In the early hours of July 4, Bulgarian time, American President Donald Trump officially launched the celebrations for the 250th anniversary of the US Independence Day with an emblematic speech in front of the Mount Rushmore monument in South Dakota.
In front of thousands of his supporters, Trump delivered extremely sharp political messages, turning the national anniversary into an arena for heavy ideological attacks against his political opponents just months before the key midterm elections for Congress.
„Communist or patriot - you can't be both“
In his speech, Trump directly contrasted American patriotism with Marxist ideology.
“You can be loyal to Karl Marx or you can be loyal to America. You can be a communist or you can be a patriot. You can't be both“, the head of state stated categorically. He assured those present that under his leadership „America will never be a communist country“ Trump issued a direct warning about the “resurgent communist threat“, defining the supporters of this ideology in the US as follows: “The Communist Party is made up of illegal immigrants, criminals and people who don't want to work“. The president called for radical measures: “We will quickly drive them into exile and continue to build our country bigger, better and stronger“.Communism as a threat greater than World War I and September 11
The Mount Rushmore speech is the culmination of the White House's rhetoric that has been intensifying in recent days, reminiscent of the era of McCarthyism and the “Red threat“ since the middle of the last century. Over the past week, Trump has repeatedly described communism as “existential cancer“ and the greatest threat to the nation since its founding. In his words, this ideological wave is more dangerous to the United States than “World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, and even the terrorist attacks of September 11“.
The occasion for these furious attacks was the recent Democratic Party primaries in New York and Colorado, where candidates supported by the left wing and New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani (a self-described democratic socialist) won nominations. Trump and the Republican Party are deliberately blurring the distinction between social democracy and communism, using the theme to mobilize conservative voters and immigrant communities fleeing historical communist regimes.
What else happened in the Trump camp in the last hours?
In addition to ideological messages, the preparations for July 4th were marked by meteorological anomalies and new administrative decisions:
Record heat and canceled events: Washington and much of the United States are gripped by an unprecedented heat wave with temperatures around 40°C (over 100°F). Due to the health risk to citizens, the traditional Independence Day parade in the capital, Washington, was officially canceled. The heat also closed the White House-organized “Great American State Fair“ on the National Mall. However, Trump promised to deliver an “extraordinarily long speech” later today in Washington outdoors, “just to prove he can handle anything“. Trump's face on Mount Rushmore?: Hours before the speech, White House spokesman Taylor Rogers sparked serious comments with an official statement that “there would be no better addition to the iconic Mount Rushmore than the face of the 45th and 47th President Donald Trump“. Trump himself arrived in South Dakota on a flight over the new presidential plane, Air Force One, provided as a gift from the government of Qatar. Start of the program “Trump Accounts“: On the eve of the holiday, the US Treasury Department authorized philanthropic donations in the form of shares to finance the so-called “Trump Accounts“ - a state program for children's savings deposits. According to the administration, more than 6 million families have already registered for the initiative, which officially launched today.
Sources: NBC News, The Hill, Singjupost, ABC News, The New York Times