Opinion | A (Mostly) Happy 250th American Birthday

At 250, the American Dream Is Alive and Well

Some Thoughts on the Court's Opinion(s) in the Birthright Citizenship Case

Did any of the other Justices happen to notice Justice Kavanaugh's argument that the entire matter could have been disposed of on statutory grounds?

Scorching heat and empty baptism pools: Inside Trump's deserted American State Fair

WASHINGTON — Ever throw a party only to have no one show up? Awkward. Lonely. Embarrassing.Welcome to President Donald Trump’s Great American State Fair, where even the baptism pool was empty in Friday’s 100-degree heat as two men waved large flags to a crowd of two and a half — a little boy danced to soulless piano playing to the massive “revival” tent’s eight rows of empty chairs.America may be back according to MAGA bumper stickers, but if Trump’s fair is any barometer, the nation’s surely seen better days.At this lightly attended spectacle, even hologram Abraham Lincoln was left addressing an audience of one in the air-conditioned Illinois exhibit.But it was not just dead presidents getting a cool reception. Even America’s living U.S. trade representative Ambassador Jamison Greer’s panel commemorating Horespower of America — Thursday’s official theme at this state fair — was only attracting a crowd some 15 people when Raw Story visited, not including his three-person, suit-donning security detail and a handful of event staff.It seems pigs are more popular than politicians, though.Thursday morning’s youth livestock exhibition featured pigs. The live display attracted a rotating cast of some 20 people on one grandstand — even as the other rodeo stand remained empty throughout the porky presentation — which was far more interest than Trump’s trade rep garnered.“I guess, technically, that’s a rodeo,” an older man told his unimpressed partner as they passed the day’s sparsely attended youth livestock show (Thursday’s afternoon “rodeo” was later canceled, apparently due to the heat).In the stifling temperatures, grumblings were heard amongst attendees when they reached exhibits, only to be turned away by event staff, like the temporarily shuttered Virginia and Texas exhibits.“Oh no,” one lady exclaimed. “I just wanted to get out of the heat.”Other makeshift fan-waving visitors peeked their heads into exhibits just for a second as they hunted for hydration that was cooler than the lukewarm-to-hot bottles of water passed out for free.“There’s no water,” one female scout yelled to her small group huddled outside the Maryland exhibit.Other visitors were surprised to see their home state’s packed like sardines in exhibit halls, like the one small temporary building dedicated to Rhode Island, Vermont and — because they have so much in common — Kentucky.“I don’t know why they have Vermont and Rhode Island in here, too,” one man complained through a southern drawl.“Kinda weird,” his female companion agreed.One of the more popular exhibits seemed to be the South Carolina one, as older visitors found respite in the state’s six large white rocking chairs.Another popular exhibit was Florida’s, but folks waiting in the 40-some-odd-people-long line weren’t quite sure why there was a line, let alone why they were waiting in it.“Is this the line for Florida?” Raw Story asked as Lynyrd Skynyrd's “Free Bird” wailed over the loudspeakers. “What’s in there that’s so good?”“Yeah,” a family at the end of the line said just about in unison.“We were wondering the same thing,” a lady chimed in.“A little puppy,” an Asian tourist mimed with her hands.“Oh, okay,” the lady replied. “Like a little stuffed animal.”While there was some MAGA gear spotted throughout the crowd, one visitor’ proudly wore an “all of us are immigrants” shirt.“Sometimes the possibilities of good trouble present themselves,” Bob, who was in town with his wife from Pennsylvania, told Raw Story. “I’m a provocateur.”Though Bob gave credit where credit was due.“It’s also a Steve Earle song called ‘City of Immigrants,’” Bob went out of his way to confess to Raw Story later in the afternoon.While the administration has refused calls to publicly disclose all of the fair’s financial backers, corporate logos are prominent in Trump’s America.What’s more American than the military-industrial complex? To the chagrin of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, everywhere you looked throughout the fair you could spot a logo of Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, GE Aerospace and other contractors.The Pentagon and other agencies also got in on the action, as they turned their exhibition space into recruiting centers as Air Force Thunderbirds buzzed the National Mall outside.The Department of Homeland Security even passed out FEMA-emblazoned crayons, coloring books and Pedro the Penguin maps of hazards across all 50 states for kids to color.\Silicon Valley’s finest also flexed their corporate might throughout the event, including Oracle, Uber, Micron Technologies, Mosaic, and Chime.Signs for Phorm Energy — a caffeine-spiked drink company co-owned by UFC president Dana White and Anheuser-Busch — were also hard to miss.Traditional American companies like Wrangler, Tractor Supply and Scott’s Miracle-Gro are also sponsors.

