July 5, 2026

Here's a bit of the D.C. pyrotechnical display you paid for. (MB: The "music" is so jarring, I muted it, but you can unmute it.) If you want more, there's a 40-minute video here (it would seem the "concert" follows Trump's playlist): ~~~

The New York Times liveblogged Independence Day events. From the pinned item at 1:00 pm ET: The United States “celebrates the 250th anniversary of its independence today, with people from one end of the country to the other marking the milestone with fireworks, parades and concerts.... In Philadelphia, a time capsule with a collection of items from all 50 states was lowered into the earth on Saturday morning at Independence National Historical Park. The capsule will be opened on the nation’s 500th birthday in 2276. In New York, a flotilla of tall ships prepared to sail up the Hudson River, with one ship carrying an issue of The Boston Gazette from July 22, 1776, which reprinted the full text of the Declaration of Independence. And in Charlottesville, Va., 75 people from around the world became United States citizens during a naturalization ceremony at Monticello.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

From the pinned item at 2:00 am ET Sunday: Donald “Trump addressed the nation on its 250th anniversary to a scattered crowd in Washington late on Saturday, following a stormy forecast that led officials to evacuate the National Mall for more than two hours.... Mr. Trump’s 35-minute address was followed by what the White House had billed as 'the largest pyrotechnics display in the history of the world.' When the show started, the fireworks were loud and large — and red, white and blue. Later, with so many fireworks going off in a grand finale, they could barely be seen through a smoky haze and a light rain. All that was left to light the sky was lightning.

“The muggy day in much of the country was otherwise marked with the usual American exuberance, with fighter jets, tall ships, parachutists and flag-festooned pickups. Across the city of Philadelphia, bells rang at noon to mark the moment in 1776 when the Continental Congress voted to approve the Declaration of Independence, and re-enactors dressed as Minutemen marched on the grass of Independence Mall.

“In New York, a flotilla of tall schooners and sloops sailed up the Hudson River, with one ship carrying an issue of The Boston Gazette from July 22, 1776, which reprinted the full text of the Declaration of Independence. In Charlottesville, Va., 75 people from around the world became United States citizens during a naturalization ceremony at Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s home. And in Los Angeles, hundreds were starting to show up at a park for an 'Independence Day' party that is scheduled to go on all weekend.”

Tim Balk of the New York Times: Donald “Trump used July 4 to mock the Democratic Party and assail his political opponents as 'evil,' while Democrats seen as potential 2028 presidential candidates responded with speeches that cast his presidency as a betrayal of American ideals. 'This is one man trying to do to our American self-government what no king and no foreign power has ever managed to do,' Gov. Gavin Newsom of California ... said of Mr. Trump.... Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland ... did not mention Mr. Trump by name in the speech but repeatedly alluded to him.... Former President Bill Clinton issued a statement saying that he was concerned about the 'deep division' in the country. He argued that the Trump administration had brought the country 'close to the edge' with its immigration crackdown and what he described as an 'unconstitutional war' with Iran. He said he found hope in people lining up to vote.”

Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: Donald “Trump used the nation’s birthday to scaremonger about Democrats four months before the midterms (he talked a lot again about 'communism') and demand that Congress pass an act that would make it harder to vote. What was meant to be the centerpiece of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration was in some ways just another Trump rally.” The AP's report is here.

Natalie Allison & Cleve Wootson put the best gloss possible on Trump's 250th, but they can't really hide what a dick he is.  

Campbell Robertson & Aishvarya Kavi of the New York Times: “Federal officials ordered thousands of people to evacuate the National Mall in Washington on Saturday night ahead of a presidential speech and fireworks display to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday. Crowds were told to seek shelter as a line of severe storms approached the city. Park Police and other law enforcement officers started urging people to leave at about 7 p.m., just as the festivities were expected to start. Many attendees had stood in hourlong security lines in blistering heat, waiting to go through Secret Service metal detectors to get to the mall. And many of them refused to leave. After lightning was spotted in the area, spectators were told to take shelter in nearby buildings, including Smithsonian museums, the Jefferson Memorial and several designated federal departments, including the Internal Revenue Service. But some of those buildings were not open to serve as shelters.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: For days, forecasters have warned about severe weather on the 4th. In general, everybody knows there is apt to be severe weather in the Mid-Atlantic area in July. Yet Donald & Doug's excellent plan didn't include emergency shelter accommodations? The incompetence of this crew is breathtaking. Or maybe this was another deep-state plot.

