President Donald Trump's reflection on military strength, American resolve and exceptionalism in his July 4 "Salute to America" was not the campaign speech critics feared it would be, perhaps, but pundits politicized it in their reaction.
CNN guests panned it, if not ripped it – MSBNC refused to even air it live – while conservatives on Twitter praised the president for his "wonderful tribute," calling it "beautiful and inspiring" and saying that it "was not about him."
Former White House press secretary for President George W. Bush, Ari Fleischer, hailed it as the "best speech Donald Trump has ever given":
"I don't care what your politics are, this tribute to our military on America's Independence Day is beautiful and inspiring."
Fleischer added via Twitter:
"That was the best speech Donald Trump has ever given. Wonderful tribute to the USA."
Broadcaster Brit Hume praised the president for keeping politics out of it, tweeting:
"One thing the Trump speech was not about: it was not about him."
Protesters even staged a demonstration, burning a flag outside the White House before the speech and chanting anti-America sentiment: "Imagine a world without America."
CNN's Phil Mudd, a frequent critic of the president, "hated it."
"Well, let's see, let me be subtle here: On a professional level, with 25 years in national security, I hated it; on a personal level, I hated it more," Mudd told CNN's "Situation Room."
". . . I thought we were defending the defense of ideals. . . . I didn't realize we were fighting for the chance to pay for guns, for weapons. I did national security. I thought this was about ideals, and now we've made it about the military.
"That's not what the founding fathers gave us."
Mudd continued he wants July 4 to be about barbecues, not politics.
"Can we actually have a day with hamburgers, hot dogs, a few beers and without a politician," he said. "Please, one day. And now we can't because we got politicians saying 'let's celebrate guns and aircraft and forget about the founding fathers who talked about being cautious with the standing military.'"
CNN's Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr panned the event, because military service is "not a reality TV show."
President Trump tweeted a photo of the red-, white-, and blue-clad crowd from the Lincoln Memorial:
"A great crowd of tremendous Patriots this evening, all the way back to the Washington Monument! #SaluteToAmerica"
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