DC Mayor: Trump’s July 4th Military Parade Bankrupted City’s Anti-Terrorism Security Fund

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser says President Donald Trump’s “Salute to America” bankrupted a city fund meant to help guard against terrorism threats.

Bowser, a Democrat, wrote a letter to Trump Tuesday saying his military parade and speech cost the city $1.7 million–depleting a fund designed to help pay for anti-terrorism measures in D.C.

NEW: In letter to President Trump, DC Mayor Bowser says his military-style July 4th parade drained a special city fund designed to help pay for extra security and anti-terrorism measures during large events in the nation’s capital.

https://t.co/s0v2tK6r6W pic.twitter.com/08GNvFQZl0

— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 10, 2019

Bowser also noted the city has not been repaid for $7.3 million in expenses incurred from Trump’s 2017 inauguration. She argued the city would be running a $6 million deficit if Trump’s administration doesn’t act to reimburse costs.

Chris Rodriguez, director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, told The Washington Post in an interview that the estimated costs for Trump’s Fourth of July celebration were six times as much as in years past.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment, the Post reported.

Trump’s speech on Independence Day focused on praising military achievements throughout U.S. history, and the president had tanks and other military hardware brought into the city for the event.

[Image via Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images]

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