webfact Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 With pomp and flyovers, Trump embraces military in July 4 salute By Jeff Mason U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive for the "Salute to America" event during Fourth of July Independence Day celebrations at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 4, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Barria WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With U.S. fighter jets flying overhead, President Donald Trump praised the military and urged young people to join the armed forces on Thursday in a celebration of Independence Day that critics accused him of turning into a political event. Trump, a Republican who was inspired to hold the flashy event after seeing a similar display in France, dismissed concerns ahead of the ceremony about the expense and militaristic overtones of the event outside the 97-year-old Lincoln Memorial, a symbol of national unity. 2019-07-04T172211Z_1_LOV000L3FKXNZ_RTRMADV_STREAM-2000-16X9-MP4_USA-JULYFOURTH-TRUMP.MP4 U.S. President Donald Trump will preside over his controversial July Fourth Independence Day celebrations with a speech about patriotism and a show of military might that critics say is politicizing an important holiday and wasting taxpayer dollars. Conway G. Gittens reports. "Our nation is stronger today than it ever was before. It is its strongest now," Trump said from a platform in front of the famous memorial, echoing a theme he uses at campaign rallies. Flanked by Bradley fighting vehicles, Trump steered clear of divisive political rhetoric, in a departure from the majority of his speeches. At times, an enthusiastic crowd could be heard chanting: "USA! USA! USA!" Trump, 73, praised American military might despite having himself avoided the draft during the Vietnam War with bone spurs in his feet. With well-planned choreography, he told stories about each branch to introduce separate fly-overs of military aircraft. "For over 65 years, no enemy Air Force has managed to kill a single American soldier. Because the skies belong to the United States of America," he said. Separately Trump paid tribute to the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two agencies that have played leading roles in carrying out his tough immigration policies. 2019-07-04T174334Z_1_LOV000L3FKYUN_RTRMADV_STREAM-2000-16X9-MP4_USA-JULYFOURTH-TRUMP-BABY-ROUGH-CUT.MP4 Antiwar group Code Pink brings the "Baby Trump" blimp to Washington to protest President Donald Trump's July Fourth pageant on the Mall, though the group said the permit they secured does not allow the balloon to be filled with helium so it can float. Activist Medea Benjamin wants to know how much Thursday's spectacle costs. Rough Cut (no reporter narration). He cited as great Americans both Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass, African-Americans who campaigned for the abolition of slavery. His praise was likely to draw fresh criticism as Trump's administration in May decided to keep Tubman’s image off the $20 bill. He previously raised doubts about his knowledge of Douglass by speaking of the former slave in the present tense as ”somebody who’s done an amazing job.” The speech was followed by a concert on the U.S. Capitol lawn at the opposite end of the National Mall. Fireworks would follow the concert, weather permitting. Thousands of supporters wearing Trump's signature "Make America Great Again" hats, along with opponents questioning the cost of the event, poured into the U.S. capital despite scorching temperatures and intermittent rain, while a diapered "Baby Trump" balloon sat next to a banner calling Trump a traitor. Protesters burned a U.S. flag in front of the White House. "People are coming from far and wide to join us today and tonight for what is turning out to be one of the biggest celebrations in the history of our Country," Trump tweeted early on Thursday, seeming to encourage crowds to descend on the monument-lined mall. Ahead of the speech, Democrats accused the president of staging an out-of-place campaign rally, aware he has a history of veering off script with sharp partisan attacks even at events that are not meant to be overtly political. Trump supporters and opponents carried American flags and wore red, white and blue outfits. "I think what Trump's doing with the tanks, all the flyovers, I think it's great," said Brandon Lawrence, his face painted with the colours of the American flag. Some at the White House had worried about the crowd size, according to an administration official. In January 2017 Trump fumed about reports that the crowd at his inauguration ceremony in front of the Capitol was smaller than it was for President Barack Obama. Perhaps with the crowd size in mind, Trump sent out tweets urging people to attend and saying the wait would be worth it. As it happened, the crowd lined both sides of the reflecting pool in front of the memorial. Opponents were not impressed. "This is costing us millions and millions of dollars. We the taxpayers are paying for it, for Donald Trump to use our military as a prop. And that's just not right," said Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the women-led peace group Code Pink. Republican political groups were given prime tickets for Trump's speech, and the Washington Post reported that the U.S. National Park Service diverted $2.5 million in park entrance fees to help pay for the event. Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders weighed in with criticism: "This is what authoritarians do: @realDonaldTrump is taking $2.5 million away from our National Park Service to glorify himself with a spectacle of military tanks rolling through Washington," he wrote in a tweet. Trump played down the expense. "The cost of our great Salute to America tomorrow will be very little compared to what it is worth. We own the planes, we have the pilots, the airport is right next door (Andrews), all we need is the fuel," he posted on Twitter on Wednesday. "We own the tanks and all. Fireworks are donated by two of the greats. Nice!" Andrews is the name of a nearby military base. The July 4th holiday celebrates the U.S. founders' declaring independence from Britain in 1776. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; additional reporting by Steve Holland, Greg Savoy, Valerie Volcovici and Makini Brice; editing by Howard Goller) -- © Copyright Reuters 2019-07-05 Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khwaibah Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 5 minutes ago, webfact said: The July 4th holiday celebrates the U.S. founders' declaring independence from Britain in 1776 Fake news again n. It was ENGLAND. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quandow Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neeray Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 First time that I've heard Trump speak and actually stay on message. He's pretty good at reading the message from a teleprompter that others wrote. I highly doubt that he would have ever even heard of many of the names or heard of the events that he spoke of. And believe it or not, coming from me, that was a compliment (just one, let me not get carried away). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Back in 1968, at the age of 22, Trump apparently was the picture of health. He stood 6 feet 2 inches with an athletic build; had played college football, tennis and squash; and was taking up golf. His medical history was unblemished, aside from a routine appendectomy when he was 10. But as soon as he graduated from college in the spring of 1968, making him eligible to be drafted and sent to Vietnam, he "mysteriously" received a diagnosis of bone spurs in his heels. The diagnosis resulted in a coveted 1-Y medical deferment, exempting him from military service as the United States was undertaking huge troop deployments to Southeast Asia, inducting about 300,000 men into the military that year with 16,592 killed. That deferment was one of five Trump received during Vietnam. The others were for education. And people are supposed to believe he honours the country and military????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tug Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Most of us know what he is that’s one reason we get annoyed when he hijacked the fourth his lawyers probably had a good talk with him to not use it like a campaign ralley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roobaa01 Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 all those dem critics should take a us history lesson eisenhower and jfk staged military parades. berny sanders the free for all clown socialist cannot be taken seriously. wbr roobaa01 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolboy Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 19 minutes ago, roobaa01 said: all those dem critics should take a us history lesson eisenhower and jfk staged military parades. berny sanders the free for all clown socialist cannot be taken seriously. wbr roobaa01 Not for the 4th of July they didn't. And it was Eisenhower who warned against the dangers to the Republic posed by the military-industrial complex. And your insult directed at Sanders shows it's you who can't be taken seriously. But we already knew that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfokevin Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfokevin Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 43 minutes ago, roobaa01 said: all those dem critics should take a us history lesson eisenhower and jfk staged military parades. berny sanders the free for all clown socialist cannot be taken seriously. wbr roobaa01 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeycu Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Trump would have been a perfect guest on Jerry Springer No brains and happy without them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mavideol Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 question, was it a celebration/speech about: 1-love of country? or 2- a political stunt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quandow Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 31 minutes ago, Mavideol said: question, was it a celebration/speech about: 1-love of country? or 2- a political stunt? Only Republicans and their donors were given VIP seating, so I guess #2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 36 minutes ago, Mavideol said: question, was it a celebration/speech about: 1-love of country? or 2- a political stunt? Stunt as usual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Another rally of Trump supporters, who believe that Trump will do something to remedy their plight, though the merest look at his fiscal and other proposals demonstrates exactly the opposite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malibukid Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 3 hours ago, roobaa01 said: all those dem critics should take a us history lesson eisenhower and jfk staged military parades. berny sanders the free for all clown socialist cannot be taken seriously. wbr roobaa01 they did not dodge the draft Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Jingoism, racism, fear, religious fundamentalism: these are the ways of appealing to people if you're trying to organize a mass base of support for policies that are really intended to crush them. Trump used everyone of them in his speech Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Swagman Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 I listened to it. He has a very poor delivery style. Although it was written for him, it contained historical inaccuracies and with what I presume was an ‘off prompter’ mistake allowed the US had an airforce in the 1880’s! Heaping praise on the military, although deserved, was hardly needed and ignored the rest of Americans. WOFTAM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
