DES MOINES, Iowa—President Donald Trump praised the passage of the One Large Lovely Invoice Act in a speech on the Iowa State Fairgrounds marking the beginning of a yearlong celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.
“There could possibly be no higher birthday current for America than the exceptional victory we achieved simply hours in the past, when Congress handed the one large lovely invoice to make America nice once more,” Trump stated on the eve of Independence Day.
The president plans to signal the laws Friday throughout a picnic on the White Home, whereas stealth bombers and fighter jets that participated in latest airstrikes in Iran fly overhead.
“We’ve saved our nation,” he stated after taking the stage, pumping his fists whereas singer Lee Greenwood belted out “God Bless the USA.”
Home Republicans passed the Senate-approved model of the invoice earlier on Thursday. The laws fulfills a broad swath of the president’s agenda.
The occasion in Iowa marks the primary in a yearlong collection of nationwide celebrations honoring the nation’s 250th anniversary, culminating in a show-stopping bonanza in Washington subsequent July 4. Organized by the America250 Fee, the patriotic-themed gathering in Iowa options music, fireworks, and truthful meals.
The president additionally introduced that the fee will host a Nice American State Honest on the Nationwide Mall in the summertime of 2026.
“This might be a unifying, patriotic, family-friendly occasion that can characteristic reveals from all 50 states and entice guests from world wide,” in keeping with an announcement from the White Home.
Native gala’s in states and counties throughout the nation will take part in lead-up occasions to the massive celebration.
A Nationwide Backyard of American Heroes park that includes statues of 250 historic figures will honor the nation’s historical past on a brand new out of doors monument area funded by the One Large Lovely Invoice Act.
To assist encourage wholesome exercise, Well being and Human Companies Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is tasked with organizing an occasion often called the Patriot Video games.
Highschool athletes will compete in a nationally televised occasion, in keeping with the White Home.
The president stated particular occasions are deliberate at parks and battlefields nationwide. And each division and company will take part in festivities, with federal buildings festooned with patriotic decor, the assertion from the White Home stated.
Trump additionally teased a UFC battle on the White Home, with 1000’s of spectators.
He stated a newly signed government order that raises park entrance charges for overseas vacationers will assist fund the occasions.
“The nationwide parks might be about America first,” Trump stated.
With Independence Day looming, he spoke of a must honor the flag, the founding fathers, and the ideas the nation was constructed on.
Chants of “U.S.A.” flooded the fairgrounds on a number of events.
In a warning to these in search of to undermine america—and referencing the first win of New York state Rep. Zohran Mamdani within the race for New York Metropolis mayor—the president denounced communism.
“As president of america, I’m proclaiming right here and now that America is rarely going to be communist in any manner, form, or kind, and that features New York Metropolis,” stated Trump, who hails from town.
Mamdani, a Democrat, is a self-described democratic socialist and has denied the accusation that he’s a communist.
On the truthful forward of the speech, 1000’s of attendees wore Trump merchandise, with crimson, white, and blue garb marking the colours of the day.
The selection of Iowa for Trump’s message additionally carried political weight after he received its 2024 caucuses in a landslide and carried it by 13 factors within the normal election final November.
One organizer stated the gathering can also be meant to carry the nation’s roughly 340 million residents collectively.
“We chosen Iowa as a result of it’s America’s heartland, and the whole goal of America250 is to unite the nation,” U.S. Ambassador Monica Crowley, the group’s principal media consultant, stated in an announcement.
The primary Iowa state truthful was held in 1854, just some years after statehood was achieved.
The truthful is one in all greater than 2,000 state, county, and native gala’s held yearly nationwide, with many that includes patriotic themes and traditions.
“They’re all about America,” Jeremy Parsons, CEO of the Iowa state truthful, stated throughout opening remarks. “Fairly frankly, gala’s symbolize the perfect of our nation.”
The Related Press contributed to this report.
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