Weird Fourth

How much did Trump’s 4th of July extravaganza cost U.S. taxpayers? The Pentagon low-balled it at $1.2 million. They probably excluded the cost of bringing in the tanks, planes, teleprompter, and Trump’s hairdresser. Still, he strutted like a preening peacock on the prowl. Trump had the show of military force that he so admires when displayed by his heroes, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un.

This is the same administration that claims it does not have the resources to provide soap, toothbrushes, or blankets to migrant children who have committed no crime. Yet, Trump is willing to bend over backward to appease brutal, repressive dictators who murder their own people to stifle free speech and freedom of the press. It seems that no expense is too great to curry their favor. He genuflects at Putin’s feet and bows to North Korean generals. He even brags to have “fallen in love” with Kim Jong Un.

Regarding Trump’s 4th of July speech: There were no airports to defend during the Revolutionary War and the “Star-Spangled Banner” was written during the War of 1812. If Trump was truly as patriotic as some on the unhinged right suggest, he would not invent alternative facts about our nation’s history or cause innocent children, detained in cages, to be part of that history.