This Thursday, on the eve of July 4, President Trump will touch down at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. The fair itself, with its butter cows and pie-eating contests, doesn’t start until August. But the president will be promoting an even bigger all-American spectacle: the nation’s 250th birthday party.
Thursday’s event is being billed as the start of the countdown to next summer’s Semiquincentennial, as the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence is known. “A monumental celebration, kicking off a new era of American greatness,” according to the organizers, it will feature “patriotism, excitement, inspiration, and a glimpse into the grand festivities” to come — including the Great American State Fair and national Patriot Games for high school athletes, which Mr. Trump first teased on the campaign trail.
For many 250th planners across the country, it will throw a welcome spotlight, after years of struggling to get the public’s attention. But Mr. Trump’s embrace of the anniversary has also intensified a growing question: Will today’s hyper-polarized politics derail the Semiquincentennial?
Concerns have mounted in recent months as the Trump administration slashed funding or ousted leadership at federal cultural institutions like the Smithsonian, the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities. At the same time, it has moved to put Mr. Trump’s stamp on the little-known bipartisan group charged with coordinating the national commemoration, installing Fox News and Trump campaign veterans in key positions, while dropping some contractors with ties to Democrats.
Those worries spiked during last month’s military parade commemorating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Army, held on Mr. Trump’s birthday, which spurred anti-Trump “No Kings” protests across the country that were rich in their own 1776-inflected symbolism.
Still, some are hoping the Semiquincentennial will bring the country together, without papering over deep political differences that go all the way back to the founding.