President Trump's 4th of July Celebration: How to Watch, What Channel and What Time Is 'Salute to America'

In honor of Independence Day, President Trump is looking to commemorate patriotism, not politics [...]

By Tania Hussain

In honor of Independence Day, President Trump is looking to commemorate patriotism, not politics tonight with a festive celebration for the first time in Washington, D.C. at the Lincoln Memorial.

With the former reality star turned president planning and throwing together his own Fourth of July celebrations, Trump shared with Americans that all are welcome to the Salute to America, which will include fighter jets, a concert and a 35-minute fireworks display. Vowing to make it a "show of a lifetime," Trump has also shared the show will feature tanks, bombers and other military machinery from the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, the U.S. Army Band, the Armed Forces Chorus, the United States Marine Corps Silent Drill Team, along with others.

While celebrations kicked off at 11:45 a.m. local time in Washington with a parade, the actual event, will start at 6:30 p.m. ET on all major U.S. news networks, CNN, Fox News and CNBC, showing highlights from his speech. PBS and C-SPAN will also be providing live coverage of the entire event.

Broadcast networks have no immediate plans to interrupt programming for the celebration and will rely on their streaming channels for the event, including the three major U.S. networks: ABC News Live, CBSN and NBC News Digital, which will all provide live coverage — and report stories for use on their respective evening newscasts.

Tonight, NBC will air its own Independence Day celebration with its annual Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, which will air from 8-10 p.m. ET, with a one-hour encore at 10 p.m. ET.

Salute to America was threatened earlier by a rainy forecast accompanied by thunderstorms, but the former reality star was optimistic hours before about the outcome just an hour before speaking with First Lady Melania Trump.

The event is not without its fair share of controversy, with many raising the question of whereabouts the funding for such a ceremony would come from.

In a report from ABC News, protesters are highlighting how not only is Trump making the event "all about him," but that he is "charging the taxpayers millions of dollars for what is a campaign rally for him and it is just wrong."

Photo credit: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

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