Scoop: Trump allies want D.C.'s July 4 fireworks to set world record
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Trump allies want to smash the Guinness World Record for the world's biggest fireworks show, planning over 30 minutes of pyrotechnics in D.C. this July 4.
Why it matters: The supersized spectacle for America's 250th birthday is the latest Trump touch on D.C., including a never-before-seen UFC cage fight on the White House lawn next month — putting Washington on its highest-ever July 4 security footing.
What we're hearing: The fireworks spectacle will run nearly twice as long as last year's show on the National Mall.
- Breaking the world record — set in the Philippines in 2016 — will take more than 810,904 fireworks.
- Freedom 250, a White House-backed initiative leading the event, is tapping Pennsylvania-based Pyrotecnico, which has done events like the Super Bowl.
- "We are shooting to break the record," Jodi Dague, the director of marketing at Pyrotecnico, told Axios in an email.
The feds are declaring the day a National Special Security Event, unlike previous Independence Day celebrations, activating a flood-the-zone law-enforcement response that's implemented for presidential inaugurations.
- The Secret Service will take the lead on coordinating security, and a spokesperson told Axios that "increased security measures" will take effect "in the days leading up to, during and immediately following the event."
What they're saying: The National Mall will be hosting the Great American State Fair that day, and Freedom 250 organizers are planning speeches, flyovers and performances.
- "This will culminate in a breathtaking fireworks finale that will shatter world records and stand as the most spectacular firework display the world has ever seen," Freedom 250 spokesperson Rachel Reisner told Axios in a statement.
- Freedom 250, which is funded with a public-private partnership, did not immediately respond to questions about the cost estimates or whether taxpayer funds will be used.
Behind the scenes: District and federal officials met for several hours last week to discuss July 4 security, two sources with knowledge told Axios.
- Following the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner shooting, and turmoil in the Metropolitan Police Department — including 13 officials put on leave over allegations of manipulating crime data — there's growing pressure on the District to make sure nothing goes wrong on July 4.