Trump Says His July Fourth Event Will Become Annual Tradition

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump liked his Fourth of July event in Washington so much, he says he’s going to do it again in 2020, when he’ll be facing re-election, and maybe "for the foreseeable future."

“It was a wonderful day for all Americans and based on its tremendous success we’re just making the decision -- and I think I can say, we’ve made the decision to do it next year and maybe we can say for the foreseeable future,” Trump said Monday during a speech at the White House.

Trump revamped the traditional Fourth of July celebration in Washington this year, putting himself at the center of the festivities. The all-day gathering on the National Mall that draws hundreds of thousands of people featured a Trump speech at the Lincoln Memorial in the evening, military aircraft fly-bys and armored vehicles. The usual 15-minute fireworks show was extended to 35 minutes after two pyrotechnics companies made a donation valued at $750,000. Trump called his event the “Salute to America.”

Government officials made no estimate of the crowd size for the affair but the city’s Metrorail system reported ridership increased 1.7% over the same day last year, with about 401,000 people using the subway system.

“In spite of the heavy rain, and it was really heavy, we had a remarkable Salute to America on the National Mall,” Trump said. “It was incredible. Standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and looking out on the crowds - these incredible, big, beautiful crowds braving the weather all the way back to the Washington Monument, we celebrated freedom in all of its magnificence while saluting our great military.”

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, Wendy Benjaminson

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