WASHINGTON (AP) — The complexities of the American story aren’t hard to miss.
Just steps into the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the gavel used by Nancy Pelosi when she became the first female speaker of the U.S. House sits next to a red “Make America Great Again” cap. A shirt emblazoned with a pink triangle and “Silence = Death” protesting the government’s inaction during the AIDS crisis hangs alongside a campaign shirt for President Ronald Reagan, whose administration was blamed for ignoring the epidemic.
The display is part of a broader exhibit flowing throughout the museum dubbed “In Pursuit of Life, Liberty and Happiness,” commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence. With artifacts ranging from a Revolutionary War-era gunboat to a 1970 Earth Day flag, it’s a reminder that the challenges and divides gripping the U.S. in the age of President Donald Trump, while stark, are not new.
“In some of those contestations, people find the hope and the resiliency to move forward,” said Anthea M. Hartig, the museum’s director. “History is filled with those moments where we think we’re completely falling apart as we did in the Civil War and then we’re trying to figure out how to build it back together again.”
A unifying theme is being tested
That unifying theme is being tested as the anniversary celebrations intensify in the coming weeks with Trump once again giving himself central billing. The creation of Freedom 250, an organization aligned with the White House, has come to rival America 250, a bipartisan group founded by Congress a decade ago. The different groups add to a sense that even a milestone anniversary can become the source of division.
The tumultuous aftermath is apparent on the National Mall just outside the museum, where preparations are underway for “The Great American State Fair.” A wave of artists including Martina McBride pulled out of performances at the fair, saying they didn’t realize the political overtone of the event. Trump himself is now planning to speak there Wednesday.
The split screen will return on July Fourth as America 250 holds a concert in Los Angeles hosted by Queen Latifah and featuring performances from Chris Stapleton and The Smashing Pumpkins while the president returns to the National Mall for what he has described as a “Trump rally.”
Trump is not the first president to deliver a high-profile July Fourth speech. In 1986, Reagan spoke from New York Harbor marking the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. In 1976, President Gerald Ford delivered an address from Independence Hall in Philadelphia commemorating the bicentennial.
Their themes emphasized commonality and unity, framing the moment in a broader context that had little to do with the presidents themselves. Reagan joked he “wouldn’t even think about trying to compete with a fireworks display” while noting “all the celebration of this day is rooted in history.”
Ford spoke of the “American adventure” as a “continuing process.”
“Liberty is for all men and women as a matter of equal and unalienable right,” he said. “The establishment of justice and peace abroad will in large measure depend upon the peace and justice we create here in our own country, where we still show the way.”
Trump tends to place the focus on himself
Trump, of course, tends to place more of the focus squarely on himself. He became the first president to host the Kennedy Center honors last year after a Trump-backed board named him chairman. The venue added his name to the building as well, prompting a federal judge to declare the move illegal and order its removal.
More recently, Trump has remade Washington in his image, demolishing the East Wing of the White House to make way for a ballroom and moving toward building a triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery. He’s eyeing renovations at East Potomac Park even as he struggles with the return of algae at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which he remodeled last month. He recently hosted a UFC fight at the White House.
“Trump is putting himself at the center of the story,” said Mark Updegrove, chairman of the LBJ Foundation and a presidential historian. “Trump does not consider himself the steward of the presidency. He considers himself the embodiment of it.”
The country is in a dour mood as the anniversary approaches. Only about one-quarter of Americans say the U.S. stands above all other countries in the world, according to an April poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. About 3 in 10 say there are better countries than the U.S., an increase from 19% in an AP-NORC poll conducted in June 2016.
Americans are less likely to see a democratically elected government as “extremely” or “very” important to the United States’ identity as a nation than they were just a few years ago. About two-thirds of U.S. adults now say a democratically elected government is highly important to the U.S.’s identity as a nation, down from 80% in 2021.
Big cultural moments face new rivals
Against that backdrop, it’s little wonder that groups dedicated to the anniversary have multiplied. Even this year’s Super Bowl halftime show — typically one of the few cultural moments bringing together much of the country — contended with a rival program this year after conservatives objected to Bad Bunny performing on the main stage.
Heading into the final days before the holiday, the main groups — Freedom 250 and America 250 — are outwardly aiming to downplay any tensions.
Freedom 250 spokesperson Rachel Reisner said the organization was focused on “signature events and initiatives,” including the fair, and is “sparking a unifying movement across all 50 states.”
Rosie Rios, the chair of America 250, said her main priority is delivering programming for all Americans, whether that’s eight consecutive ball drops that will unfold across the country, student competitions or a massive volunteer effort. As for other organizations that have emerged like Freedom 250, “the more celebrations, the merrier.”
“We can’t be all things to all Americans,” Rios said. “But we have something for every American and the more opportunities for everyone to participate in July 4th and beyond, we’re thrilled.”
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