It's not my imagination. Trump actually does ruin everything. Conscripting his family to accompany him to the UK on the taxpayers dime was topped only by his interview with Foxes Laura Ingraham at the Normandy memorial site. Behind him were the graves of 9500 American dead. Heroes every one. It is hallowed ground where reverence and quiet reflection are expected and the norm. Trump chose that setting to lambaste and personally attack Speaker Pelosi and war veteran Robert Mueller and desecrate the very ground he stood on. How will he ruin the 4th of July ? One can only imagine. But he will ruin it.
1912
@Harley Leiber
those heroes weren't republicans, nor democrats, nor independents, they were Americans united in a cause that is a foreign concept to trump the defense of our nation.
their sacrifice should never be forgotten
and trump's political interview there was an affront to their memory and sacrifice
320
Trump is an affront to everything decent.
Every decent American knows that.
Now let’s see who shows up on July Fourth to support the American Nero. That should be the template for who to get rid of next Election Day.
171
@Harley Leiber Well said...but how can we come to grips as a Nation..that after all the drama and controversy and dysfunction of the Trump Administration...there is still Trump support? Shouldn't Laura Ingraham and Fox News be embarrassed? Why is there a Fox Nation of Americans who think the interview in Normandy was something to be condoned and broadcast on such a Solemn Occasion? Times have certainly changed...and not necessarily for the better! Vote...Overwhelmingly..Vote !! It's our only hope to save us from ..ourselves !!
158
The fourth of July has always been a celebration of our country's rebellion against tyranny and corrupt power, and a celebration of the origin of the republic that would never again be beholden to a government that would hold people hostage. Unfortunately, Trump's usurping of this holiday to feed his ego is the exact opposite of the original intent. As he destroys every aspect of our government and our lives, he is also destroying the foundations of our country. Many have said the answer is to vote Trump and Republicans out in the 2020 elections. I don't know if we can wait for another year and a half to rid our country of this insult to the the once-great United States.
2287
@MEM He usurps it insofar as we permit it. He has power, but we have power, too. My own thought is that all who can should go, pack the lawn, and when he speaks, stand up and turn our backs on him until he is done.
138
@MEM
Something I just thought of: this is the first time in a long time, trump has faced a real crowd and not his prop crowd at the MSGA rallies. He is taking a chance and anything could happen.
92
@MEM
'
Who is 'our' and 'we'?
The enslaved black African human property of white European American George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and James Monroe and their heirs had nothing to celebrate on any fourth of July until the enactment of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments along with Reconstruction and Civil Rights era legislation.
See Frederick Douglass address on July 5, 1852 along with Abraham Lincoln's 1st and 2nd Inaugural Addresses and his Gettysburg Address and Martin Luther King, Jr. 'Dream' speech on August 28, 1963.
32
It is always a good time for a little self-promotion. Trump stands for the opposite of what we celebrate on Independence Day. He promotes division not cohesion. He places the rights of supporters over the rights of the majority of those who don’t support him. He is a divider not a Unifier. It will be hard to imagine the harm he will do to our culture when he addresses the nation with his personal gripes, his prejudices, his petty feuds, and his insecurities on a day to celebrate our country’s birth.
326
Why all this hand wringing? Didn't almost 50% of the voters choose this man? Wikipedia shows 46.2% for Trump and 48.2% for Hillary. That 46.2% has fire in their bellies, no? Well, most of them are proletariat, no? As Stalin once remarked, 'Yes I am rude, I am proletariat, all our party is rude'. Trumpers have Fox News behind them and wasn't it Clinton's FCC that created Fox? I was talking to one of those 'moderate' couples the other day at a wedding. He was an IT Manager in a major Hospital in the midwest and considers H1-B visas and shipping Software Engineers over from India at the drop of a dime the best thing since sliced bread. She manages money for a lot of Farmers in the midwest and remarked, 'you know these Farmers have a lot of money!!!'. They were both gung-ho for Buttigeg. A lot of Blue Collar workers in that 46.2% crowd get what these $200K+ couples in their wonderful protected 'never laid off, never outsourced' jobs do not get, viz, 80-90% of the bottom of the income scale have been wallowing in misery forever now. A denoument brought on by the Blue Dog Dems circa the1970s who decided that the 200K+ couples plus generous dashes of identity politics and abortion ito wins elections until it didn't. The Chickens - literally are coming home to roost in the Capital. So lend your ears, then get out there and volunteer for Bernie or at least write him a check instead of rooting for toothless Corporate Blue Dogs like Buttigeg, Harris etc.
