Illustration by Ari Libenson
Military marches are commonly associated with communist and fascist governments throughout history. Long, extravagant parades with banners flying, tanks rolling, and soldiers marching. They historically have served two purposes: to showcase a nation’s military might and to foster a sense of pride and nationalism in one’s country.
This year, they may serve a new purpose: to bolster the ego of one of the most megalomaniac leaders the country, and world, has ever seen.
That’s right, dear old Donald himself has proposed we flex our military muscles with a military parade later this year. The only countries that regularly conduct large-scale military parades today are Russia, China, North Korea, and France (Trump got the inspiration after he watched France’s Bastille Day parade alongside French president Emmanuel Macron).
Military marches are an excellent show for the rest of the world — they showcase the unity and might of a country — but don’t be fooled; behind all the pomp and glitz, there is an ugly truth.
President Trump’s White House is in a state of disarray with mounting pressure from the newest round of indictments by the Mueller investigation. Trump has a 37 percent approval rating according to Gallup, the lowest of any sitting president at this point ... yikes.
What the president wants right now is a pick-me-up. Not for his administration, but for himself personally. And what better way to jog the ego than with a march that will undoubtedly be modified to celebrate the president rather than the armed forces?
By holding this parade, Trump is essentially intertwining his brand with that of the military. He is attempting to associate the public’s general respect for the military with his own brand. The beauty of the decision is that any outright criticism can be construed as anti-military, a big no no for any would-be opponents holding an elected position.
In a stroke of genius, either intentionally or by accident, Trump has tied the hands of his opposition. The only way to develop an argument against this march requires a thorough examination of the very nature of the march and ones like it: to show we love our country. In order to question the intent of this march, it is necessary to out patriot the patriot. The parade is being scheduled for Veterans’ Day, but the best way to show you appreciate their service is to stop dismantling the Affordable Care Act (ACA) because one of the groups most impacted by its reform is our veterans. The US Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) has its own veteran exclusive health care, but it covers less than half of the 22 million veterans.
Most veterans look to private or public options such as the ACA for health care coverage. If the ACA was successfully dismantled as Trump was calling for, nearly half a million veterans would have lost coverage by 2026 according to a study by the Center for American Progress.
Admittedly, the VA is one of the only departments that actually got more funding under the new budget, along with defense and the military. Despite this, Trump has passed minimal legislation in support of veterans and certainly not enough to justify their overwhelming support for his campaign during the 2016 presidential election.
Beyond the policy and social impact, this event will be costly. With Trump at the helm, the parade will be extravagant, but with a price tag estimated to be between ten and thirty million dollars, it still is shocking. You want to show your love for our country? Don’t spend money we don’t have on parades we don’t need.