President Trump is right to want to hold a parade to honor the nation’s service members and veterans, but the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee wants to make sure it doesn’t involve units or equipment that are needed elsewhere.
Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, “agrees with President Trump that it is appropriate to honor and celebrate 100 years of patriotic sacrifice in a way that expresses appreciation and admiration for our men and women in uniform, including a parade in the nation’s capital and a national celebration for that purpose,” the committee said in a Friday morning statement running down the highlights of the “chairman’s mark” of the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act.
“To ensure that veterans and those currently serving remain the focus of any parade and that efforts to restore readiness are not slowed, the Chairman’s Proposal prohibits the use of operational units or equipment in the parade if the Secretary of Defense believes such use will hamper readiness,” it said.
Trump originally called for a parade after witnessing a Bastille Day celebration in France last year, and he has signaled that he wants an event to highlight service members but also the U.S. military’s strength. Critics feared a spectacle of tanks and missile launchers rolling down Pennsylvania Avenue, not unlike celebrations in Moscow and Pyongyang.
Besides the optics, other concerns included cost of moving the equipment, damage to the roads and making service members march on their day off.
The criticism was bipartisan. “I don’t mind having a parade honoring the service and sacrifice of our military members. I’m not looking for a Soviet-style hardware display. That’s not who we are,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in February. “It’s kind of cheesy. I think it shows weakness, quite frankly.”
In March, the Pentagon sent a memo to the Joint Chiefs laying out a more scaled-back option: Troops in period uniforms dating back to the Revolutionary War, wheeled vehicles only — meaning no tanks — and flyovers of military aircraft. The plan is to hold the parade on Veterans Day on Nov. 11 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. “Consideration must be given to minimize damage to local infrastructure,” the memo says.
The House Armed Services statement said the event should honor the military and not create political problems.
“For too long our men and women in uniform have been victims of political discord. Honoring those who have served our nation over the past 100 years, including those who served in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, should not be a political matter,” the statement said. “Veterans of those conflicts did not let politics stand in the way of their service to the country. No political interest or concern should stand in the way of expressing the country’s gratitude and respect.”
