Donald Trump‘s aides fear an embarrassingly small crowd could turn out on Washington’s National Mall for his tradition-shattering Fourth of July address in DC on Thursday, according to The Washington Post.
Crowd size has been a sore point for the president, who has repeatedly claimed that attendance at his inauguration in January 2017 was the highest ever seen in the US capital, despite extensive documentary evidence to the contrary.
The president is set to speak in front of the Lincoln Memorial from 6.30pm EST to a ticket-only crowd of Republican donors, administration and campaign officials, family members and those gathering either to support him or protest his policies. Storms have been forecast for the area on what promises to be a scorching and humid day, meaning Trump’s parade could quite literally be rained on.
His “show of a lifetime” promises tanks on display, an Air Force flyover and a massive fireworks display but has been criticised by his opponents as authoritarian and narcissistic and for seeking to turn a non-partisan national holiday into a campaign rally.
It has been nearly seven decades since a president has spoken on the Mall on Independence Day. The US was at war in Korea when Harry Truman addressed a large gathering on the Washington Monument grounds, marking the 175th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
There is no such historical marker on Thursday for President Trump, who for the past two years has sought a moment to orchestrate a display of America’s military prowess in line with the customary spectacle France likes to lay on to mark Bastille Day.
Trump sounded a defensive note on Wednesday, tweeting that the event’s cost “will be very little compared to what it is worth”.
“We own the planes, we have the pilots, the airport is right next door, all we need is the fuel,” he said, referring to Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews, home for some of the planes that are to fly over the Mall on Thursday.
“We own the tanks and all. Fireworks are donated by two of the greats. Nice!”
Trump glossed over the expense of shipping M1 Abrams tanks and other fighting vehicles to Washington by rail from Fort Stewart, Georgia, and guarding them for several days, among other costs.
Under White House direction, the Pentagon is arranging for an Air Force B-2 stealth bomber and other warplanes to conduct a fly-past. There will be Navy F-35 and F-18 fighter jets, the Navy Blue Angels aerobatics team, Army and Coast Guard helicopters and Marine V-22 Ospreys.
The US Air Force said it costs $122,311 (£96,500) an hour to fly a B-2 bomber, which is making the round trip from its home at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri.
Officials said the flight will be considered a training event, with the cost already budgeted. The per-hour flying cost of the F-22 fighter is $65,128 (£51,360).
Here’s more from Jon Sharman.
