President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Fort Bragg on Tuesday, a source familiar with the event told CityView on Thursday.
The president plans to observe a demonstration of the soldiers’ capabilities and readiness at a drop zone (an area where soldiers practice parachuting out of low flying aircraft), and then he will go to another location and give remarks to the troops and their families, the source said.
Plans for this visit were reported last month by The Wall Street Journal, which said the president’s Fort Bragg appearance is one of several opportunities shown in a presentation to top donors to the America250 organization, inviting them to participate in a “dedicated VIP experience.”
America250 is a commission established by Congress and a supporting nonprofit to promote activities and events to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding in 1776.
According to the Journal, donors were told the event would include a military flyover “and will be filmed as part of a ‘national broadcast special.’”
Tuesday’s visit by the president comes four days before the Army will have a parade in Washington to celebrate its 250th birthday. That day also happens to be Trump’s 79th birthday. Fort Bragg personnel are preparing to take part in the parade.
Trump has visited the Fayetteville area numerous times since 2016 for campaign rallies. He also had a private visit with soldiers at Fort Bragg in October 2020, The Fayetteville Observer reported at the time. Most recently, he had a campaign stop in October in Fayetteville for his 2024 presidential campaign.
This is Trump’s first visit to the Fayetteville community since Trump’s secretary of defense, Peter Hegseth, changed the Army post’s name back to Fort Bragg from Fort Liberty. Trump had opposed the 2023 name change from “Bragg” to “Liberty” — which Congress mandated in 2021 over Trump’s objections — and one of his campaign promises was to bring the Bragg name back.
Fort Bragg had originally been named in 1918 to honor Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg, who was born in North Carolina. Congress on Jan. 1, 2021, made it illegal to name any military asset in honor of members of the Confederacy who participated in the Civil War against the United States.
Now Fort Bragg is named in honor of Roland L. Bragg of Maine. He served at the post during World War II, and deployed to the European front. He earned a Silver Star award for his heroic actions to rescue American soldiers from behind enemy lines during the Battle of the Bulge.
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
Did you find this story useful or interesting? It was made possible by donations from readers like you to the News Foundation of Greater Fayetteville, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization committed to an informed democracy in Fayetteville and Cumberland County.
Please consider making a tax-deductible donation so CityView can bring you more news and information like this.
