Mulvaney says Trump’s military parade could cost as much as $30 million

President Trump’s proposed military parade could cost as much as $30 million, budget director Mick Mulvaney said Wednesday.

Mulvaney told the House Budget Committee that the parade’s cost would vary depending on length, but could be anywhere from $10 million to $30 million.

Pentagon officials reportedly said in an early meeting about the parade that they did not know how they would pay for it. The administration is reportedly targeting Veterans Day for the parade.

Mulvaney told the committee after questioning from Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee (Calif.) that the cost would depend on the length of the parade and the cost of the equipment.

“I’ve seen various different cost estimates of between $10 million and $30 million depending on the size of the parade, the scope of it, the length of it, those kind of things,” Mulvaney said.

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The cost of a possible parade isn’t included in the fiscal 2019 budget plan, so Mulvaney said the White House would have to work with Congress on the funding if “we decide to push forward with that initiative.”

“We’d have to appropriate funds for it; we’d have to find funds for it,” he said.

All the figures are preliminary, he said.

“We’ve not done much research on it yet,” Mulvaney said. 

Officials said earlier this month that they are in the planning stages for the event following a Washington Post report that the Pentagon was acquiescing to Trump’s request for a large-scale parade.

Trump has proposed a military parade multiple times during his presidency. After witnessing the Bastille Day celebrations in Paris in July, he told French President Emmanuel Macron that he was considering a similar demonstration for the July 4th holiday.

Democratic have joined with some GOP lawmakers to speak out against the parade, with many saying it could come off as “totalitarian” and would evoke demonstrations in North Korea and Russia.

Some have said a parade would be a waste of money, and that more should be invested into services like mental health care for veterans instead.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he would be in favor of a parade that honors military personnel, but that a “Soviet-style” demonstration of military hardware would show “weakness.”

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) also expressed opposition to a parade, saying, “America is the most powerful country in all of human history; you don’t need to show it off.”

Vicki Needham contributed.

Updated at 11:24 a.m.