Republican unveils Declaration of Independence bill ahead of America's 250th birthday

Rep. Matt Van Epps said his bill reaffirming the Declaration of Independence directly responds to socialist candidates gaining ground in primaries.

America’s 250th Falls on Shabbat. That’s Fitting

The men who built this country drew, again and again, on the same ancient source.

How Americans Are Feeling About the U.S. as the Country Turns 250

With the country's landmark Semiquincentennial anniversary approaching, polls show that many Americans are harboring negative feelings about the state of the U.S.––and its future.

Zohran Mamdani to deliver speech to mark US’s 250th birthday in New York

New York mayor’s remarks at city hall to come just hours before Trump is set to deliver address at Mount Rushmore Zohran Mamdani, the mayor of New York City, is expected to deliver a speech on Friday morning to mark America’s 250th birthday.The address, scheduled to begin at 10am local time and streamed live, will be delivered from behind George Washington’s desk in New York city hall. Mamdani will be surrounded by recently naturalized citizens. Continue reading...

Most Gen Z can't answer basic questions on U.S. history at 250th

Even as President Donald Trump and his MAGA movement gut civics in public schools by dismantling the Department of Education and pushing pro-MAGA interpretations of history and “God-centered education,” a new study suggests that Generation Z can ill afford this educational erosion, as they are shockingly ignorant of basic facts about American history.“Nearly two-thirds (61 percent) of Americans under 30 are unaware of what America’s 250th is commemorating this year, while just 39 percent know we are celebrating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence,” reported Cato Institute’s Jonah Messinger and Emily Ekins on Thursday. The right-leaning think tank conducted a survey, the Cato Institute Fourth of July Survey, with the help of the polling firm Morning Consult.Messenger and Ekins added that “a majority (52 percent) of Gen Z Americans also don’t know what country from which the American colonies declared their independence, while 48 percent correctly answered that it was Great Britain.”Additionally, “More importantly, two-thirds (67 percent) of Gen Z do not know why the American colonies declared independence from Great Britain, while 33 percent correctly answered that it was to protest high taxes and a lack of representation in government.”There was a bright spot in the numbers, in that 66 percent of Generation Z knew America’s first president was George Washington. That number, however, is 11 points less than the number of Americans overall who know their nation’s first president.“Six in ten Americans (64 percent) under 30 likewise don’t know what the main purpose of the US Constitution is,” Messenger and Ekins wrote. “Instead, 14 percent thought the main purpose of the Constitution was to declare independence from Great Britain (which is what the Declaration of Independence did), 17 percent thought the main purpose was to create a presidency, Congress, and Supreme Court, 8 percent thought it was to list all federal laws, and 4 percent thought it was to create two major political parties. Another 21 percent admitted they didn’t know. Only 36 percent knew that the main purpose of the Constitution is to establish and limit the powers of government.”In a separate Thursday post about the poll, Ekins identified similarly ominous findings about the American public overall.“A new national survey from the Cato Institute, conducted in collaboration with Morning Consult of 2,253 Americans ahead of July 4th and America’s 250th anniversary, finds nearly half (46 percent) of Americans don’t know what America’s 250th anniversary commemorates,” Ekins wrote. “A little more than half (53 percent) correctly answered that it was the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.”The survey discovered that “while most Americans have at least an instinctive sense that the US Constitution protects their rights, a majority (58 percent) don’t actually know how it accomplishes this. Less than half (41 percent) correctly said that the Constitution’s purpose is to establish and limit the powers of government. The remaining said the purpose of the Constitution was to declare independence from Great Britain (17 percent), create the presidency, Congress, and Supreme Court (12 percent), list all federal laws (7 percent), or create two major political parties (4 percent), while 18 percent conceded they don’t know what the purpose of the Constitution is.”The survey also found majorities of Americans support ideas about how to change America’s Constitution that one or the other party staunchly oppose. These include conservative views such as requiring photo ID to vote (66 percent), requiring a balanced budget (69 percent), making English the nation's official language (64 percent), banning flag burning (60 percent) and banning transgender women from women’s sports (59 percent). It also includes liberal views such as guaranteeing health care (73 percent), providing free college (60 percent), limiting money in political campaigns (69 percent), guaranteeing a right to abortion (58 percent), banning hate speech (58 percent) and increasing taxes on the wealthy (58 percent).