Chelsia Marcius, et al., of the New York Times: “The Brooklyn Bridge briefly caught fire during a Fourth of July fireworks display on Saturday night. Video footage showed several fires burning on the bridge soon after the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Show began in New York City, just after 9 p.m. The Police Department said no injuries were reported. A New York Times photographer in Manhattan saw billowing flames coming from at least four spots on the bridge’s walkway, in places where fireworks were being set off. As the fireworks show concluded, a water truck was putting out the fires.” An AP item is here.

Christopher Wiggins of the Advocate: “A large group of masked members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front marched through Washington, D.C., on July Fourth, carrying Confederate flags and upside-down American flags as ... Donald Trump’s Freedom 250 celebration of America’s 250th birthday unfolded in the nation’s capital. Photographers documented members of Patriot Front at the Eastern Market Metro station and on public transit, leaving riders unsettled on Saturday as Washington marked the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence.... WTOP reporter Mitchell Miller posted video on X of what he described as 'a group of masked men gathered at Union Station,' saying they carried Confederate flags and called for 'reclaiming the country and getting rid of immigrants.' Other videos showed the group moving through Capitol Hill neighborhoods.” (Also linked yesterday.) Politico's report is here.

AND, as so perfectly suits a holiday steeped in nostalgia for the nation of our various fantasies, RAS has found a nostalgic dessert, albeit updated for our patriotic present. Thanks, RAS! There's always room for Jello! (Also linked yesterday.) 

More American History. Marie: Yesterday, I alluded to the fact that the grievances the colonists had with King George and listed in the Declaration of Independence, read a lot like many of the grievances we of today's great unwashed have against King Donald. As it turns out, I'm hardly the only person who thought so: ~~~ 

     ~~~ Amy Wang of the Washington Post (July 5, 2017): “To echo its 29-year on-air tradition, [NPR’s] main Twitter account tweeted out the Declaration of Independence, line by line.... Plenty of Twitter users reacted angrily to the thread, accusing NPR of spamming them — or, worse, trying to push an agenda.... The blowback increased when the tweets reached the portion of the Declaration that outlined, in unsparing detail, all the ways Britain’s George III had wronged the then-Colonies. 'He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers,' read one line of the document. 'A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people,' read another. Some people ... assumed those lines were references to ... [Donald] Trump and the current administration[.]... 'Propaganda is that all you know how? Try supporting a man who wants to do something about the Injustice in this country #drainingtheswamp,' tweeted one user whose account has since been deleted....”

Maureen Dowd of the New York Times contrasts George Washington and Donald Trump. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Gift or Grift? Sam McNeil of the AP: “Dozens of diamonds spell out two giant letter T’s next to the Stars and Stripes and '1776' and '2026.' Dozens more frame the numbers 45 and 47 in the shape of Superman’s logo. A diamond-winged eagle carries a ruby shield and clutches an olive branch of emeralds, below a radiant '250' and atop the phrase '250 YEARS USA' etched in 18-karat gold. All told, 321 diamonds, 56 sapphires, 13 emeralds and six rubies encrust the watch-sized gold ring presented this week to Bill White, the U.S. ambassador to Belgium, to give to ... Donald Trump. 'A very special thank you to my friends from Antwerp for the magnificent Freedom 250 ring,' Trump said in a prerecorded video message during an event marking America’s 250th birthday in Brussels.... The gift comes months after Belgium’s diamond industry won the removal of U.S. tariffs on diamond imports.... U.S. presidents have considerable discretion to accept gifts from domestic and foreign sources and may determine themselves whether a gift was meant for them personally or the nation.... Four U.S. ethics experts told The Associated Press that Trump has broken with decades-old custom in the White House to avoid accepting such gifts.” (Also linked yesterday.)

