Emails show Trump team asked the Pentagon about military vehicles for inauguration, despite aide's denial
Thomson Reuters
Emails obtained by The Huffington Post appear to confirm that then-President-elect Trump's team asked the Pentagon to send photographs of military vehicles to use during the inaugural parade.
An aide denied in December that they had done so, and The Huffington Post notes that it isn't clear whether the aide was aware of the conversations referenced in the Pentagon emails.
The Presidential Inaugural Committee "is seriously considering adding military vehicles to the Inaugural Parade," wrote a Pentagon official in an email dated December 13, 2016.
The official said the Trump team approached the Pentagon and asked it to send pictures of military vehicles "[they] could add to the parade."
"I explained that such support would be out of guidelines, and that costs associated with bringing military vehicles [to Washington, DC] would be considered reimbursable," the official wrote, adding that they were "extremely reluctant" to provide photos of military vehicles to the transition team.
While the US military does participate in the inaugural parade by sending the color guard and musical groups, it would be unusual to parade heavy equipment and arms through streets.
A transition team source told The Huffington Post in January that the team was "thinking Red Square/North Korea-style parade," referring to the types of military parades in China, North Korea, and Russia that are intended to display military might.
The Trump team ultimately decided against requesting military equipment at the inauguration: "Great news," wrote another Pentagon official in a Dec. 27 email.
Trump instead asked to have an F-35 and an F/A-18 Super Hornet fly over his inaugural parade, according to a Pentagon official's email from Jan. 11. The request was approved, but the flyover was canceled on Inauguration Day due to poor weather, according to Pentagon spokesman Maj. Jamie Davis.
The president has previously expressed his desire to show off the country's military strength. "That military may be flying over New York City and Washington, DC, for parades," Trump told the Washington Post during a January interview.
- 2 states where home prices are falling because there are too many houses and not enough buyers
- US buys 81 Soviet-era combat aircraft from Russia's ally costing on average less than $20,000 each, report says
- A couple accidentally shipped their cat in an Amazon return package. It arrived safely 6 days later, hundreds of miles away.
- 9 health benefits of drinking sugarcane juice in summer
- 10 benefits of incorporating almond oil into your daily diet
- From heart health to detoxification: 10 reasons to eat beetroot
- Why did a NASA spacecraft suddenly start talking gibberish after more than 45 years of operation? What fixed it?
- ICICI Bank shares climb nearly 5% after Q4 earnings; mcap soars by ₹36,555.4 crore
- Nothing Phone (2a) blue edition launched
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market