4
My family is vacationing in DC during the week of the 4th and were planning to attend the traditional 4th festivities. When Mr. Trump's plans were announced, I reserved a rental car for the 4th and have made plans to be out of the city (starting with Monticello in the morning for the annual Naturalization ceremony). There is absolutely no way that I will be anywhere near what is now his event. I know I should stay to protest, but I need a Trump free zone for the 4th.
2257
Every year of my childhood and now into adulthood, my parents and I travel to DC. We have so many great memories. Such patriotic experiences and feelings.
It used to be my favorite city— only 2 hours away.
Since T came into office, I have not visited— I am not a proud American— he and his disgusting behavior leave me sad and angry. I don’t need not want the negative energy of visiting Washington.
When can we feel good and proud again?
441
@Mary Good for you -find somewhere to be and stay there -out of DC
51
2020.
82
Well, the bottom line is that President Trump IS reality, not some rude & disobedient irritant in the lifestyle of more intelligent beings. I make that point because for the years (or decades) leading up to Trump, Democratic politicians and the MSM maintained this civilized charade that the GOP was a loyal opposition, that Fox & am radio were legitimate news media, and that democracy was working. Now the Limbaughs & Coulters & Bannons, having annexed the GOP long ago, control the White House and the courts. We live in their reality. Their lies are more important than the truth. If you don't stay home on the 4th, they'll just come up with a way to ticket the event for the faithful, or Trump will sic his goons on you. You describe Mr. Trump's character with wicked accuracy, and I'm sure you can irritate him, but your criticism & his irritation are only fuel for the hatred of "liberals" & "the media" that got him elected. That's the way our political-media system works now.
480
@Martin
Just so, if any of the representatives or the frightened, (or complicit?) media had called out forcefully the right-wing noise machine, we would be in a much better place.
Yes, now we do live in their 'reality' of constant lies and selective reporting. That is the way they have wanted it to be since reagan at least.
Since a majority is offended by all this, the next election should take care of these issues, correct everybody?
Why this is even close is a testament to our thoughtlessness. What say you? Vote out all gop.
70
@Stephen Csiszar, having just returned from a family visit to Trump country, I don't think that an earlier (or even current) calling out of the right wing media machine would have done much of anything. My relatives and old friends love and trust this machine because it gives voice to all of their emotionally freighted beliefs/values/fears about liberals and the world that they want to create by running roughshod over the sacred values that everyone who's anyone holds dear.
My parents consider(ed) themselves "independent" in their thinking and political leanings, but they only watch FOX and read books by Coulter et al. These folks see themselves as reasoning, rational beings that are living in a world more and more populated by unthinking beasts called liberals. Of course, I can point out to said parents that they are not quite as independent as they think, but what do I know? I'm a liberal.
74
@matt harding
My Republican relatives are completely inoculated against anything (from the media, but not always from family members) that might contradict their opinions. Whether that would be different if there had been a debate about media itself for the last 40 years is unknowable. But look what the complicity of the MSM & the Democrats did to the rest of us: it's common to observe that if Trump had been a Democrat the Republicans would have started impeachment proceedings before the inauguration. The Democrats don't even seem to be able to organize minimal investigations. If a Democrat had broken as many laws as GW Bush, he would have been impeached, but the Dems were barely divided about supporting him. American media/politics is all about convincing Right wing voters that they have no power, and convincing the Left that they have any power at all. It's the debate that the money wants: between monolithic Ayn Randian extremists and "reasonable" but divided objectors.
22
If I were going to be in the D.C., I would either stay away from the speech, or get as close as I could with a protest sign (or T-shirt if signs are prohibited). It’s a public space, so, unlike his hideous hatefest rallies, he can’t prevent people from expressing their views.
