Most Americans seem to understand that the Fourth of July is about something bigger than ourselves. It’s about celebrating our democracy and our role as citizens – right – in it. George Washington understood what it meant. In his last will and testament, he described himself as “a citizen of the United States, and lately president.” He appreciated that American citizens-a title that he and other American revolutionaries helped create – to hold that status even beyond the temporary honor of the presidency.
If only Donald Trump understood any of this.
Tonight, Trump made a brief appearance at the Great American State Fair in Washington, DC, which was supposed to be a celebration of 250 years of the largest democracy in human history. He treated it instead as a kind of mini MAGA meeting.
From the beginning, the scene seemed, at least on television, to have something of a stale air about it, perhaps because the range of entertainment was thin. Many artists canceled their participation as soon as they realized that Trump would spend the evening at a party concert instead of a civil ceremony. Various musical units and choirs of the US armed forces performed, and some military aircraft, including a B2 bomber, flew over the crowd, which was great.
Then Trump gave a short speech, and managed to bring everything to his level. Which is to say, during a presidency that could have been festive and grand became, like the character of the man himself, very small.
After throwing out some platitudes about American history, Trump went for divisiveness, complaints and self-congratulations. He emphasized the common words of the meeting: America was once a dead country, everyone was laughing at us, we are the hottest country in the worldand so on. He won the challenge of truth to Iran—even if the Iranians, earlier today, told him to kick the sand about nuclear inspections. He assured the American people that he would stop “mutilation” and would not allow men to play in women’s sports. DEI, Critical Race Theory, the American Gulf—all the usual red meat issues from his rallies appeared.
As one might expect in a celebration of democracy, he also mentioned a random program he likes: making interest on US car loans tax-deductible. He criticized his predecessors for their shortcomings, and especially for their neglect of the capital. He even found time to blame the supposed vandals who broke the Reflecting Pool. Washington, he said, was now the safest, most beautiful, and cleanest city in America—all because of him.
Trump tried in various places to read what his writers thought were probably superficial reflections on America and its victories. He removed the spurious references to railroads and skyscrapers, reviewed various American military victories, and threw in a surprising reference to the “legendary alleys of Boston,” whatever that meant. (I lived in Boston. I know some of those alleys. “Storied” is not a word that comes to mind.)
To the extent that Trump’s appearance was anything other than Trump, it was about a kind of bad nationalism. Trump cannot understand patriotism, love of one’s country. Instead he rejects nationalism, the negative and hostile glorification of one’s own nation over everyone else. He does it because he sees the world the way he seems to have seen many things in his life: as a competition.
It is not enough for him to love America; America is not just great, it has to be better than all those places. It has the best people, the best army, the best economy. Some of that is true, but a patriot celebrates loving the country for its own sake, not as a constant comparison to others. America is worth the loyalty of every citizen because of what it is, because of its eternal character. But for Trump, it’s only good because it’s better than other places, because otherwise those other nations always laugh, take advantage, and look down on us.
What Trump had to do tonight was to take the stage and remind the American people that the nation and its values are bigger than all of us. He could tell us that we are blessed to live in freedom and abundance. He could remind us that the survival of the American experiment, and the liberties guaranteed in the Constitution, are miracles that bless everyone who lives here.
Instead, he told America that he is great, and that because he is great, America is great, and thanks to him, it is now better than anywhere else. And then a handsome man in a bright military uniform sang “YMCA”, while the president of the United States danced and smiled.
