Speaking to CNN’s Manu Raju, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reportedly said that Trump’s request for a military parade isn’t good for America’s image if his intent is to only showcase military might.
In a tweet from this Wednesday, Raju recounted his conversation with Graham and how the South Carolina Senator pointed out the difference between showing respect for the military and showing off strength.
“Just spoke to Lindsey Graham who offered some criticism of military parades after the WH called for one,” Raju tweeted. “He said there’s nothing wrong with having a parade to celebrate the military but said to have a parade to show military might is “kind of cheesy and a sign of weakness.”
Just spoke to Lindsey Graham who offered some criticism of military parades after the WH called for one. He said there’s nothing wrong with having a parade to celebrate the military but said to have a parade to show military might is “kind of cheesy and a sign of weakness.”
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) February 7, 2018
Raju later added that Graham said he’s “not interested in Russian-style hardware display” when it comes to a parade.
Graham’s sentiment was echoed by Slate.com‘s Franz-Stefan Gady, who wrote large-scale military parades “reinforce two negative themes of Trump’s own presidency: insecurity and isolation.”
Military parades, if not part of an annual patriotic holiday cycle and absent a military victory, symbolize a deep sense of insecurity of a country’s political and military leadership. That’s the reason why impromptu large-scale military spectacles—think of North Korea’s Kim Jong-un—are usually the purview of isolated autocratic leaders and dictatorships that feel threatened by outside forces.
Graham’s tone was less mocking on his own Twitter account, where he said he “fully supports” Trump’s decision to have a parade as long as it doesn’t focus on military hardware and instead focuses on “military service, sacrifice, and saying ‘Thank You’ to those who protect our nation.”
Featured image via screen grab/YouTube
