Washington, DC will be treated to a spectacular military spectacle this Saturday when 28 Abrams tanks, 56 armored cars, artillery battalions, and more than 6,600 troops march through the streets for a celebration of the US Army’s 250th anniversary coincidentally, also President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday.
President Trump has promised a spectacle of “thundering tanks and breathtaking flyovers” that he claims will be “unforgettable.” The show comes as concern builds about Trump’s mounting reliance on military power in domestic situations, after he deployed National Guard and Marines to protests in California without state permission.
The parade, also consisting of horses, mules, and a dog belonging to the cavalry division, has been criticized for its timing and purpose. Historians and experts say that the juxtaposition of such an event with the president’s birthday borders on authoritarian symbolism. Military parades in the United States have long been reserved for victory or wars ending not personal achievements.
Critics, such as Democratic politicians and veterans’ groups, view the event as a ego-trip. Legal scholar Marjorie Cohn cautioned that Trump is employing the military as a “personal police force,” referencing his previous deployments along the southern border and to domestic protests.
Though the White House maintains the parade is to commemorate military service, others see it as part of Trump’s larger effort to reassert executive authority and project strength at home and abroad. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggested a military shift toward domestic operations.
Even with public backlash, the administration continues to argue that the parade is not about commemorating Trump’s birthday, although many see the timing as politically motivated.
While the capital gets ready for the display of power, questions still linger regarding its profounder political and constitutional ramifications.