Mayors of major American cities - mostly those who are members of the Democratic Party, said they did not want the big military parade that President Donald Trump had assigned to the Pentagon on their streets, the agencies said.

From New York, Chicago and Philadelphia, democrat mayors said they did not want military columns and tanks to pass through their cities. A day earlier, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that after the Washington government did not accept the idea, there were options for the parade to be exported to another US city. In confirming how divided America's party lines are, the Republican Mayor of Fort Worth, Texas, said she would be delighted to accept the parade.

"Our city is among the most friendly to the military, and it will be our honor to host," said Betsy Price. Only three of the country's 20 largest cities - San Diego (California), Jacksonville (Florida) and Fort Worth - are run by Republicans. The other 17 are in the hands of Democrats.

New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia regularly hold parades in honor of former Army officials on Veterans Day (November 11th). But Eric Phillips, a spokesman for New York Mayor Bill De Blazio, said that "every dollar squandered to polish the ego of our president is a dollar that can be used to help the veterans."

Trump said he was inspired by his idea from the Bastille Day (France's National Day) last year when he was visiting President Emmanuel Macron. But in the United States, not only mayors, but veterans of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, do not accept his initiative. A survey last week showed that 57% of them are strongly against, and only 15% express strong support for the parade. Half of the more than 4,600 people voted for Trump. Their main concern is that in this way the army will be used to build a political asset for the White House.