An aide to President Trump Donald John TrumpObama calls on Senate not to fill Ginsburg's vacancy until after election Planned Parenthood: 'The fate of our rights' depends on Ginsburg replacement Progressive group to spend M in ad campaign on Supreme Court vacancy MORE early Wednesday criticized the media for questioning the president's request for a military parade.

“I’m not sure why the media doesn’t want to have a parade for the military,” Marc Short, the White House's director of legislative affairs, told MSNBC’s Hallie Jackson.

“This is not about a dictatorship; this is about the president wanting to honor the military,” Short added.

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Trump’s interest in a military parade was reportedly sparked by the Bastille Day celebration he witnessed during a trip to France last summer.

White House chief of staff John Kelly John Francis KellyMORE and the Pentagon are involved in planning the parade, according to news outlets. And although Trump originally signaled that he wanted to schedule the parade for Independence Day, the Pentagon is reportedly pushing for it to be held on Veterans Day.

Short said on Wednesday that plans for the parade have not advanced far enough to know its cost.

When Jackson mentioned that Sen. Dick Durbin Richard (Dick) Joseph DurbinMcConnell focuses on confirming judicial nominees with COVID-19 talks stalled Senate Republicans signal openness to working with Biden Top GOP senator calls for Biden to release list of possible Supreme Court picks MORE (D-Ill.) had said such a parade would be a fantastic waste of money, Short replied, “I’m not sure honoring our military is a waste of money.”