wrote "the cost of our salute will be little compared to what it's worth. we own the planes, we have the pilots. the airport is right next door, all we need is the fuel. we own tanks and all. fireworks are donated by two of the greats. nice!" the problem is not having to do with owning the tanks or not, it's the message they send along with the presence of troops and commanders at the president's event tomorrow, something a number of general eisenhower's successors, including active-duty officers have been talking about, including to "the new york times." maggie haberman is with us. she shares a byline on the story and is cnn political analyst and joins us now. so, what are you hearing? is there concern in the white house about this event? >> the concern in the white house is not so much about the use of military or about the fact that the president has been focused on this kind of a display, basically since the bastille day celebration two years ago in france that he saw. it's that there won't be crowds. he wants there to be a huge turnout. he wants this to be, you know, a mega event. and as of a week ago, week and a half ago, i was hearing from people that the planning was very behind.