Thunderstorms could dampen big birthday parade

[struggle4progress]

Thunderstorms are forecasted in the D.C. area during President Donald Trump’s military parade on Saturday

Rachel Dobkin
in New York
Friday 13 June 2025 11:37 EDT

... “Rain won’t stop us, the tanks don’t melt, but if there’s lightning then that puts the crowd at risk,” Steve Warren, chief spokesman of the Army, told The Times, regarding the expected thunderstorms Saturday ...

“It will depend on the president, too, when he’s available,” Warren said.

An AccuWeather forecaster told The Independent temperatures will be in the mid-80s in the afternoon, but with the humidity, it will probably feel five to 10 degrees warmer.

The parade is expected to last from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. local time ...

https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/trump-military-parade-weather-forecast-protests-b2769717.html

[struggle4progress]

1. Veterans are divided over big parade

By BEN FINLEY
Updated 2:27 PM EDT, June 11, 2025

... Christopher Purdy, an Army veteran who served in Iraq, called the parade a facade that paints over some of the Republican president’s policies that have targeted military veterans and current service members, including cuts at the Department of Veterans Affairs and a ban on transgender troops.

Purdy said the parade, long sought by Trump, will needlessly display U.S. military might on the president’s 79th birthday.

“It’s embarrassing,” said Purdy, 40, of Atlanta. “It’s expensive. And whatever his reasons are for doing it, I think it’s entirely unnecessary” ...

https://apnews.com/article/military-parade-army-trump-birthday-veterans-0912f4009b4d9fc157b35bb9edf9375a

[struggle4progress]

2. Most GOP lawmakers plan to skip big parade

... Among the 50 GOP lawmakers surveyed by POLITICO, only seven said they planned to stay in Washington this weekend for the festivities. Those begging off include members of the Republican leadership in both chambers.

The chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services committees, the top congressional officials overseeing the military, are skipping Trump’s pageantry, which includes a flyover of vintage and contemporary warplanes. Instead, they’ll attend a different air show — the annual defense industry confab in Paris.

Among those attending will be some of Trump’s most devoted House supporters, such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. “Yes, of course,” she said Tuesday. “I’m going to be there for the 250th anniversary of the Army” ...

But many more said they would beg off — choosing, as most members do, to stay away from Washington for the weekend ...

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/10/trump-parade-congress-republicans-00398774

[spooky3]

3. Emergency alert system sent a flash flood warning for DC metro

Until midnight tonight. 1.5 - 3 inches of rain per hour possible

[LymphocyteLover]

4. Pray for major rain and lightning!

[spooky3]

5. :-) unfortunately, the forecast for today shows

The highest chance for that is as the event ends and afterward.