The parade Jay complains about in this was a real thing that happened here in Grand Rapids. After the so-called Gulf War, the city had an “Independence Day” parade downtown that was a thinly disguised Victory Over Iraq parade, and reelection campaign stop for GHWB. Like a smaller version of old Soviet May Day parades, it featured uniformed troops, armored personnel carriers, a tank, and the Commander in Chief, there for a safe Republican crowd to cheer for him. It was nakedly political, kinda jingoistic, and all justified by the pretense of “supporting our troops”.