Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Confusion Reigns as Trump's July 4 Plans Remain a Mystery
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
June 12, 2019

Share

WASHINGTON — With three weeks to go, exactly what’s going to happen in Washington on the Fourth of July remains a subject of intense confusion because of President Donald Trump plans to reshape the nation’s premier celebration.

“The city is scrambling to figure out what to do, because all they have is the outline of what (the White House) wants. They wouldn’t tell us a thing. You know why? Because they don’t know a thing.” Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District of Columbia’s representative in Congress
Will Independence Day festivities be centered around the Washington Monument or shift to the Lincoln Memorial, as the White House has reportedly requested? Will Trump follow through on his plans to give a speech? And, if he does, will the speech be open to anyone, including protesters, or will the White House restrict his audience to supporters at the traditionally nonpolitical event?
The White House hasn’t revealed its plans. The National Park Service, which is primarily responsible for the event, also has gone silent. That leaves the city government, which helps with security, in the dark.
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District of Columbia’s representative in Congress, said interdepartmental planning meetings for July 4 usually begin up to three months in advance. But to her knowledge, none of those meetings has happened.
“The city is scrambling to figure out what to do, because all they have is the outline of what (the White House) wants,” Norton said. She said she approached the Park Service for details but: “They wouldn’t tell us a thing. You know why? Because they don’t know a thing.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser declined repeated requests for comment.
Independence Day normally draws tens of thousands of people to the National Mall for a celebration capped by fireworks. A major security overhaul was implemented following the Sept. 11 attacks, but the occasion has run smoothly for years.

White House, National Park Service Have Refused to Comment

The first sign that 2019’s celebration may be a little different came in a February tweet from Trump announcing a special “Salute to America” on July 4 that would feature “an address by your favorite President, me!”


Last week, a National Park Service official was quoted in The Washington Post saying the White House was planning a Trump speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the event.
But since that report, the White House and the National Park Service have refused to comment. Park Service spokesman Mike Litterst released a terse statement that said: “We continue to work with the White House on creating a Salute to America program that will bring Americans from all over the country together in celebration of our great nation.”
Norton is predicting a security nightmare, with a new location and format being instituted on short notice and the president’s movements and security requirements causing chaos.
“This will be all sorts of headaches for security,” she said.
The confusion extends to D.C. activists, who are uncertain about how to respond to a July 4 Trump speech. Some see a golden opportunity to disrupt Trump in a way he’s not used to; others fear a trap.
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the Code Pink movement, had planned to be in Havana on July 4 to protest the Trump administration’s new restrictions on travel to Cuba. But she changed those plans last week, and her group is now organizing a protest.

 

Protesters Could Overplay Their Hand

“It’s not that often that President Trump appears in a public venue in front of a crowd that’s not guaranteed to be friendly,” she said. “It’s going to be really hard for them to control. We’ll see what kind of trouble we can get into.”
Others fear that an attempt to directly confront Trump or disrupt the event could backfire.
Nadine Bloch, a local organizer with a decadeslong history of protest, said a speech would provide leftist activists an opportunity to appear before TV cameras and get a large audience for their messages. But she said there’s a risk that protesters could overplay their hand and end up being blamed for ruining the Fourth of July.
“It’s a delicate balance,” she said. “You could end up just making more enemies.”
Adam Eidinger, a prominent local activist, predicted that attempts to disrupt the speech will be easily suppressed, with security concerns as a justification.
“I fully expect the president to create a VIP section right up front where only his supporters are allowed in,” he said. “Any protesters will be reduced to a couple people shouting in the distance.”
Eidinger said he is leaning toward sitting out this event.
“I think it’s a trap to get the opposition to come out and mess up July Fourth,” he said.

DON'T MISS

This Kitty Wants to Be Your Christmas Angel

DON'T MISS

Religion Has Been in Decline. This Christmas Seems Different.

DON'T MISS

California Limits Junk Fees: New Law Blocks Fines for Declined ATM Withdrawals

DON'T MISS

Research Finds Vaccines Are Not Behind the Rise in Autism. So What Is?

