# Trump's military parade estimated to cost $12 mil **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 19, 2018, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199 "2018-07-19T13:35:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/41 "2018-07-19T20:24:28Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > he probably wants the troops to carry a giant picture of him down the street like they do in Russia, China , N. Korea, and other dictatorships . I prefer the idea of carrying giant balloons just like that one they had in London. In any case, nobody on this thread mentioned another obvious objection to the idea – Donnie [already _had_ his parade](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unite_the_Right_rally). ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/42 "2018-07-19T20:58:27Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > Since the parade will be on November 11, pretty much every other foreign dignitary in the world will be in his/her own country for that country’s commemoration of the centennial of the World War I armistice. > > Hmmm…except perhaps Russia, which left the war early to have its own revolution. And in fact the plan _ **is** _ to have Vlad standing beside Donny, admiring the size of Donny’s missile: > [@](#): > > White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced that plans are underway for a second summit after Trump floated the news in an earlier tweet on Thursday. > > “In Helsinki, @POTUS agreed to ongoing working level dialogue between the two security council staffs,” Sanders tweeted. “President Trump asked @Ambjohnbolton to invite President Putin to Washington in the fall…” [http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/397940-sarah-sanders-discussions-underway-for-putin-to-come-to-washington](http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/397940-sarah-sanders-discussions-underway-for-putin-to-come-to-washington) Granted, it hasn’t yet been confirmed that Putin’s visit to DC would coincide with the parade. But does anyone doubt that this is what Trump is dreaming of? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/43 "2018-07-19T21:01:59Z")
> [@Silver\_lining](#): > > Which group does not have a parade these days? I’m pretty sure my tax dollars helps pays for some of them, so the Military who protect us deserves on too. If you want to do something for military people, send them a gift card and give them a day off. I’m sure none of them want to travel across country so they can spend a day marching. They’d rather be with their families. This parade is all about stroking Trump’s ego. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/44 "2018-07-19T21:04:07Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Granted, it hasn’t yet been confirmed that Putin’s visit to DC would coincide with the parade. > > But does anyone doubt that this is what Trump is dreaming of? Why would Trump want to embarrass himself? If there’s one thing pseudo-Communist dictatorships do better than the US, it’s [military parades.](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/09/russia-displays-military-might-with-victory-day-parade-on-red-sq/) Especially if the US is only spending $12 million - that’s about half the cost of the last Olympics opening ceremony. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/45 "2018-07-19T22:46:55Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > If you want to do something for military people, send them a gift card and give them a day off. I’m sure none of them want to travel across country so they can spend a day marching. They’d rather be with their families. Well, for the past 20 years Republicans have supported the troops by sending them to foreign countries to be shot at, so walking through D.C. is a step in the right direction. ---
**Author:** ![ricksummon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ricksummon/32/3333_2.png) [@ricksummon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricksummon)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2018, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/46 "2018-07-19T23:43:44Z")
Could they play the [Hell March](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b5X69vREAg&t=36s) at the parade? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/47 "2018-07-20T00:15:34Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > there are a lot of troops on the east coast that could be bussed in. For example here in NC we have Ft Bragg (Army) and Camp Lejeune (Marines) which are very big bases. Norfolk has a large Navy base. I guess we will see if they fly troops in from all over which would drive costs up. No matter what they do it is a waste of money. > > We had a local parade after the first Gulf War with mostly Bragg and Lejuene troops , other cities did the same, ours was called a victory parade. The National Capital Military Region does have a modest collection of Ceremonial units but that’s hardly enough for a full-on Big Parade (the Old Guard is only one batallion). As you mentioned the closest active-component large frontline units are in Southern VA/NC and I suppose that for the purposes of prepping for the activity closer to scene they could find space at Fort A.P. Hill and Quantico. Still means that they’ll be up at Oh-Dark-Gimmeabreak to get to the staging point in DC and in the process create a mess in a town where the traffic is a pain even on a holiday. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/48 "2018-07-20T05:48:25Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > The parade is ridiculous, but it’s so trivial compared to everything else Trump is in the news for today. Even the cost isn’t much, it’s equivalent to two of his weekend trips to Mar-a-Lago. I’m not going to waste any of my outrage on this. Not a fan of comparing wrongs. That just resets where normal is. If it would have been a problem pre-Trump, we should continue to treat it like a problem. This is utterly disrespectful to our veterans and it should be treated that way, regardless of what else Trump is doing. Let’s get some vets talk about how much trouble this whole thing is. Let’s show how little the military actually supports this idea. Push that idea on social media. It’s actually something conservatives might care about, so don’t wait. