By Glynn Wilson –

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Since no-one around East Potomac Park had heard anything official about the Fourth of July fireworks launch site being moved from the Washington Monument to West Potomac Park when I went nosing around down there by Hains Point golf course today to scout the new location as tweeted by Trump, I figured the company with the federal contract might be bucking the site change behind the scenes, since this is a contract that has been in place for months and was surely site specific with an iron clad insurance policy backing it.

I mean the Independence Day celebration is about two weeks away, and you can’t plan something this big in that short a time frame.

But this is Trump we’re talking about, and Trump usually gets his way.

Late Wednesday, Interior spokeswoman Molly Block came out and said the agency was working “to bring two of America’s foremost fireworks companies together to produce the largest show ever seen in the nation’s capital.”

That sounds just like Trump.

The location has been the same for years, with no substantive changes since the attacks on U.S. soil on September 11, 2001. But sure enough, Trump is barreling forward with his plan to take over our most important patriotic national Independence Day holiday for his reelection campaign.

The press release just out on Wednesday from the Department of the Interior is announcing a President Trump 2020 campaign extravaganza called “Salute to America,” complete with a speech from the president himself on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, a military parade and flyover and more.

The Washington Post has been reporting for weeks about the president’s personal involvement in planning this reality TV event, putting more of his time into it than say the war with Iran his National Security Advisor John Bolton seems hell bent on starting.

Trump also wanted more areas of the National Mall opened to spectators than before, so apparently he is getting his way on that too, perhaps in an effort to brag that it will be “the biggest Fourth of July ever” in Washington.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt on Wednesday announced details of the annual Independence Day celebration on the National Mall, which will feature remarks by President Donald J. Trump “to honor America’s armed forces,” he said.

“There is no more appropriate place to celebrate the anniversary of American independence than among the Nation’s monuments on the National Mall and the memorials to the service men and women who have defended the United States for the past 243 years,” Trump appointee Bernhardt said. “For the first time in many years, the World War II Memorial and areas around the Reflecting Pool will be open for the public to enjoy a stunning fireworks display and an address by our Commander-in-Chief. We are excited to open these new areas so that more visitors may experience this year’s Independence Day celebration in our nation’s capital.”

The event will honor each of the nation’s five branches of service with music, military demonstrations and flyovers, he said. Participants include the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, the U.S. Army Band (“Pershing’s Own”), the Armed Forces Chorus and the United States Marine Corps Silent Drill Team and others yet to be announced.

The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the World War II Memorial, Constitution Gardens and The Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial have been closed as inside the fireworks safety zone in the past, in part due to spectators being injured in a show one year due to winds and a fire.

In addition to Trump’s Salute to America, according to the announcement, this year’s events include the National Independence Day Parade as well as “A Capitol Fourth,” the annual star-studded concert on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol building, which comes with it’s own Congressional branch fireworks display.

The Post is reporting that D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser said, speaking earlier in the day, that it remains unclear which areas will have good views of the relocated fireworks display, an element that will influence where crowds gather and shape the deployment of police officers.

“When the fireworks go off from that location, for example, where will you be able to see it? Does it change where people are going to want to stop and view it? Will the fireworks start and people realize they can’t see it and try to be moving so they can see it?” Bowser said. “So those are the types of things that are just a little unknown when you change the location.”

Late Wednesday, D.C. police announced that no boating would be allowed from 4 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. July 4 along the east side of the Potomac River from the 14th Street Bridge to just north of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Boats will also be barred from anchoring between the Arlington Memorial Bridge and the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge.

Police warned there may be intermittent travel restrictions between the 14th Street Bridge and the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge between 8:30 and 10 p.m.

As for who would pay the added costs for event changes, federal officials have said they will pay for any added costs. But District officials are worried that the event could further deplete the city’s Emergency Planning and Security Fund, which is used to reimburse the city for security expenses such as hosting protests, which are certainly expected on the Fourth.

That fund is dwindling, in part because the White House and Congress never repaid the city $7.3 million for Trump’s inauguration.

On Tuesday, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D), the District’s nonvoting representative in Congress, and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) wrote a letter to Congressional appropriators requesting more money for the account.

Van Hollen, along with Sens. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), on Tuesday sent a letter to Bernhardt expressing concern that Trump’s involvement in the event could divert NPS resources and alter the celebration’s tone.

“We are deeply troubled that the president’s involvement at the event will turn the longstanding, non-partisan celebration into a de facto campaign rally conducted at taxpayer expense that will serve to further divide rather than unify the nation,” the senators wrote.

“While the president’s supporters have cheered his planned appearance at one of Washington’s most beloved summer gatherings,” according to The Post, “critics have said Trump’s speech could inject a partisan flavor into what is traditionally an apolitical event.”

Here’s the Schedule of Events so far.

National Independence Day Parade – Constitution Avenue NW from 7th Street to 17th Street NW

11:45 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Marching bands, fife and drum corps, floats, military units, giant balloons, equestrian, drill teams and more celebrate Independence Day in this patriotic, flag-waving, red, white and blue celebration of America’s birthday!

Salute to America – Lincoln Memorial

6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

President Trump leads a celebration of America’s military with music, military demonstrations and flyovers. Gates open at 3:30 p.m.

A Capitol Fourth Concert – West Lawn the U.S. Capitol

8 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

Co-sponsored by the National Park Service and the National Symphony Orchestra, A Capital Fourth honors our nation’s 243rd birthday with an all-star salute of the best in American entertainment. Gates open at 3 p.m. and can be seen live on PBS.

Fireworks Display

9:07 p.m. – 9:27 p.m.

Independence Day culminates with a spectacular fireworks display over the National Mall. The fireworks will be launched from West Potomac Park and behind the Lincoln Memorial. They will be visible from locations throughout D.C. and Northern Virginia.

Additional details about the day’s events, including security restrictions, public access points, road closures and prohibited items, will be announced in late June. Complete information and updates on the Independence Day celebration will be posted online here.

Behind the Scenes

The National Park Service (NPS) will once again host its annual celebration of Independence Day on the National Mall. For more than half a century, the NPS has been at the heart of the Independence Day festivities

“Every year thousands of people come together on the Mall in honor of the founding of our nation,” the NPS says on its website. “But what does it take to get the National Mall ready for such a large event? You’d be surprised.”

In preparation for the Fourth, NPS maintenance employees oversee the installation of 18,000 linear feet of chain link fencing and 14,000 feet of bike rack. Almost 350 portable toilets are placed throughout the Mall. Rangers work with the fireworks contractor to safely get the 6,500 shells into place.

U.S. Park Police works in conjunction with multiple agencies to plan security for the event to ensure the safety of visitors. A multi-agency team plans for medical aid stations. Volunteers are recruited and trained. Maps and informational signs are created.

On the holiday itself, about 150 NPS employees and more than 100 volunteers work on the National Mall, and another 50 people work at George Washington Memorial Parkway. Staff and volunteer crews collect trash and recycling throughout the day. Medical aid stations are set up and manned. Rangers continue to give talks at the memorials throughout the day.

Access points are staffed and visitors brought through security.

“After the fireworks are set off, another whole round of work begins. Cleanup crews begin their work at 10 p.m. on the Fourth and work into the next day. Park staff and volunteers quickly remove fireworks debris from the reflecting pool and the fallout area after the event to make sure it is safe for visitors. Streets are swept clean and roads are reopened as soon as possible.”

In other words, it takes a well funded and organized village to run a government. You can’t run a government by Twitter tweet.

Related

What did Ben Franklin say about American Independence?