57
I have a naïve question. We know that Trump is hijacking the Fourth of July celebration for his re-election run. Are there no governmental authorities or rules to stop his crass political stunt?
77
Thank you, Maureen Dowd, for your contribution to making this happen.
51
There used to be a saying back in the 60s: “What if they gave a war and nobody came?” As painful as it would be to give 4th of July at our nation’s capital a pass, what if no one showed up to Trump’s appropriation of one of the country’s most revered traditions?
52
Trump desecrates the memory of Abraham Lincoln, our country's greatest President. Move over James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, and George W Bush. Trump is the worst by far.
41
Will anything ever lead the Republicans to realize (or admit) that a person with a serious personality disorder sits in the White House, and that it is a dangerous situation?
72
As was (almost) said of Giuliani , "Never get between Donald Trump and a TV camera".
15
The National Embarassment, AKA Donald Trump, is truly a despicable person. I sometime think that he hates the country that he refused to serve when it was his time. He’s really just a draft dodging, Russian tool, in my opinion. I truly hope that we vote this clown out of office. Of course, he’ll demnd a do over and scream that the election is rigged.
61
Trump is the non-redeemed Darth Vader of America, morose, vindictive, vicious. We must free ourselves from him and his evil empire. We are at war with our own president and he relishes the engagement. This cannot end happily.
36
Time for a massive protest!
29
As undeniably disturbing as it is, we all know that nothing is sacred to today's POTUS, except today's POTUS. OK, and money, prestige, and power.
I realize that it's exhausting to keep writing of his failures as a human being and president. I'm worn out just thinking about him. Thank you for throwing yourself on the sword of Trump-thought so I don't have to...at least all the freaking time.
Another great column. Thank you, Ms. Dowd.
18
We need thouands to show up in MAGA hats. And then when Trump opens his mouth to speak....switch out the hats to blue ones that say Not my President! Or as others here have please, please ignore this man already!
21
I don't know where Dowd spends her 4th of July holidays, but these are traditionally used as opportunities for politicians and would-be politicians to present themselves to constituents.
Vote for me speeches, meet and greet, wave from the back seat of a convertible, shake hands with the crowd along the parade route, kiss babies - all very common.
For Trumps' team frankly, it would be a security nightmare. And this is the most likely reason why speeches on the mall before fireworks have been so rare.
But it is his decision and if Obama had chosen to do the same there would not have been so much backlash.
2
@Margo
Forgive me, but when you compare the two men I can’t help thinking—
Obama, being a classy man who respects tradition, did not.
57
We can all pray for a well timed thunderstorm to break suddenly and drench him in mid sentence. That would truly be a picture worth a thousand words. The meaner of us could hope for a convenient lightning bolt, but we’re not mean on the left.
The more that is said about it, the further he will dig in his bone spurs and refuse to drop his plans. The less coverage of him, the better. He’s not very photogenic.
54
The worst president ever.
The worst person ever to be president.
Hurry, November 2020. Hurry.
62
Maybe it can be turned into a mass protest while he is reading a speech that he doesn’t understand. Just imagine him giving a speech to dozens of trump baby balloons and thousands of signs saying IMPEACH TRUMP. One can dream.
39
I guess we should be happy he's not proposing that July 4th be moved to the Monday closest to the date so that we can spend days celebrating by buying a new car.
He too will pass.
9
Don't worry, it will be 48.3 degrees C(199F) on the fourth.
4
America has an opportunity to show Trump how very much disrespected and disliked he is by sacrificing this year's time on the Mall by not attending. If you want fireworks, go to your local area's shows. There'll be plenty to choose from.
Another approach, boycott the mall between the Lincoln Memorial and 17th Street.. If the fireworks are to be set off from Haynes Point, there will still be a show to watch.
Trump lied about the inaugural crowds and a boycott of the Fourth would offer him another opportunity to lie.
Maureen, in this column you have treated the President to insult upon insult, all very deserved, but with Trump, it is like bouncing rocks off a tin shed.
