Donald Trump is blaming weather forecasters for the flop of his $45 million military parade in Washington, D.C., which saw low turnout and a storm of mockery online.
“It was a tremendous success with a fantastic audience. It was supposed to rain. They gave it a 100% chance of rain — and it didn’t rain at all. It was beautiful,” Trump told Fox News. “They didn’t do too well, the weather people, last night.”
But the clouds rolled in anyway. Drizzle and thick skies canceled several planned flyovers. And photos from the Washington Monument showed a thin crowd, despite the price tag and buildup.
Critics online quickly turned the parade into a punchline.
One user on X posted: “I really thought Trump’s police state parade would look fascist and scary. Instead it’s just humiliating. Are the soldiers marching like this as a low key f— you to Trump? Compare it to any other military parade and you’ll see what I mean.” Others noticed that many soldiers weren’t even marching in sync — something that would never happen in a well-run military event.
Reddit users mocked the turnout and the waste of money. “There were thousands more at our No Kings protest in Springfield MO today. LOL,” one person wrote. Another added, “It’s kind of funny, in a waste of my tax money kind of way.” Someone else noted, “The poor mix engineer, the sponsors, and the pre-recorded crowd noises.”
Even First Lady Melania Trump wasn’t spared. Her appearance at the underwhelming event was described by some as awkward and embarrassing.
The parade — intended to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. military — was supposed to be a powerful show of patriotism. Instead, the crowd was sparse, the timing thrown off by rain, and some of the scheduled events were scrapped altogether. The rain forced the parade to begin 30 minutes early, and several components, including flyovers, were canceled or delayed.
Still, Trump smiled as tanks and troops rolled down Constitution Avenue, ignoring the low turnout and logistical problems. But the cost was impossible to ignore — roughly $45 million, not including potential damage to D.C. roads caused by the heavy armored vehicles.
Meanwhile, data journalist G. Elliot Morris reported that the “No Kings” protest, held on the same day across the country, drew between 4 and 6 million people — easily outshining Trump’s parade.
In the end, instead of admitting the obvious, Trump blamed the forecasters. “They said it would rain,” he insisted.
Watch the clip below:
Trump suggests that the fact it didn’t rain on his military parade is a refutation of climate change pic.twitter.com/LCISfF4iWp
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 15, 2025
