Rolling to Remember is a group and an event, formerly known as Rolling Thunder. It’s made up of American veterans who ride their motorcycles into Washington, DC every year to remember their fallen, POW, and MIA brothers and sisters.
The event is a tradition that has been going on for years, but this year has hit a roadblock. The Biden administration has denied their permit.
Adam Kredo writes at the Washington Free Beacon:
Biden Nixes Veterans’ Memorial EventThe Biden administration denied event permits for the Rolling to Remember motorcycle ride held every year for the past 30 years in Washington, D.C., prompting outrage in Congress.The charity event, formerly known as Rolling Thunder, is a Memorial Day hallmark in the city, bringing scores of veterans and others to the area to commemorate war veterans, including prisoners of war and those missing in action.The event was jeopardized at the last moment after the Pentagon declined to issue a permit allowing the group to gather in its parking lot, citing restrictions associated with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Biden administration officials “refused to talk with event organizers” and “refused to respond to Congress about this topic,” according to Rep. Darrel Issa (R., Calif.), who was one of several members to petition the Pentagon in April to approve the event.The Pentagon approved the permit in March and then rescinded the decision this week without any explanation, according to Issa and Rep. Ken Calvert (R., Calif.), who also criticized the Biden administration’s decision.
Here’s a video of organizers announcing the 2021 event back in September of 2020:
Stars and Stripes reported that the group is heading to Washington anyway. But the group doesn’t know where all the participants will gather once they are there:
Pentagon rejects permit request by veterans group for Memorial Day motorcycle rideThe Defense Department rejected a request from organizers of a traditional Memorial Day weekend motorcycle ride in the nation’s capital, throwing logistics of the event into uncertainty just weeks before it is scheduled to take place.Motorcyclists typically use the Pentagon’s parking lot as a staging area for the ride, but defense officials denied the permit application Friday for this year’s event. Officials cited the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and the size of the expected crowd as the reason.Despite the denial, thousands of motorcyclists are planning to gather in Washington during Memorial Day weekend. As of Monday, organizers didn’t know where to gather the riders before and after they drive along the National Mall.
Joe Chenelly, who is the national executive director of AMVETS, the sponsor of the ride, says the government ignored them for months before the Pentagon delivered the decision:
“The biggest disappointment in the Pentagon’s denial was that AMVETS was ignored for months as its professional staff in Washington requested numerous times an opportunity to hear the Defense Department’s concerns and present a [coronavirus] safety plan,” Jan Brown, the national commander of AMVETS, said in a statement.
For the sake of contrast, here is President Trump honoring Rolling to Remember at the White House in 2020:
I can’t help but wonder if these veterans are being punished for having many Trump supporters among their ranks. As deeply cynical as that would be, I wouldn’t put it past the Democrats in charge of Washington right now.
Featured image via YouTube.
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