Trump's Tank Show: The King's Sad Parade

Washington. Like many Americans, George Turnbull is genuinely proud of his country's military. "I would love to see the parade," says the man with the white mustache. After all, his father is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, and he himself worked for a defense company until a few years ago. "But we all know that they're not celebrating the Army's birthday today, but the President's," Turnbull fumes. "That perverts everything!"

"Trump is perverting everything," complains George Turnbull. Instead of attending the parade, the son of a World War II veteran went to the "No Kings" rally in Hyattsville.

Source: Karl Doemens

So, on this oppressively humid June day, the retiree isn't standing on the Mall in Washington, where Donald Trump will later parade 7,000 soldiers and 50 tanks , but seven kilometers away in the small town of Hyattsville, in the state of Maryland. There, a few hundred residents have gathered in Riverdale Park late this morning. Many families with children have come, students on bicycles from neighboring College Park, and even elderly ladies with walking aids. The atmosphere is relaxed, like that of a large garden party.

Turnbull is wearing a red cap that, at first glance, looks like the typical headgear of Trump supporters. But on the front, it reads: "Make Orwell Fiction Again" – a dig at the president's distortion of reality. Many other demonstrators have brought hand-painted signs reading: "Hands off!", "Fight back!", or "Kim Jong Un wants his parade back." And, repeatedly, "No Kings!"

"No Kings!" – that's the motto of the protests this Saturday in a total of 2,000 US cities, directed against the autocratic excesses, the haphazard deforestation, and the anti-immigration policies of the Trump administration. A broad grassroots coalition organized them. From Philadelphia to Los Angeles and from Chicago to Houston, far more people are streaming into the streets and squares than the organizers had expected. And everywhere, it remains absolutely peaceful. There are no official numbers of participants yet. But in total, there are likely several hundred thousand, more than those who turned out for Trump's military parade in Washington that evening.

Civil society resistance to the president has been a long time coming. Many Americans are exhausted by the daily chaos, resigned to the overwhelming wave of restoration, or frightened by the abuses of the security apparatus. But the deployment of the National Guard and the Marines to combat relatively minor unrest in Los Angeles and Trump's unrestrained politicization of the military, which he recently incited against the Democrats during a speech in North Carolina, have apparently been the last straw for many. "When, if not now?" reads a poster in Hyattsville. "When I see his rallies, I think of Hitler," says Turnbull, a pensioner.

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Trump's idea of ​​celebrating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Army on his 79th birthday and holding a $45 million military parade for the first time since the end of the Gulf War was bizarre from the start. But the military escalation in Los Angeles and the war between Israel and Iran have finally completely lost all of the lightness of this weapon-wielding spectacle.

Despite massive criticism, even from the conservative camp, the president didn't consider canceling the military parade for a second. His only concern was the weather forecast, which predicted severe weather for the evening. "Our magnificent military parade will take place whatever the weather," he posted on Saturday morning in the real estate mogul's marketing language: "Remember: A rainy parade brings good luck!"

But then a much greater disaster overshadowed the event, which had been hyped for weeks: Early that morning, a man in a police uniform gained access to the home of Democratic politician Melissa Hortman in the state of Minnesota and shot the longtime state representative and former state legislature speaker and her husband, Mark. In another shooting in a neighboring town, the perpetrator seriously injured a Democratic senator from the state legislature and his wife.

Democratic US politician Melissa Hortman and her husband were shot dead on the day of the parade.

Source: Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune/AP/dpa

Governor Tim Walz, who unsuccessfully ran for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris's lieutenant in November, soon spoke of a politically motivated act of violence. The 57-year-old suspect, who escaped, is not actually a police officer. Rather, he worked for a security firm. According to a friend, the man is a Trump supporter, a Christian, and an anti-abortion activist. In his car, police found additional weapons and ammunition, along with a manifesto naming 70 likely targets—including politicians, doctors, business leaders, and hospitals.

In the heated climate of the United States, the targeted assassination of a politician is the next, extremely disturbing escalation on the path to lawlessness and civil war-like conditions. In the past, election campaigns were canceled or interrupted for such reasons. But Trump has no intention of pausing to reflect on the bloody act. He quickly posts a standard post condemning the "horrific violence." Then he returns to his autocratic birthday celebrations.

Washington: The military parade marking the 250th anniversary of the US Army, which coincides with the 79th birthday of US President Trump.

Source: Stephanie Scarbrough/AP/dpa

The ceremony begins shortly after 6 p.m.—half an hour earlier than originally planned due to the threat of rain. Trump sits between his wife Melania and his Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, on a platform on Constitution Avenue, south of the White House. For almost two hours, soldiers and tanks pass by. Occasionally, the man in the red tie stands and salutes with the palm of his hand against his temple. Otherwise, his face appears increasingly shiny due to the extreme humidity.

Down on the Mall, there were significantly fewer spectators than expected. The announcement warned people to arrive early and expect long waits. Even an hour before the parade began, there was actually no line at any of the security checkpoints on 18th Street. More than 100 restroom stalls stood deserted on the half-empty Mall. During the parade, numerous seats on one grandstand were noticeably unoccupied. This would not have happened to Russian leader Vladimir Putin or his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-Un.

At home, many viewers find the blaring hard rock music playing to accompany the march annoying. On the right-wing network Fox News, the anchors are full of enthusiastic praise for the rather dull event, but the director can't prevent a yawning Secretary of State Marco Rubio from appearing prominently on screen.

The left-wing broadcaster MSNBC split the screen into three parts, creating a very special reality shock: While the parade is taking place on the left, the top right shows Los Angeles police brutally using tear gas and pepper spray against peaceful demonstrators. The bottom right shows the mug shot of the suspected Hortman murderer, along with a phone number for any relevant information.

Perhaps it's the high humidity, perhaps the bloodless speech manuscript: When Trump finally steps up to the podium at 8:20 p.m., the celebrant seems strangely uninspired and powerless. In a monotone voice, he recites a few patriotic platitudes. He's finished in less than ten minutes. Only once does he seem truly engaged: "They fight, fight, fight," he says. "And they win, win, win!"

Formally, the remark refers to the soldiers. But as so often, Trump is also talking about himself. "Fight! Fight! Fight!" he demanded of his supporters after the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. The man who once evaded combat duty in Vietnam with a medical certificate likes people who stand up for him. And he has now assigned that role to the US military.