Chronicle Editor
Washington, DC, (US) -US President Donald Trump has praised the military in his Independence Day speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC amid a display of military strength.
“We celebrate our history, our people, and the heroes who proudly defend our flag — the brave men and women of the United States military!” he said on Thursday.
Trump became the first US president in more than 70 years to deliver an Independence Day address as hundreds of people — both his supporters and opponents — gathered to celebrate the country’s declaration of independence from Britain on July 4, 1776.
Inspired by the exhibition of French military strength he witnessed while attending Bastille Day in Paris in 2017, the Republican president turned the event into a celebration of the US military.
The Salute To America event boasted flyover from army jets and helicopters, as well as a collection of armoured vehicles that included Abrams tanks and Bradley armoured vehicles.
Trump’s speech to the nation centred on the US’s military strength, lavishing extensive praise on each branch of the military, touting the armed forces and their history as the example of strength and unity to which ordinary citizens should aspire to.
“There will be nothing that America cannot do” as long as Americans remain true to their history and “never stop fighting for a better future,” said Trump. He also promised to plant the US flag on Mars.
Critics of the president, including members of the press and the opposition Democratic party and even former military leaders, expressed concern that Trump was not only politicising a national holiday, but also the military in the process.
Despite reports of sightings of military vehicles around the US capital in the days preceding the event, the military hardware remained hidden from the general public for most of the day, tucked far behind chain link fences surrounding the Lincoln Memorial.
Much more visible were the displays of partisan affiliation among Trump supporters, large numbers of whom attended the parade and subsequent events sporting shirts, flags, and hats emblazoned with pro-Trump slogans.
Lore Emelio, a North Carolina resident who attended Thursday’s event with her six-year-old son, described the atmosphere as feeling “more politicised” and “resentful” than July 4 celebrations she was accustomed to.
Emelio also wanted to take her son to the Lincoln Memorial, “the one thing he wanted to see most”, only to find it cordoned off ahead of Trump’s speech.
Carmen Arrezola from Virginia also expressed dissatisfaction with this year’s proceedings, saying the presence of military vehicles gave her the impression of “living in a military order”.
Ashton Whitty, a Trump supporter from Berkeley, California, couldn’t see anything wrong with the military hardware on display and disagreed that Trump had politicised this year’s celebrations.
“It’s not a Nazi thing,” she said, standing near the chain-link fence separating the Lincoln Memorial from the general public. “[Americans] live in the greatest country in the world. I think all presidents should address the American people like this.”
Jason Frank, a Las Vegas resident who had been conversing with Whitty, agreed. Having registered to vote for the first time at the age of 41 with the express purpose of re-electing Trump, Frank described this year’s Independence Day celebration as “a beautiful thing”.
“Without [Independence Day] we don’t have anything. If you know the history, you honour it for what it is.” — Al Jazeera
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