President Donald Trump celebrated the "fighting spirit and unyielding force" of the American military in remarks following a parade in Washington, D.C. commemorating the 250th anniversary of the armed services that saw a grand showing of the military's power throughout the National Mall.

Totally aside from the indignity inherently associated with a politician treating uniformed soldiers as props for a self-glorifying rally, Trump crossed a pretty bright-red line in eschewing the usual nonpartisan, high-minded tone and content of presidential speeches at military facilities, as Tom Nichols noted at The Atlantic: