President Trump canceled his desired military parade before Pentagon officials briefed him on cost estimates for the event, a Defense Department spokesman said Monday. “The president was not briefed by any member of the Department of Defense on any cost associated with the parade,” Col. Rob Manning told reporters at the Pentagon. The statement seems to contradict Trump’s own tweet from Friday morning, in which he claimed he axed the event after receiving a high cost estimate. The parade’s $92 million price tag leaked to the media on Thursday. ADVERTISEMENT “The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it,” he wrote on Twitter. Trump went on to say that he will instead attend a parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base in May, as well as a parade in Paris celebrating the end of World War I on Nov. 11. Defense Secretary James Mattis disputed the cost estimate, telling reporters traveling with him Thursday in South America that whoever gave out that number is “an idiot.” Manning said at that time that he had not been briefed on figures. He also said he cannot confirm the $92 million amount, as “the planning had not reached that level.” “Any figure that was cited was predecisional. The planning committee for the parade had not reached a point where they have briefed senior leadership in the department. It was moving forward, it had just not matured to that point,” Manning said. ADVERTISEMENT The Pentagon on Thursday night put out a statement saying the parade was postponed until 2019. Manning repeated on Monday that the Pentagon will now “explore opportunities in 2019” to hold the parade. “We are now going to look at providing options that will go up to the president for a decision for 2019,” he said. Trump in February officially ordered the Defense Department to start planning the parade, and by March the Pentagon released a memo with initial guidance. The parade was originally scheduled for Veterans Day to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I.<doc-sep>“When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up!” President Donald Trump tweeted. | oliver Conteras/Getty Images Trump cancels military parade, feuds with D.C. mayor over ballooning cost Mayor Muriel Bowser slams the 'reality star in the White House.' President Donald Trump announced Friday that he has canceled plans for a military parade in Washington, and ignited a feud with the D.C. mayor after accusing “local politicians” of price gouging. “The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it. Never let someone hold you up!” CNBC reported Thursday that the expected cost of Trump’s planned parade had ballooned to $92 million, significantly higher than previous estimates of $12 million and $30 million. Shortly after CNBC published its reporting, the Pentagon announced that the parade had been postponed. The Defense Department did not offer a reason for the change of plans but said it had “agreed to explore opportunities in 2019." Trump initially ordered the Defense Department last February to begin the process of planning a military parade, to be held in Washington on Veterans Day, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. The president, who has long been publicly obsessed with generals and shows of military might, first suggested a U.S. parade after attending the Bastille Day parade in Paris last summer. “I will instead attend the big parade already scheduled at Andrews Air Force Base on a different date, & go to the Paris parade, celebrating the end of the War, on November 11th,” the president wrote online on Friday morning. “Maybe we will do something next year in D.C. when the cost comes WAY DOWN. Now we can buy some more jet fighters!” Morning Defense newsletter Sign up for Morning Defense, a daily briefing on Washington's national security apparatus. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or updates from POLITICO and you agree to our privacy policy and terms of service. You can unsubscribe at any time and you can contact us here. This sign-up form is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser responded to the president's jab at local politicians with a tweet of her own, suggesting the White House had been unwilling to accept the true price tag of holding a military parade down Pennsylvania Avenue. "Yup, I’m Muriel Bowser, mayor of Washington DC, the local politician who finally got thru to the reality star in the White House with the realities ($21.6M) of parades/events/demonstrations in Trump America (sad)," the Washington mayor wrote. Bowser followed up with a statement on Friday afternoon that referenced the city's relative smooth handling of the demonstrations last weekend on the one-year anniversary of the Charlottesville rally. “The District has a long history of hosting parades, protests, and demonstrations including National Special Security Events. We have always done so professionally, fairly, and efficiently," Bowser said. "That has and will continue to be the case. As the District has shown as recently as this past weekend, we can execute these events even under the toughest of circumstances. Any statement to the contrary is an affront to those who safely host events in our nation’s capital each and every day, including our first responders.” The since-canceled military parade would create nearly $13.5 million in Metropolitan Police Department costs for public safety and crowd control, among other services, according to a mock-up budget that the mayor's office shared with POLITICO. Other high-price-tag services include $3.6 million in fire and emergency medical services, including "emergency medical support, hazardous materials response, mass casualty incident response," and other safety measures. Department of Transportation services would have cost more than $2.2 million, including establishing security and traffic perimeters, traffic control officers and other costs, according to the mayor's budget. The exact details of who would cover the costs were unclear, but each year, the city's budget includes a federal appropriation for events like parades and protests. For the parade, the city mocked up a budget after receiving a letter on Aug. 8 from Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen that the event was in the works. DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Although the Pentagon on Thursday wound up announcing a postponement of the parade, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis slammed reports of a ballooning price tag for the parade during an exchange with reporters traveling with him in Colombia. Whoever served as the source for CNBC's $92 million figure was "probably smoking something that is legal in my state but not in most," said the native of Washington state, where marijuana is legal. "I would discount that, and anybody who said [that number]," the defense secretary said, according to the Associated Press. "I'll almost guarantee you one thing: They probably said, 'I need to stay anonymous.' No kidding, because you look like an idiot. And No. 2, whoever wrote it needs to get better sources. I'll just leave it at that." Ahead of the president's Friday morning announcement, White House adviser Kellyanne Conway downplayed the parade's significance during an interview with Fox News's "Fox & Friends." She touted the administration's support for the the military before taking jabs at protesters and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who said earlier this week that "we’re not going to make America great again. It was never that great." "We don't need a parade to celebrate all this president has done for those brave men and women in uniform," Conway said. "And all the people who are so anti-American — America was never great, abolish ICE, spitting on men and women in uniform, disrespecting the flag when they have the opportunity.<doc-sep>President Donald Trump claimed Friday morning that he canceled the military parade he had asked the Pentagon to plan, and he blamed local D.C. politicians for "ridiculously high" costs. The Pentagon announced the decision to cancel the planned November parade Thursday night, hours after CNBC reported that the event would cost $92 million — $80 million more than an initial estimate given in July. "The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I cancelled it," Trump tweeted Friday. TWEET In a second tweet, Trump noted that the funds saved from the now-postponed parade could go toward buying new fighter jets. "Maybe we will do something next year in D.C. when the cost comes WAY DOWN. Now we can buy some more jet fighters!" TWEET Trump's tweet provoked a response from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser: She called Trump a "reality star in the White House." TWEET The parade was scheduled for Nov. 10, the day before Veterans Day and just days after Election Day, when voters will decide which party will have the majority in Congress. The parade, which was to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, had been estimated to cost $92 million, an official with knowledge of the planning told CNBC. The figure consisted of $50 million from the Pentagon and $42 million from interagency partners such as the Department of Homeland Security. An initial estimate last month pegged the prospective cost for the parade at $12 million. Defense Secretary James Mattis said Thursday night the Pentagon had no cost estimate. That $92 million cost estimate included security, transportation of parade assets, aircraft, as well as temporary duty for troops. The official also noted that, while the size and scope of the military parade can still shift, the plans included approximately eight tanks, as well as other armored vehicles like Bradleys, Strykers and M113s. The Pentagon said in a statement Thursday that it would "explore opportunities" in 2019 for Trump's military parade.<doc-sep>The White House disputed a claim by the Pentagon on Monday that President Trump called off his controversial military parade without even getting an estimate on how much it would cost. see also Trump called off military parade before getting price estimate President Trump called off his highly touted and controversial military... Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said in a statement that Trump made his decision to cancel the parade before Secretary of Defense James Mattis had even been briefed on the price of the event. “The president of the United States was not briefed by any member of the Department of Defense on the cost associated with the parade, before making the decision to cancel the event,” Manning said. “The planning committee for the parade had not reached a point where they had briefed the senior leadership in the department.” White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, however, had an alternative explanation — stating that both Mattis and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly were aware of the price tag. “Secretary Mattis briefed the president on the parade a couple of weeks ago and the following day Gen. Kelly briefed him on the costs of what Sec. Mattis had laid out,” Sanders told The Post. Mattis reacted with surprise last week when confronted about news reports that said the cost could hit $92 million — or about $60 million more than the White House had planned on. Shortly after Mattis’ comments, Trump went on Twitter to cancel the parade and blame “local politicians” in Washington, DC, for padding the costs.<doc-sep>
President Trump called off his highly touted and controversial military parade through the streets of Washington before he got an estimate from the Pentagon on how much it would cost, the Defense Department said on Monday, according to a report. “The president of the United States was not briefed by any member of the Department of Defense on the cost associated with the parade, before making the decision to cancel the event,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said, the Washington Times reported. see also Trump’s military parade blows past initial cost estimate The price tag for President Trump’s military parade this fall... He said the reported cost of the event that led to Trump pulling the plug was “pre-decisional” and that neither Secretary of Defense James Mattis nor Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford had been briefed on the amount. Mattis reacted with dismay last week when news reports circulated that the cost could hit $92 million — or about $60 million more than the White House had planned on. He said the military source behind the number should remain anonymous because “you look like an idiot.” Shortly after Mattis’ comments, Trump went on Twitter to cancel the parade and blame the Washington, DC, government for padding the costs. “The local politicians who run Washington, D.C. (poorly) know a windfall when they see it. When asked to give us a price for holding a great celebratory military parade, they wanted a number so ridiculously high that I canceled it. Never let someone hold you up!,” Trump wrote, adding that he would try again next year. The president got the hankering for a full-blown military parade after attending Bastille Day celebrations in Paris last year with French President Emmanuel Macron. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.