WASHINGTON — 1000’s of troops descended on Washington, D.C., on Saturday, accompanied by dozens of tanks and helicopters overhead, for President Donald Trump‘s high-profile spectacle to mark the Military’s 250th anniversary.
Trump, whose 79th birthday falls on the identical day, has lengthy pushed for a navy parade within the nation’s capital — an concept that was swatted down throughout his first time period by Pentagon officers.
US President Donald Trump (L) salutes subsequent to US First Woman Melania Trump in the course of the Military 250th Anniversary Parade in Washington, DC, on June 14, 2025.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Photographs
Now, with full management of presidency and an administration stacked with loyalists, Trump acquired the grandiose present of pressure he is at all times envisioned — even whether it is drawing critics.
Exterior of D.C., 1000’s of Trump’s opponents gathered throughout the nation as a part of “No Kings Day” demonstrations to protest his administration’s insurance policies.
Demonstrators maintain indicators as they march down Dolores road protesting the Trump administration in the course of the “No Kings” rally in San Francisco, California on June 14, 2025, on the identical day as President Trump’s navy parade in Washington, DC.
Nic Coury | AFP | Getty Photographs
Demonstrations came about in main cities throughout, together with New York, Chicago and Philadelphia, and in addition smaller cities. A number of the protests noticed clashes with counter-protesters and legislation enforcement.
A demonstrator waves an U.S. flag in entrance of mounted cops throughout a No Kings Day protest in opposition to President Donald Trump’s insurance policies, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 14, 2025.
Leah Millis | Reuters
In the meantime, in Minnesota, law enforcement officers warned the general public to not attend the deliberate demonstrations throughout the state following focused shootings of Democratic state lawmakers in a single day.
Some protesters nonetheless confirmed up at demonstrations within the state, with some saying the assaults made the occasions extra necessary.
The dramatic cut up display comes in opposition to the backdrop of ongoing tensions in Los Angeles which have escalated since Trump deployed the Nationwide Guard to quell protests over immigration enforcement polices.
Armored autos drive in the course of the Military 250th Anniversary Parade in Washington, DC on June 14, 2025.
Alex Wroblewski | AFP | Getty Photographs
Trump’s parade began about thirty minutes sooner than initially deliberate attributable to thunderstorms anticipated in Washington, D.C., on Saturday night.
Trump, earlier on Saturday, wrote in a Reality Social put up that the parade would go on “RAIN OR SHINE.”
A number of the flyovers deliberate for the parade have been cancelled because of the climate, NBC Information reported, per a U.S. Secret Service official.
A variety of Trump’s cupboard members joined him on the occasion, together with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth. Trump was additionally accompanied on stage by his spouse, First Woman Melania Trump.
Individuals watch as an M1A2 Abrams tank rolls previous throughout a navy parade to commemorate the U.S. Military’s 250th Birthday in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 14, 2025.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
The parade is among the many starkest examples but of Trump flexing his function as commander-in-chief since taking workplace.
Earlier this week, Trump issued a stark warning that any protesters in Washington, D.C., will probably be met with “very large pressure.”
Troopers take part within the U.S. Military’s navy parade to commemorate the Military’s 250th Birthday, on the day of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday, in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 14, 2025.
Carlos Barria | Reuters
The parade additionally comes amid escalating tensions within the Center East, following Israel’s assaults on Iran’s nuclear websites, and Iran’s retaliatory assaults.
All through the day, there have been navy demonstrations and a wreath laying on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
It was anticipated to be the biggest navy parade in Washington, D.C., since 1991, when President George H. W. Bush held a navy parade on the conclusion of the Gulf Struggle.
Troopers wearing Revolutionary Struggle uniforms march within the navy parade on June 14, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Photographs
“It will give downtown Moscow or downtown Beijing vibes, it will really feel like an entire nother authoritarian, communist nation,” Arizona-based Republican strategist Barrett Marson advised CNBC.
One explicit sticking level for critics of the occasion, together with some Republicans, was its excessive price ticket.
Altogether, the occasion might value as much as $45 million, in line with an Military spokesperson.
The parade’s value has come underneath heavy criticism as congressional Republicans try to move the “One Massive Stunning Invoice Act,” which incorporates tax cuts for enterprise homeowners, buyers and owners in high-tax areas that will add an estimated $4 trillion or extra to the federal deficit.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., mentioned he wouldn’t “spend the cash” on the occasion if it have been as much as him, NBC Information stories.
A member of the Golden Knights, the US Military’s parachute demonstration and competitors group, lands in entrance of the White Home in the course of the Military 250th Anniversary Parade in Washington, DC, on June 14, 2025.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Photographs
Most U.S. adults are likely to agree, in line with a ballot out Thursday from The Related Press-NORC Heart for Public Affairs Analysis that discovered that 60% of adults surveyed mentioned the navy parade is just not a very good use of presidency funds.
However for Trump, the associated fee is “peanuts in comparison with the worth of doing it,” he mentioned in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” final month.
“We’ve got the best missiles on the earth. We’ve got the best submarines on the earth. We’ve got the best Military tanks on the earth. We’ve got the best weapons on the earth,” Trump advised NBC Information’ Kristen Welker.
“And we will have fun it.”
It is a growing story and will probably be up to date all through the day.