We get along very good. [Netanyahu] knows who the boss is. -- Donald Trump, in a brief interview, Saturday ~~~ 

The POTUS* sounds like a minor Mafioso capo for whom English is a second language. Every time he opens his mouth, he humiliates the nation. -- Marie  

~~~ Barak Ravid of Axios: Donald "Trump told Axios Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked him for a meeting at the White House, and that it could take place as early as next week after Trump returns from the NATO summit.... People in Trump's orbit have grown increasingly skeptical and disillusioned with Netanyahu in the months since their February meeting. 'Many of Trump's closest advisers think that Bibi was wrong about everything,' a U.S. official said." ~~~

~~~ More International Thuggery. Lorne Cook of the AP: “Since he started work as NATO secretary-general almost two years ago, Mark Rutte has spent much of his time trying to keep the United States anchored to the world’s biggest military alliance, employing outright flattery to dissuade ... Donald Trump from acting on threats to abandon it. But the goalposts keep shifting, raising the stakes ahead of this week’s summit in Turkey. Initially, it was about money. Trump has long railed against NATO allies for spending too small a fraction of their national budgets on defense. But those problems were addressed at their summit last year, when U.S. allies committed to invest as much as America, in gross domestic product terms.... [But Trump now says he is] still disappointed at some NATO allies’ refusal to join the Iran war, which he had launched alongside Israel without consulting them. 'We don’t need their money — we don’t need anything,' Trump said. 'I just want loyalty.'”

Everything Trump Does Is Wrong. Aishvarya Kavi of the New York Times: “The Trump administration is scrapping more than three dozen firearms regulations, abandoning a crackdown on illegal sales, restoring gun rights to some people with mental illness and loosening oversight of private weapons transactions. The drastic retrenchment at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the federal agency responsible for enforcing the nation’s gun laws, was not entirely unexpected:... [Donald] Trump campaigned as a champion of gun rights. In the view of critics and even some A.T.F. veterans, the agency, in closely mirroring the demands made by gun owners and manufacturers to lighten their regulatory burden, is enacting changes at the expense of public safety. The moves, they worry, come as the bureau has already been weakened, with hundreds of its officials diverted to immigration enforcement.”

The New York Times has an interactive map that lays out how people in U.S. communities "identify their ancestry or family origin." The map is broken down into very small units. (I live in a teensy town, but it's included as a unique entity.) 

California. Safiyah Riddle of the AP: “The husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was involved in a hit-and-run in California that left a parked car with 'major' damage authorities said Saturday, and he could face misdemeanor charges. Paul Pelosi was driving his brown convertible Friday in Yountville, a town in the heart of wine country, when he struck a legally parked car on the side of the road, briefly stopped and then drove away, the Napa County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. No injuries were reported. A witness saw the collision and called 911. Shortly afterward sheriff’s deputies found Pelosi with damage to the front of his car on a road roughly a quarter of a mile away. He reportedly told officers he knew he hit something but was not sure when or what caused the damage. Pelosi, 86, did not have any alcohol in his system, according to the statement.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Iran. Abdi Dahir of the New York Times: “Huge crowds of Iranians gathered on Saturday to view the casket of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at an elaborate state funeral for the former supreme leader, who dominated Iran for decades before being killed in the U.S.-Israeli war in late February. Tens of thousands of people began arriving at dawn at the Grand Mosalla mosque in the capital, Tehran, for the start of six days of public ceremonies. Millions are expected to participate in the funeral as Ayatollah Khamenei’s body is transported to cities across the country.... Throughout Saturday, the crowd broke into chants of 'death to America' and 'God’s curse be on Israel.' Some mourners carried banners calling for revenge, and people posed for photos with a red anti-Trump banner.” The AP's report is here. ~~~

~~~ Susannah George & Greg Miller of the Washington Post: “...  the burial rites testify instead to the Islamic republic’s survival and mark the ascendance of a new generation of leaders that is more entrenched and hard-line, according to security officials and experts. Led by Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba — who has remained in hiding since being injured in the same strike that killed his father — the new hierarchy is younger, has better command of the state’s levers of power, has gained insights from the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and is savvier about soft-power tools including diplomacy and online propaganda.” ~~~ 

~~~ Sanam Mahoozi & Yeganeh Torbati of the New York Times: “As Iran’s government prepared this week to hold the funeral for its slain supreme leader that is expected to project an image of a country united in grief, its security services kept up a crackdown on dissidents and leaders in civil society. On Wednesday, Iranian security forces arrested two well-known environmentalists, Houman Jokar and Sepideh Kashani, in their home and confiscated their electronic devices, their lawyer, Hojjat Kermani, told The New York Times. Ms. Kashani’s sister Sima, who has multiple sclerosis, was also arrested, Mr. Kermani said.... The arrests are just a sliver of an ongoing, severe crackdown against Iranian civil society and dissidents, including the arrest of over 6,000 people since the launch of the U.S.-Israeli war on Feb. 28, according to Amnesty International.”