve around himself. And Washington’s mayor, Muriel Bowser, told the Washington Post that the president’s attendance and re-positioning of the fireworks could create security and logistical concerns.
“If we have to put more police to cover his movements, more police for the fireworks and an additional location for police where the fireworks are going to get set off, that puts a strain on us,” Bowser said.
It is unclear how much the changes will cost the federal and local governments.
Trump criticized District officials when his initial plans for a military parade were derailed.
Bowser responded by saying the event would have cost the city $21.6 million, and mocked Trump as “the reality star in the White House.”
Trump plans to speak at the “Salute of America” event at the Lincoln Memorial at 6:30 p.m. The traditional “Capitol Fourth” concert on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol will take place from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., coinciding with a 20-minute firework display that will run from 9:07 p.m. to 9:27 p.m.
To contact the reporter on this story: Justin Sink in WASHINGTON at jsink1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Justin Blum
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.