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/49 "2018-07-20T20:05:06Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > If it would have been a problem pre-Trump, we should continue to treat it like a problem. I wouldn’t have seen the parade we ended up with as a problem pre-Trump. I would have generally been pretty supportive. Something highly militaristic, like the French Bastille Day Parade that served as the inspiration, highlighting equipment and national power made me roll my eyes and remember the ass pain of standing and marching in ceremonies and parades. We’re not getting that parade. What we’re getting is a parade marking the 100th Anniversary of the end of WWI. It’s going to include veterans and veteran’s groups along with current troops in historical uniforms. They even managed to move it to a cooler month that a 4th of July parade. Less suck to embrace. I find the parade were getting both respectful and appropriate once we remove the lens of Trump and what Trump wanted. Just ignoring that anniversary except for Veteran’s Day sales at the local mattress store seems a lot more disrespectful. > [@](#): > > Let’s get some vets talk about how much trouble this whole thing is. Let’s show how little the military actually supports this idea. Push that idea on social media. It’s actually something conservatives might care about, so don’t wait. Ceremonies, to include parades, suck. There’s a pretty big but attached, though. My second company command was one unit armory in a small town. We participated in three parades a year. Attendance was voluntary and unpaid; I couldn’t afford to approve paid training time to support the events. We always had volunteers. One Memorial Day parade involved one of my Soldiers that was home from Iraq on leave. he had two weeks away from uniforms and combat to spend with his family. He volunteered to spend part of that time helping remember those who’d died in service before him. Support wasn’t there in polling of the military when this idea started. At that point we were looking at what was looking like a big show of combat vehicles and military power. That’s not what DOD seems to be crafting. I think you might be surprised at how much that can change the perception among veterans. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/50 "2018-07-20T22:28:42Z")
> [@ricksummon](#): > > Could they play the [Hell March](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-b5X69vREAg&t=36s) at the parade? 🙂 Thanks for that link; one of the videos lurking in the right-hand menu turned out to be this [bizarre yet oddly compelling thing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvS351QKFV4); I’m still working on getting my jaw undropped. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/51 "2018-07-20T22:55:52Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > Thanks for that link; one of the videos lurking in the right-hand menu turned out to be this [bizarre yet oddly compelling thing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvS351QKFV4); I’m still working on getting my jaw undropped. Russian Village People? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/52 "2018-07-20T23:34:01Z")
Three terminal alcoholics and a policeman. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2018, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/53 "2018-07-21T00:24:37Z")
Now, see, it doesn’t seem very expensive to us middle-class folks, because we can reasonably expect to earn a few million bucks or so in a lifetime. But it seems hugely expensive to Trump, because his expected lifetime earnings are nearly zero. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2018, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/54 "2018-07-21T00:55:29Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Russian Village People? [German](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dschinghis_Khan), actually. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/55 "2018-07-22T16:26:53Z")
> [@Silver\_lining](#): > > Which group does not have a parade these days? I’m pretty sure my tax dollars helps pays for some of them, so the Military who protect us deserves on too. They already have one. Actually, scads of them. The Veterans Day Parade in NYC is a big event, and there are dozens, if not hundreds\* smaller Veterans Day and Memorial Day parades all around the country. \*Actually, considering that there are dozens in the NYC / Long Island area alone, I’m sure that there are hundreds nationwide. And I was invited to march ( actually ride on a float ) at the Veterans Day parade a couple of times. Because I hang out with my local neighborhood disabled veterans, talk with them, help them out in small ways like picking up small items from the store for them - because it’s hard to navigate small bodegas in a wheelchair. But I couldn’t go because I’m a liberal and if I look at a uniformed officer they will burst into flames from the dissonance of my heresy - …and I was on vacation that week. Mostly I couldn’t go because of the vacation thing But I actually support veterans - with deeds as well as words — even though I don’t always support the wars that injured and killed them. Because actually working with them is a lot more supportive that flouncing out of football games or supporting a military parade honoring a draft-dodging pussy. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2018, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/56 "2018-07-22T19:22:49Z")
I don’t have it in me to condemn anyone for dodging that wretched war. There is, of course, much more to say, but I’d rather not. Just can’t do it. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2018, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/57 "2018-07-22T22:30:38Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I don’t have it in me to condemn anyone for dodging that wretched war. There is, of course, much more to say, but I’d rather not. Just can’t do it. I think the general condemnation is not so much for those who dodged, as for those who dodged and then wrapped themselves in the flag and professed to be the greatest pro-military, pro-veterans patriot _ever_. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2018, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/58 "2018-07-23T01:18:18Z")
Point well taken. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2018, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/59 "2018-08-17T01:21:34Z")
[Postponed](https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/16/politics/military-parade-postponed/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2018, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199/60 "2018-08-17T08:11:28Z")
Although the official reasoning is that the parade was going over budget, I can easily imagine the timing had an impact as well, as Adm. McRaven just put Trump on blast for the security clearance shenanigans. Not a good time to have soldiers around a Commander in Chief who hasn’t served and who uses political intimidation tactics against people who have “wronged” him. Near the beginning of Trump’s term he got a bunch of Special Forces soldiers killed by having them rush a mission. They would not forget something like that and if Trump wants to politicize the military, it’s entirely possible they would be happy to take him up on it. The tree of liberty is watered with blood after all and the right of a well-regulated militia to overthrow a tyrannical government is written down somewhere… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-military-parade-estimated-to-cost-12-mil/818199.md?page=4)