Donald Trump’s $92 Million Military Parade Postponed – President Blames D.C. Politicians For Higher Costs

On Thursday, the Defense Department announced that President Donald Trump‘s military parade would cost $92 million and will be delayed until 2019.

“The Department of Defense and White House have been planning a parade to honor America’s military veterans and commemorate the centennial of World War I,” said a statement. “We originally targeted November 10, 2018 for this event but have now agreed to explore opportunities in 2019.”

According to an U.S. official the initial estimate costs of the parade, $12 million, had risen to $92 million. Also, the initial estimate was based off of a review of the capital’s last military parade for the 1991 Gulf War. Before that figure, White House budget director Mick Mulvaney told the House Budget Committee in February that the cost could range between $10 and $30 million.

Trump first mentioned the idea of a grand parade after attending France’s Bastille Day parade last summer. “We’re going to have to try to top it,” he later told French President Emmanuel Macron.

On Friday, the president tweeted that he personally cancelled the parade, blaming local D.C. politicians for reports of a price tag higher than the original estimated cost.

The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up! I will instead…

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2018

….attend the big parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base on a different date, & go to the Paris parade, celebrating the end of the War, on November 11th. Maybe we will do something next year in D.C. when the cost comes WAY DOWN. Now we can buy some more jet fighters!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 17, 2018

Washinton, D.C.’s Mayor Muriel Bowser sarcastically responded to the attack of “the reality star in the White House”, saying that she did indeed communicate to the administration that the cost would far exceed the original base estimate.

Yup, I’m Muriel Bowser, mayor of Washington DC, the local politician who finally got thru to the reality star in the White House with the realities ($21.6M) of parades/events/demonstrations in Trump America (sad). https://t.co/vqC3d8FLqx

— MurielBowser (@MurielBowser) August 17, 2018

American Legion National Commander Denise Rohan posted a statement on Twitter, saying that she “appreciates” that the president wants to show the nation’s support for our troops in a “dramatic fashion.” But she added that she thinks the money would be better spent in funding the Department of Veteran Affairs and the troops.

Statement from Natl Cmdr Denise Rohan on #MilitaryParade: “The American Legion appreciates that our president wants to show in a dramatic fashion our nation’s support for our troops. pic.twitter.com/OoowSnGMhS

— The American Legion (@AmericanLegion) August 16, 2018

However, until such time as we can celebrate victory in the War on Terrorism and bring our military home, we think the parade money would be better spent fully funding the Department of Veteran Affairs and giving our troops and their families the best care possible.”

— The American Legion (@AmericanLegion) August 16, 2018

Serious planning for the parade just began in June, four months after Trump directed the Defense Department to organize it. “There is only one person who wants this parade,” said a senior U.S. official at the time, referring to Trump, to NBC News.