Letter to the editor: How much more of this will the Republicans in Congress permit?

Judging by some recent commentary in The Chronicle, there appears to be some confusion about the military parade in Washington, D.C., on June 14.

This date was, in fact, the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the United States Army in 1775.  But there were no plans whatsoever for a parade to commemorate the event until after Donald Trump reacquired the presidency on Jan. 20.

Trump has long been a fan of such displays, and pressed strongly for a military parade in D.C. during his first term at the White House.  But the Pentagon resisted these entreaties, citing both the exorbitant cost of these events and their authoritarian overtones.

Rather than attend such a parade, then- Secretary of Defense James Mattis said in private, he would “swallow acid.”

The ostensible reason for the parade on June 14 was to honor the armed forces.  But the effective purpose was to celebrate the 79th anniversary of Trump’s birthday, which was on June 14, 1946, and was generally viewed that way. 

The 5 million who participated in “No Kings” demonstrations nationwide were protesting Trump, not the army.

Also, Trump’s admiration of such authoritarians as Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Kim Jong Un, Viktor Orban and even Hitler is amply documented and readily accessible online. It requires no further examination here.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration piles outrage upon outrage. The latest is the threat to impose a 50% tariff on Brazil unless it halts its prosecution of Jair Bolsonaro, the defeated would-be dictator.

This would be lunacy even if Trump had the legal authority for such an act, which plainly he does not. How much more of this will the Republicans in Congress permit?

Joseph Tipler

Centralia