Stormy weather couldn’t rain on this parade.
President Trump looked on as the Army’s 250th anniversary parade began Saturday evening in the streets of Washington, DC, with soldiers in period costumes marching tanks rolling, despite threatening skies.
“Our great military parade is on, rain or shine. Remember, a rainy day parade brings good luck. I’ll see you all in DC,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“This is a big day for America!” he added.
Trump has long set his sights on a blowout military parade, marveling at such spectacles in other countries.
He’s also previously butted heads with DC officials over his hope for tanks to roll down the streets of the nation’s capital.
This year’s parade to celebrate the anniversary of the Army’s founding on June 14, 1775 — which came just over a year before the Declaration of Independence — is set to feature an array of military hardware such as howitzers and other Army vehicles.
Trump will get his longstanding wish with 128 tanks after the Army agreed to put one-inch-thick metal plates along parts of the route, situate the vehicles with rubber on their treads, and set aside funding for possible repairs.
Other military hardware, such as Black Hawk helicopters and Apaches, will be on display during the grand parade.
The procession will begin around 6:30 p.m. and start on 23rd Street NW near the Lincoln Memorial and end just past the Washington Memorial and the White House at 15th Street NW. It is expected to be finished by around 9:30 p.m.
Over 6,600 soldiers donning different Army uniforms are expected to march in the birthday parade, which will feature a flyover with various aircraft, a cacophony of musical performances and an Army Golden Knights parachute jump.
Saturday also happens to be Trump’s 79th birthday and Flag Day, marking the anniversary of the Stars and Stripes becoming the official US flag on June 14, 1777.
The president is expected to deliver remarks during the Army parade. Beforehand, there will be a series of events held on the National Mall to celebrate the Army.
During the peak of the parade, the Federal Aviation Administration plans to halt flights into Reagan National Airport, which is just over the Potomac River in Virginia.
The grand military parade is expected to feature a telling of the Army’s history from the colonial era, beginning with the Battle of Lexington at the start of the Revolutionary War through the modern day.
Processions will feature troops dressed in uniforms tethered to each major time period in the Army’s two and a half century history.
Military equipment used during those conflicts will also be featured as the Army tells its story. This includes iconic weaponry such as a World War I-era Renault tank and Gulf War-era M1A2 Abrams tanks.
Army organizers are planning to end the parade with an enlistment and reenlistment ceremony, the Golden Knights parachute display and fireworks.
Officials have estimated that the parade will cost between $25 to $45 million, not including cleanup, police, and infrastructure damage.
Meanwhile, a kaleidoscope of leftist groups is organizing some 2,000 “No King” protests across the country to mark a “day of defiance” against Trump, who they rage is engaging in authoritarian tendencies with a blockbuster parade to celebrate the Army’s 250th birthday.
This is the first military parade in DC in 34 years since the end of the first Gulf War.
