Military Parade in U.S. Capital: President’s Appropriation of the Military is Unacceptable

Editorial

15:35 JST, June 17, 2025

Amid unceasing warfare in Ukraine and the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump held a military parade in the U.S. capital following the deployment of the military to deal with protests inside the country.

One cannot help but sense danger in Trump’s approach of demonstrating power to the people of his country.

On June 14, the Trump administration held a military parade in Washington to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army.

It was Trump’s 79th birthday on the day. Vice President JD Vance congratulated the president on his birthday in a speech, and the crowd sang “Happy Birthday.” At the very least, Trump should have avoided scheduling the event in a way that could be seen as mixing public and private matters.

Authoritarian countries such as Russia, China and North Korea regularly hold military parades to demonstrate their military power and the unifying power of their political leaders. On the other hand, the United States has not held a large-scale military parade in its capital since 1991, following the end of the Gulf War.

This is only because the U.S. military, as the military of a democratic country, is required to maintain a high level of political neutrality, which past administrations have also emphasized.

In contrast, Trump expressed a desire to hold a military parade in his first administration, but he did not do so due to opposition from then Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and other officials. His second administration is solidly composed of loyalists, with no senior military officials or experts to put the brakes on Trump’s measures.

The parade is estimated to have cost up to $45 million (about ¥6.5 billion). Is this not inconsistent with the administration’s claim that it is optimizing administrative efficiency?

By mobilizing the military and emphasizing that he will not hesitate to use force, Trump may be trying to project an image of a strong leader and solidify the Republican Party’s base of support.

When protests broke out in Los Angeles, Calif., following a roundup of illegal immigrants, Trump dispatched the National Guard without the approval of the local state governor. He also deployed U.S. Marines, who are prohibited in principle from enforcing the law in the country.

If it were the case that Trump was attempting to mobilize the military at will in order to suppress opposing opinions within the country and oust his political opponents, including Democratic state governors, he would not be able to evade the accusation that he appropriated the military.

On the day of the military parade, protests against Trump with the slogan “No Kings” were held in about 2,000 locations across the country. Meanwhile, in the Midwestern state of Minnesota, two Democratic state legislators and others were shot, and the demonstrations were canceled.

In the United States, social unrest and divisions are deepening, and violence is casting a dark shadow over the nation. Under such circumstances, the president must strictly refrain from using the military for political purposes.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, June 17, 2025)