Article by FLN Staff.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) weighed in on the recent news from the Washington Post that President Trump wants a massive, expensive military parade in Washington, D.C. Sen. Paul says he’s all for it; after the troops come home from Afghanistan.
“Though the martial image of high-stepping soldiers is not one I tend to associate with our nation’s Founders’ distrust of a standing Army, I’m not against a victory celebration. So I propose we declare victory in Afghanistan, bring home our 14,000 troops and hold a victory parade,” Sen. Paul wrote in an op-ed to Fox News. He argues that victory is elusive, because the definition keeps changing, and says that, “If victory requires the disparate tribes and regional factions of Afghanistan to have more allegiance to a regime in Kabul than to their local tribal leaders, then victory will never come.”
The war in Afghanistan has continued for 16 years, and even though the people responsible for 9/11, including Bin Laden, are long dead, the war continues. Paul argues that in a place like Afghanistan, that will have to do, as there will be no grand surrender on a battleship like the end of World War II.
He concludes, “So, by all means, a parade – yes! As long as it is a victory parade heralding an end to America’s longest war.”
Image Credit: By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America (Rand Paul) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
What a phony. Anything for publicity.
I tuned him out at “high-stepping soldiers” …
Our US soldiers have NEVER been “high-stepping” !!!
Rand is just another Sheep in a Wolf’s Clothing !!!
High stepping or not it’s still a martial image. I agree with Sen. Paul that it should only be done after we bring our troops home, but I think it should be more than just the 14K in Afghanistan.
The moment we leave is the momrbt the Talibs seizes power.
I totally agree with Trump, no conditions attached. As a kid I remember going to watch military parades and I loved them. We Americans rely on our military to defend us yet we can’t honor them in a parade? That is ridiculous. American need to see our Military and a parade is just one way to thank and honor them and introduce them to the citizens. Trump gets it? The libs don’t get it. Well, most libs don’t like America anyway so sc**w them. Give me a good old fashioned Military Parade anytime over the wishes of liberalism.
As a three time combat veteran I have to say NO to this military parade for two reasons. First, the troops have enough trouble and aggravation already. But second, and the most important, to put troops into formation and march them down the street puts them in more DANGER than the battlefield.
did we or did we not have military parades in the early 50s and late 40s . it seems to run in my mind that when we went to the theaters and they used to show the news items that they also showed military parades . pushing 80 it is hard to remember