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Trump, Protesters Gear Up for An Untraditional July Fourth

Associated Press

   WASHINGTON - In a sweltering capital threatened by storms, the
   traditional Fourth of July parade Thursday served as a warm-up act to a
   distinctly nontraditional evening event at the Lincoln Memorial, where
   President Donald Trump made plans to command the stage against the
   backdrop of a show of military muscle.
   Protesters unimpressed by his "Salute to America" program inflated a
   roly-poly balloon depicting Trump as an angry, diaper-clad baby.

   With his decision to add his own production to the usual festivities,
   Trump set himself up to be the first president in nearly seven decades
   to address a crowd at the National Mall on Independence Day. "I will
   speak on behalf of our great Country!" he said in a morning tweet.
   "Perhaps even Air Force One will do a low & loud sprint over the
   crowd."

   But thunderstorms threatened, with periods of "torrential rain"
   forecast by the National Weather Service and a flash-flood watch in
   effect.

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