President Trump’s military parade will no longer take place on Veterans Day in November and has been rescheduled for sometime in 2019 if not later, according to the Defense Department.
“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. We originally targeted November 10, 2018 for this event but have now agreed to explore opportunities in 2019,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said in a statement.
The change in plans comes hours after a defense official said the parade was expected to cost the government $92 million.
Trump first called for one such parade after visiting French President Emmanuel Macron in February and being the French leader’s guest at a parade on Bastille Day in 2017.
[Opinion: Another 92 million reasons to cancel Trump’s silly military parade]
The White House had originally said it would cost between $10 million and $30 million to put on the show in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 10 to honor veterans and highlight America’s military strength.
The new $92 million estimate includes $50 million that the Defense Department would have to pitch in for the event and $42 million the Department of Homeland Security and other departments would have to commit.
Aside from the logistics of getting all parade vehicles and personnel to Washington for the event, the government would also have to pay for security at the military parade.
