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Trump’s Fourth of July Fiasco Is Entirely His Fault

America’s 250th anniversary celebrations are falling apart because of the president’s tawdry display of narcissism.

Donald Trump displays a rendering of the planned “UFC Freedom 250” event in the Oval Office, on May 6, 2026.

Ideally, the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States would be an occasion for a thoughtful patriotism that merges gratitude with reflection. The quarter-millennium since the signing of the Declaration of Independence has been marked by tremendous achievements—most notably the abolition of slavery, the expansion of democracy—but also by horrifying wars and domestic strife. Coming to terms with the full complexity of the US, its successes and failures alike, would be a tremendous opportunity for enriching civic life.

Unfortunately, our world is far from ideal. Donald Trump, a ridiculous caricature of the worst features of US culture, is president. He’s not inclined to introspective patriotism. In fact, any sort of sincere patriotism is alien to him, since it would involve acknowledging a reality larger and more important than himself.

Not surprisingly, Trump is rapidly turning this year’s 250th events—in particular, a planned series of Fourth of July celebrations on the National Mall—into yet another tribute to his own greatness. The story of Trump’s hijacking of the holiday (awkwardly dubbed the United States Semiquincentennial) is instructive.

A big holiday party needs serious preparation. In 2016, when Barack Obama was president, Congress established a bipartisan organization called America250. Ever since, America250 has been laying the groundwork for a string of parades and block parties across the country. The plans are very much in keeping with earlier national anniversaries such as the Bicentennial celebrations of 1976.

But a bipartisan group celebrating a widely shared form of patriotism was a poor fit for Trump’s rabid partisanship and desire to be at the center of every story. The president issued an executive order to create a rival organization that he could control called Freedom 250. Bypassing congressional control is a typical Trump tactic, as is the use of private donations to fund public events. Like his........

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