candide Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 "Here’s where it goes off the rails: “Our Army manned the air, it rammed (or ‘rand’) the ramparts, it took over airports, it did everything it had to do,” Trump added. “And at Fort McHenry, under the rockets’ red glare, had nothing but victory. When dawn came, the star-spangled banner waved defiant.” ???? ???????? https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-revolutionary-war-airports-twitter-reax_n_5d1ec658e4b01b834733f4d4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaidream Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 5 hours ago, roobaa01 said: all those dem critics should take a us history lesson eisenhower and jfk staged military parades. berny sanders the free for all clown socialist cannot be taken seriously. The parade was a complete waste of money and forced the troops who participated to work on the holiday. If Trump wanted to honor the troops he could have brought the troops home from Afghanistan; Iraq and other Middle East points and take all the money that would be saved and actually provide a real healthcare system for all Americans. I don't think Bernie Sanders will become President but I am certain a Democrat will win and many of Bernie's ideas will become law. I wouldn't invest in any Insurance of Pharmaceutical Company. Trump will be defeated in 2020- but he will blame all the undocumented people in the holding camps. They must have escaped and voted and then came back because it's fun to sleep 100 in a small room and drink toilet water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jany123 Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 7 hours ago, expatfromwyoming said: That deferment was one of five Trump received during Vietnam. The others were for education. And people are supposed to believe he honours the country and military????? Wait wait wait... are we supposed to believe he’s educated? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ballpoint Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 1 hour ago, malibukid said: they did not dodge the draft This sad spectacle could be likened to a coward using other people's money to pay for a display of other people's bravery in order to try and make himself look good, if it wasn't for one small thing. It wasn't just like that, it was exactly what it was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 All I can say to the world at large is- 'Don't confuse Americans with this president' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Can you believe Trump declaring the F-22 Raptor fighter jet “brand new” despite the fact they were last produced eight years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quandow Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 1 hour ago, expatfromwyoming said: Can you believe Trump declaring the F-22 Raptor fighter jet “brand new” despite the fact they were last produced eight years ago. Nothing that comes out of that fat gob surprises me any more. That's the problem - we've been worn down to nubs with the incessant lies that his supporters defend. I firmly DO believe he could murder someone on the streets of New York and his followers would deflect, defend or ignore it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatfromwyoming Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 1 hour ago, quandow said: Nothing that comes out of that fat gob surprises me any more. That's the problem - we've been worn down to nubs with the incessant lies that his supporters defend. I firmly DO believe he could murder someone on the streets of New York and his followers would deflect, defend or ignore it. Oohrah to that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaiyaphumlove Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 7 hours ago, Thaidream said: The parade was a complete waste of money and forced the troops who participated to work on the holiday. If Trump wanted to honor the troops he could have brought the troops home from Afghanistan; Iraq and other Middle East points and take all the money that would be saved and actually provide a real healthcare system for all Americans. I don't think Bernie Sanders will become President but I am certain a Democrat will win and many of Bernie's ideas will become law. I wouldn't invest in any Insurance of Pharmaceutical Company. Trump will be defeated in 2020- but he will blame all the undocumented people in the holding camps. They must have escaped and voted and then came back because it's fun to sleep 100 in a small room and drink toilet water. Democrat win in 2020? ???????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Troll post removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thainesss Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 Sure is is a hell of a lot more people than the media wants to let on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bendejo Posted July 5, 2019 Share Posted July 5, 2019 9 hours ago, Sir Swagman said: what I presume was an ‘off prompter’ mistake allowed the US had an airforce in the 1880’s! The Kite Brigade was established by Benjamin Franklin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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