DON'T MISS

New ‘Superman’ Trailer Is Most Watched for Warner Bros., DC Comics Online

DON'T MISS

Elon Musk Is Creating His Own Texas Town. Hundreds Already Live There.

DON'T MISS

Amazon and Starbucks Workers Are Striking. What Does It Mean for Labor Under Trump?

DON'T MISS

CalFire Shares 2024’s Top Images. See Highlights of Intense Wildfire Season.

DON'T MISS

While Sherrod Motors to Boise, Entz’s Bulldogs Add a Coach, Transfers, Recruits

DON'T MISS

California and Texas Duke It Out for Worst State to Raise a Family

UP NEXT

Amazon and Starbucks Workers Are Striking. What Does It Mean for Labor Under Trump?

UP NEXT

Musk Slams ‘Wokepedia’ for Biased Editing, Urges Donation Boycott

UP NEXT

What Is Israel’s US Funded Plan for the Middle East?

UP NEXT

Illegal Immigrant Faces Murder Charges in Death of Woman Lit on Fire in NYC Subway

UP NEXT

Bill Clinton Is Hospitalized With a Fever but in Good Spirits, Spokesperson Says

UP NEXT

Cheers! Wine Clubs Are This Year’s Hottest Last Minute Gift

UP NEXT

House Ethics Committee Accuses Gaetz of ‘Regularly’ Paying for Sex With Women, Including Minor

UP NEXT

Jeffrey Sachs Warns of Looming US War With Iran

UP NEXT

A Look at the $100 Billion in Disaster Relief in the Government Spending Bill

UP NEXT

US Deportations Surge to Highest Level in a Decade Before Trump Takes Office

Research Finds Vaccines Are Not Behind the Rise in Autism. So What Is?

19 hours ago

New ‘Superman’ Trailer Is Most Watched for Warner Bros., DC Comics Online

20 hours ago

Elon Musk Is Creating His Own Texas Town. Hundreds Already Live There.

21 hours ago

Amazon and Starbucks Workers Are Striking. What Does It Mean for Labor Under Trump?

21 hours ago

CalFire Shares 2024’s Top Images. See Highlights of Intense Wildfire Season.

2 days ago

While Sherrod Motors to Boise, Entz’s Bulldogs Add a Coach, Transfers, Recruits

2 days ago

California and Texas Duke It Out for Worst State to Raise a Family

2 days ago

Musk Slams ‘Wokepedia’ for Biased Editing, Urges Donation Boycott

2 days ago

Explore the Holiday Magic in California’s Death Valley

2 days ago

Visalia Unlicensed Driver Smashes Into Home. No Injuries Reported.

2 days ago

This Kitty Wants to Be Your Christmas Angel

Meet Angel, our stunning calico queen with a heart as beautiful as her coat. Angel is a people-loving charmer who adores affection — she’ll ...

15 minutes ago

15 minutes ago

This Kitty Wants to Be Your Christmas Angel

Photo of a Christmas tree in the NORAD Tracks Santa Center at Peterson Air Force Base
17 hours ago

Religion Has Been in Decline. This Christmas Seems Different.

19 hours ago

California Limits Junk Fees: New Law Blocks Fines for Declined ATM Withdrawals

An autistic boy with his mother at home in Texas, Aug. 5, 2023. There is no blood test or brain scan to determine who has autism, and with no singular cause, there is no singular culprit behind autism’s rise. (Callaghan O'Hare/The New York Times)
19 hours ago

Research Finds Vaccines Are Not Behind the Rise in Autism. So What Is?

20 hours ago

New ‘Superman’ Trailer Is Most Watched for Warner Bros., DC Comics Online

The SpaceX starship rocket near the Starbase launchpad in Boca Chica, Texas, Feb. 21, 2024. Employees of SpaceX have filed a formal petition to create the city of Starbase. (Meridith Kohut/The New York Times)
21 hours ago

Elon Musk Is Creating His Own Texas Town. Hundreds Already Live There.

21 hours ago

Amazon and Starbucks Workers Are Striking. What Does It Mean for Labor Under Trump?

2 days ago

CalFire Shares 2024’s Top Images. See Highlights of Intense Wildfire Season.

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend