US President Donald Trump’s long-sought military parade rolled though the streets of downtown Washington on Saturday, but the celebration of the US Army’s 250th anniversary was marred by a day of violence.
In the hours before the parade began, hundreds of thousands of Americans marched and rallied in streets in cities from New York to Chicago to Los Angeles protesting Trump’s actions while in office.
Earlier in the day, a gunman assassinated a Democratic lawmaker and wounded another in the state of Minnesota. He remains at large.
Part of the military parade commemorating the US Army’s 250th anniversary. (Picture: Stephanie Scarborough/AP)Meanwhile, Israel on Saturday pounded Iran with a second barrage of strikes designed to destroy its nuclear program after Iran retaliated with strikes the evening before, stoking fears of a bigger conflict between the two nations.
All of it followed a week of tension in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration raids resulted in Trump calling in National Guard troops and US Marines to help keep the peace.
Trump’s parade, which falls on his 79th birthday, started earlier than expected. Thunderstorms were forecast in the Washington area.
Thousands of spectators lined up along Constitution Avenue near the National Mall as the parade got under way with a brass band. Trump watched the proceedings from an elevated reviewing stand and was cheered when introduced.
The US Army has brought nearly 7,000 troops into Washington, along with 150 vehicles, including more than 25 M1 Abrams tanks, 28 Stryker armored vehicles, four Paladin self-propelled artillery vehicles, and artillery pieces including the M777 and M119.
The celebrations will cost the Army between $25 million and $45 million, US officials told the Reuters news agency.
Police confront a demonstrator at the protest against President Donald Trump’s policies in the US city of Philadelphia. (Picture: Rachel Wisniewsk/Reuters)iCritics have called the parade an authoritarian display of power that is wasteful, especially given Trump has said he wants to slash costs throughout the federal government.
Bryan Henrie, a Trump supporter, flew in from Texas to celebrate the Army’s anniversary and did not see any issues with tanks rolling down the streets of Washington.
“I will celebrate safety and stability any day over anarchy,” 61-year-old Henrie said.
Earlier in the day, thousands marched in Washington and in other cities to protest Trump’s policies. The demonstrations were largely peaceful, and marked the largest outpouring of opposition to Trump’s presidency since he returned to power in January.
Anti-Trump groups planned nearly 2,000 demonstrations across the country to coincide with the parade, but all protests in Minnesota were cancelled after the killing of local Democratic politician Melissa Hortman.
In Los Angeles, a large crowd of protesters faced a large contingent of Marines guarding the Roybal federal building downtown, the site of clashes between protesters and officers earlier this week.
Despite rain, thousands of people of all ages turned out in and around Bryant Park in Manhattan, many carrying homemade signs.
Protestors in downtown Chicago stood off against police on Saturday, with some waving upside-down American flags and chanting: “Who do you protect? Who do you serve?” and “No justice, no peace.”
With Reuters
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