$45 million "birthday gift": Controversy over Trump’s military parade sponsored by defense giants

Deng Tong, Golden Finance

Original Title: Military Parade or Birthday Party? Who are the Giants Sponsoring the U.S. Military Parade?

On June 14, 2025, U.S. President Trump held a parade to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. military, coincidentally on his 79th birthday. This parade is the largest military event in Washington in decades, with dozens of tanks and armored vehicles driving through the streets of Washington and nearly 7,000 soldiers participating. The parade even included a birthday celebration for Trump, with 21 gun salutes when he arrived at the scene, and the crowd chanting “Happy Birthday to You.”

At the same time, anti-Trump protests and marches occurred across the United States. People held up signs saying “Trump must step down.”

Who sponsored this military parade? Did the military parade become the venue for Trump’s birthday party? Is Trump still popular with the public?

1. Who are the giants sponsoring this military parade?

According to reports, the president’s military parade cost as much as 45 million dollars.

According to the U.S. Army, 22 businesses and foundations sponsored the Army’s 250th Anniversary Parade and Celebration held at the National Mall. General Dynamics and USAA are the designated sponsors for this celebration, and there are many other businesses and nonprofit organizations involved, including: the Gary Sinise Foundation, Baird, the Walmart Wounded Warrior Project, GOVX, Leonardo DRS, RTX, Lockheed Martin, Leidos, Armed Forces Insurance, Boeing, First Command, General Electric Aerospace, T-Mobile, the George King Hotel, Intercontinental Hotel Group, and the NFL.

The non-profit organization America250 Foundation, which is organizing the 50th anniversary celebration of the U.S. military, announced that the event has received sponsorship from Oracle, Lockheed Martin, UFC, Coinbase, Palantir, Amazon, Exiger, Scott’s Miracle Gro, Phorm Energy, and FedEx. The host even expressed special thanks to Coinbase on site, saying, “Our special sponsor Coinbase.” This is also the first time a cryptocurrency exchange has appeared in such a solemn parade.

This military parade, although named to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, is actually criticized for being linked to Trump’s personal political image. The tech community believes that the funding for the event has raised public relations risks and controversy.

2. A military parade or a birthday party?

Not only has the issue of sponsorship sparked controversy, but there is also much debate over the actions celebrating Trump’s birthday during the military parade.

The military parade was privately referred to by some government officials as “Trump’s Birthday Parade,” fulfilling the president’s long-held desire to hold a grand military display. The parade started from the Pentagon in Virginia, and the participating troops—commemorating the American Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the global war on terror—had to walk approximately two and a half miles.

Trump held a swearing-in ceremony for 250 new recruits and returning soldiers. Trump said, “Welcome to the United States Army, and I wish you all a happy life. Thank you very much. I wish you all a happy life.”

Vance pointed out in his speech: “June 14th is certainly the birthday of the U.S. Army. It is also the birthday of the President of the United States. Happy birthday to Mr. President. This is also my wedding anniversary.”

Audience members near the stage sang Happy Birthday to Trump.

Trump has long been very concerned about the size of the crowd attending his events, and he has repeatedly claimed that his first inauguration was the largest inauguration in American history.

But is this event really “big and beautiful”?

Not necessarily.

On one hand, as previously planned, on the day of the parade, the “No Kings” event was held at 2,000 locations across the United States to express anger towards the president and criticize Trump’s overreach of presidential power during his second term. About 20,000 people gathered in downtown Los Angeles, and although law enforcement had used non-lethal weapons during earlier protests and the president had dispatched troops to escalate the situation, they faced no obstacles.

At the protest site, members of Congress, union leaders, and activists from New York, Philadelphia, Houston, and other places delivered speeches to the crowd. Attendees waved American flags and held up signs criticizing Trump.

Law enforcement agencies basically did not intervene with the protesters for most of the day, but they fired tear gas and arrested 8 people in the Atlanta area.

