The Antidemocratic Zealots Presiding Over Trump’s Makeover of US History
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Politics
/ February 13, 2026
The Antidemocratic Zealots Presiding Over Trump’s Makeover of US History
The administration’s sketchily funded Freedom 250 project, which will oversee the celebration of America’s semiquincentennial, is a pageant of right-wing extremism.
Toni Aguilar Rosenthal
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A Freedom 250 insignia, alongside other tchotchkes signifying Trump clan dominance, at the US delegation headquarters during last month’s World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland
(Theresa Münch/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Over the past year, Donald Trump has been fixated with remaking much of the country’s key institutions in his own image. He has renamed the Kennedy Center after himself, put his own likeness on the National Parks pass, and threatened federal funding for Penn Station and Dulles Airport in order to obtain naming rights for them so they, too, can become extensions of the Trump brand. This is all to say nothing of his concerted efforts to hijack universities, media companies, and assorted businesses to serve the MAGA agenda.
Yet even this rolling offensive doesn’t seem to satisfy the president’s insatiable ego. Trump is now embarking on a crusade to MAGAfy the American past, via a hostile takeover of the federal government’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
For a decade, the federal entity in charge of organizing the anniversary has been the US Semiquincentennial Commission, a bipartisan organization commissioned by Congress. In 2019, the government launched as the official nonprofit partner of the Commission, to help plan events, competitions, and other programs for the semiquincentennial. But the Trump White House has sidelined America250 in the run-up to the anniversary celebration; instead, it’s set up a new organization called Freedom 250, to plaster MAGA-sanctioned messaging throughout the festivities.
Freedom 250 is a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Park Foundation (NPF), itself a nonprofit that Congress set up to promote the activities of the National Parks Service. But on Trump’s watch, the NPF is turning into yet another institution peddling MAGA talking points for mass consumption.
Normally, the NPF backs improvements on park lands, such as habitat restoration and trail renovation. But Trump has remade the NPF into a de facto PR operation for the White House’s political projects.
Current Issue
March 2026 Issue
This makeover has mostly been the handiwork of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who serves as ex-officio director of the NPF board. Burgum swiftly set about …
What's the administration thinking here?
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Current Issue
Politics
/ February 13, 2026
The Antidemocratic Zealots Presiding Over Trump’s Makeover of US History
The administration’s sketchily funded Freedom 250 project, which will oversee the celebration of America’s semiquincentennial, is a pageant of right-wing extremism.
Toni Aguilar Rosenthal
Share
Copy Link
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Ad Policy
A Freedom 250 insignia, alongside other tchotchkes signifying Trump clan dominance, at the US delegation headquarters during last month’s World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland
(Theresa Münch/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Over the past year, Donald Trump has been fixated with remaking much of the country’s key institutions in his own image. He has renamed the Kennedy Center after himself, put his own likeness on the National Parks pass, and threatened federal funding for Penn Station and Dulles Airport in order to obtain naming rights for them so they, too, can become extensions of the Trump brand. This is all to say nothing of his concerted efforts to hijack universities, media companies, and assorted businesses to serve the MAGA agenda.
Yet even this rolling offensive doesn’t seem to satisfy the president’s insatiable ego. Trump is now embarking on a crusade to MAGAfy the American past, via a hostile takeover of the federal government’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
For a decade, the federal entity in charge of organizing the anniversary has been the US Semiquincentennial Commission, a bipartisan organization commissioned by Congress. In 2019, the government launched as the official nonprofit partner of the Commission, to help plan events, competitions, and other programs for the semiquincentennial. But the Trump White House has sidelined America250 in the run-up to the anniversary celebration; instead, it’s set up a new organization called Freedom 250, to plaster MAGA-sanctioned messaging throughout the festivities.
Freedom 250 is a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Park Foundation (NPF), itself a nonprofit that Congress set up to promote the activities of the National Parks Service. But on Trump’s watch, the NPF is turning into yet another institution peddling MAGA talking points for mass consumption.
Normally, the NPF backs improvements on park lands, such as habitat restoration and trail renovation. But Trump has remade the NPF into a de facto PR operation for the White House’s political projects.
Current Issue
March 2026 Issue
This makeover has mostly been the handiwork of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who serves as ex-officio director of the NPF board. Burgum swiftly set about …
The Antidemocratic Zealots Presiding Over Trump’s Makeover of US History
What's the administration thinking here?
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Current Issue
Politics
/ February 13, 2026
The Antidemocratic Zealots Presiding Over Trump’s Makeover of US History
The administration’s sketchily funded Freedom 250 project, which will oversee the celebration of America’s semiquincentennial, is a pageant of right-wing extremism.
Toni Aguilar Rosenthal
Share
Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Email
Ad Policy
A Freedom 250 insignia, alongside other tchotchkes signifying Trump clan dominance, at the US delegation headquarters during last month’s World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland
(Theresa Münch/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Over the past year, Donald Trump has been fixated with remaking much of the country’s key institutions in his own image. He has renamed the Kennedy Center after himself, put his own likeness on the National Parks pass, and threatened federal funding for Penn Station and Dulles Airport in order to obtain naming rights for them so they, too, can become extensions of the Trump brand. This is all to say nothing of his concerted efforts to hijack universities, media companies, and assorted businesses to serve the MAGA agenda.
Yet even this rolling offensive doesn’t seem to satisfy the president’s insatiable ego. Trump is now embarking on a crusade to MAGAfy the American past, via a hostile takeover of the federal government’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
For a decade, the federal entity in charge of organizing the anniversary has been the US Semiquincentennial Commission, a bipartisan organization commissioned by Congress. In 2019, the government launched as the official nonprofit partner of the Commission, to help plan events, competitions, and other programs for the semiquincentennial. But the Trump White House has sidelined America250 in the run-up to the anniversary celebration; instead, it’s set up a new organization called Freedom 250, to plaster MAGA-sanctioned messaging throughout the festivities.
Freedom 250 is a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Park Foundation (NPF), itself a nonprofit that Congress set up to promote the activities of the National Parks Service. But on Trump’s watch, the NPF is turning into yet another institution peddling MAGA talking points for mass consumption.
Normally, the NPF backs improvements on park lands, such as habitat restoration and trail renovation. But Trump has remade the NPF into a de facto PR operation for the White House’s political projects.
Current Issue
March 2026 Issue
This makeover has mostly been the handiwork of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who serves as ex-officio director of the NPF board. Burgum swiftly set about …
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