WASHINGTON — The Republican National Committee (RNC) has submitted an application to hold a fireworks display at the Washington Monument next Thursday, August 27, after President Donald Trump concludes his acceptance speech, according to CBS News.
CBS News has obtained two permit applications submitted by the RNC to the National Park Service:
- One to shoot "scenic photo and video recording" on the National Mall on Aug. 17 between the hours of 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Another for fireworks display at the Washington Monument on Aug. 27, the night of President Trump's convention speech, from 11:30-11:35 p.m.
- The permit application warns: "Event may attract First Amendment demonstrators"
CBS News asked the RNC and the Trump campaign for comment/more information on both of these but have not yet heard back yet.
The permit is still being processed, according to the National Park Service. No decision has been made yet and no permit has been issued.
View the permit that the RNC submitted for processing below:
President Trump is slated to deliver his speech accepting the Republican nomination on the night of Aug. 27. President Trump said that his acceptance speech for the Republican presidential nomination will be held at either the White House or the Gettysburg battlefield.
“We have narrowed the Presidential Nomination Acceptance Speech, to be delivered on the final night of the Convention (Thursday), to two locations - The Great Battlefield of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and the White House, Washington, D.C.,” he tweeted.
Both sites are federal property, raising legal and ethical issues for their use in a political event. The Civil War battlefield in Pennsylvania could also resurface the president’s defense of monuments to heroes of Confederacy.
The formal Republican National Convention is set for Charlotte where the RNC is planning to host 336 delegates, six from every state and territory.
Vice President Mike Pence told WCNC in July that Trump was planning to accept the nomination in Charlotte, but those plans quickly faded when the president suggested giving his acceptance speech from the White House last week.
Using the Rose Garden, the Executive Mansion or even the Oval Office as the backdrop for his speech next month would mark an unprecedented use of public property for partisan political purposes.
Critics allege it would violate ethics laws, such as the Hatch Act, which limits political activity by federal workers. The president is exempt from the Hatch Act, however, and few government staffers have faced penalties under the law.
Presumptive Democratic nominee Vice President Joe Biden has already said he will not travel to the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee. Instead, he will accept the Democratic nomination for president from his home state of Delaware.