On the other hand, the situation on site may not be satisfactory. It is reported that the event caused a shutdown of most areas in Washington, D.C., with major roads closed, and it did not attract a large number of Trump supporters. Instead, supporters, active military personnel, curious locals, and onlookers near the military camp occupied the designated streets a few blocks in front of the White House, and there were even empty spaces.

In front of the central stage, a crowd comparable to a medium-sized concert gathered in front of the giant electronic display. Most of the lawn around the Washington Monument is idle empty space.

“Despite the rock music playing on the television, the parade itself was eerily quiet. A video posted on X shows tanks creaking through a nearly silent crowd, sounding like a shopping cart in desperate need of fuel.”

3. Is Trump still popular among the public?

According to a poll conducted by NBC News Decision Desk, Trump’s support rate for a second term remains at a negative level, and the general attitude towards his government’s policies is similarly negative.

Negative emotions outweigh positive emotions

There are serious divisions among people on immigration and border security issues, and opinions on two other key matters during Trump’s second term - tariffs and government efficiency - are more negative.

Most (55%) adults over the age of 18 disapprove of Trump’s style of doing things, while 45% approve.

Although the overall numbers remain stable, there are signs that enthusiasm for the president has slightly waned. The proportion of adults who strongly support the president has decreased slightly since April. The percentage of those who strongly oppose the president has also decreased slightly, but in this poll, strong negative sentiments still outweigh positive sentiments.

When asked about their feelings towards the president and his actions, the number of “Make America Great Again” supporters who chose “excited” has also decreased since April. 37% of respondents stated that they feel excited about the actions taken by the Trump administration so far during his term, down from 46% in April.

How do the public views on immigration issues that Trump is most concerned about?

Trump’s overall data on immigration issues is similar to the April polls, but Republicans, MAGA-supporting Republicans, and independents are now more likely to express strong agreement with Trump’s handling of border security and immigration.

For related content, you can refer to the Golden Finance article “The Ongoing Los Angeles Riots: What Impact Will They Have on the U.S. Economy and the Crypto Market?”

In recent months, the immigration policies of the Trump administration have overlapped with its higher education policies, particularly regarding foreign students across the United States. Polls have found that the majority of Americans do not approve of Trump’s handling of higher education-related issues, with 56% disapproving of his initiatives for colleges, including 42% who strongly oppose them.

However, Trump’s supporters strongly approve of his handling of universities. Supporters of “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) overwhelmingly expressed agreement, with 72% stating they strongly agree. Most Republicans also expressed agreement, with 57% strongly approving of Trump’s handling of this issue.

The public has given negative evaluations of Trump’s handling of several other issues, including tariffs (40% in favor, 60% opposed), cost of living and inflation (39%-61%), and efforts on diversity, equity, and inclusion (44%-56%).

Are the public still satisfied with DOGE?

Since April, Americans’ evaluations of Musk’s efforts to reduce government spending and the size of government using DOGE have slightly declined.

In a recent survey, 44% of people认为 the program was successful or partially successful, down from 47% previously, while 56%认为 the program failed or partially failed, up from 52% previously.

Currently, only 49% of supporters believe that DOGE’s efforts have been successful, down from 66% in April.

People seem to be somewhat disheartened by DOGE, which is related to the actual performance of DOGE and the “breakup” between Musk and Trump.

In summary, the public is not very satisfied with the performance of the tariff and government efficiency departments, is relatively satisfied with the handling of immigration issues, but does not approve of the handling of study abroad issues. Overall, public support for Trump is not as strong as before. With ongoing issues regarding tariffs, immigration, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Trump’s approval ratings are still facing certain challenges.

Trump may be a person similar to Musk—someone who needs to shine and remain active in the crowd at all times. Therefore, we can’t help but ask: is the presentation of the military parade alongside the birthday party a coincidence or a necessity? Is Coinbase’s sponsorship of the parade a routine operation or a binding of personal interests? Will the call for “No Kings” awaken the “understanding king” who has just been in office for a little over half a year?

Sources: Jinse Finance, Jin10 Data, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, BBC, Rolling Stone, NBC, Lianhe Zaobao, etc.