President Donald Trump hailed the U.S. Military in his fourth of July speech—recounting the histories of each of the five branches and applauding their accomplishments.
“Together we are part of one of the greatest stories ever told, the story of America.
“It is the epic tale of a great nation whose people have risked everything for what they know is right and what they know is true. It is the chronicle of brave citizens who never give up on the dream of a better and brighter future,” Trump said from a stage at the Lincoln Memorial set up behind bullet-proof glass in front of thousands of Americans that joined the President on the National Mall.
Just moments before, Air Force One had performed a flyover overhead.
Trump had paid personal attention in planning the July 4 event. A day earlier, he had said on Twitter that the celebrations would be the “show of a lifetime.”
In another tweet, the President said: “We have the greatest economy anywhere in the world. We have the greatest military anywhere in the world. Not bad!”
In his speech, Trump elaborated on each branch of the military. He talked about the wartime heroics and a short history of each branch of the military—beginning from the Revolutionary War until today.
He started with the U.S. Coast Guard and when he finished talking about its accomplishments, the branch did a flyover as crowds looked skyward.
He then moved to the Air Force. “And it is our incredible airman today who wield the most powerful weapon systems on the planet Earth. For over 65 years no enemy air force has managed to kill a single American soldier because the skies belong to the United States of America,” Trump said.
The President talked about the faithful marines and the sacred vows of each marine.
“That motto, Semper Fidelis—always faithful—burns in the soul of every marine, a sacred promise, the core has kept since the birth of our country. They are the elite masters of air and land and sea, on battlefields all across the globe. They are the United States Marines.”
He then talked about the Army and the Navy with each of these branches performing a flyover shortly after.
According to the White House, the aircraft involved in today’s flyovers and the other equipment present for the event included Air Force One, the Blue Angels (F-18 (6)), U.S. Coast Guard aircraft: MH-60 (1)/ MH-65 (1) / C-130 (1), U.S. Air Force aircraft: B-2 (1) / F-22 (2), U.S. Marine Corps aircraft: V-92 (1) / V-22 (2), U.S. Army aircraft: AH-64 (4), and U.S. Navy aircraft: F-35 (2) / F-18 (2).
“The cost of our great Salute to America tomorrow will be very little compared to what it is worth,” he wrote on Twitter on July 3. “We own the planes, we have the pilots, the airport is right next door (Andrews), all we need is the fuel. We own the tanks and all. Fireworks are donated by two of the greats. Nice!”
The event was open free of cost to the public and there was a separate ticketing area for the VIPs.