There are 25 days before the Fourth. America needs to gird up and let their distaste for this man-who-would-be-king show through, and turn their backs on him. Let him lie about that.
32
He's angry that he didn't get the military parade in his honor. Not yet, anyway.
17
Can you take any editorial seriously that criticizes the President for facial expressions which displease the author ?
I’m happy to hear President Trump speak - those who wish to censor him - and those Americans who share his beliefs - are free to not listen.
Freedom - apparently liberals hate it more than we knew.
2
No, us liberals do not hate freedom. But what we hate is this mean and nasty man destroying yours and my freedom. His supporters will realize it only after it's too late and their freedom will be diminished.
59
Thank you, @Kelly, for prompting me to re-read Ms Dowd's very fine column today. I went back, looking for all her criticisms of Mr. Trump's facial expressions. I found one: a mention of his "resting bitch face". Frankly, I can't think of a better description of the smug mug in the accompanying photo.
But what say you about Ms. Dowd's many anecdotes of Mr. Trump's petty, crude and un-presidential behavior? Not much, I guess.
43
The irony here in your comment is how I could say the same: don’t like gay marriage? Don’t have one. Don’t like abortion? Don’t get one. Don’t like Drag Queen Story Hour? Don’t go. See? Who believes in freedom now?
62
Well, every cloud has a silver lining. A lot of his followers will show up in Washington. That's bad news, of course. The good news is that some of them will be arrested on gun charges and spend some time in the tank in D.C. for not knowing any better. That's the silver lining.
23
Two good thoughts.
(1) I lived in DC in the mid-1970s, and was able to attend the Bicentennial Fireworks display on the National Mall. Still the best I have ever seen (as I recall, they were donated to the USA by the People of France, the same folks that gave us the Statue of Liberty a century earlier). The crowd was a million people at the least; covered the whole mall from end to end. So if the President declares the crowd on July 4, 2019 “The biggest crowd EVER!” don’t believe a word of it.
(2) Donald Trump CANNOT be President on July 4, 2026, no matter the outcome of the 2020 election. Let’s hope by then we can have a happy 250th in the traditional bipartisan manner.
27
And if the networks don't give him air time and most spectators avoid the spectacle, Trump is deprived of the oxygen he so sorely needs and the day will not be hijacked. Seems simple to me...
28
Like Stephen King's The Stand, this nation has pretty much been reduced to The Good v The Evil. Guess which side King Trump rules?
16
The one saving grace about Trump hijacking this event is that he cannot screen the attendees like a campaign event. Expect a lot of protesters to show up. Expect Trump to go off script when the chanting starts. Expect the MAGA types to start fighting. Way to celebrate the 4th of July - with fireworks in the crowd!
23
I lived in DC some years ago and the Fourth on the mall was one of my greatest memories. At the time "Slava" Rostropovich (who returned to his native Russia only at the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union) was the conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra played on the lawn in front of the Capitol during the celebration. One year, a thunder storm briefly interrupted the festivities and many of us formed a line for a rain dance. Slava removed his jacket, tie, and shirt and joined the line. When the rain stopped, he redressed (in dry clothes, I hope) and the music (the Stars and Stripes Forever was my favorite) and the celebration continued. !!!!!
I know that Trump's intrusion into this year's celebration pales beside the serious damage he has done to US ( like caging young children), but I still feel upset by his egotistic meddling in our great holiday celebration.
23
May it turn into the largest anti-Trump protest ever!
41
How about we make Philadelphia the “national” city for 4th of July celebration? Is more authentic as the birthplace of USA. Skip D.C. and Trump’s rally.
33
During the week Before the 4th, mega-protests on The Mall would be appropriate.
13
Once again Trump rains on our parade! This time on our one and only American parade. And we allow him! And he gets away with it! Is there nothing as collective might? Or is the collective might not enough to browbeat this One Man? So much for our collective determination i.e if there is collectivism!
11
Trump is planning a campaign video listing his (imaginary) accomplishments with the himself in the foreground, spouting some of the political pablum he will regurgitate, and the Lincoln Memorial and fireworks in the background. He is dreaming of the video...it is all he cares about....if he couldn’t do it on July 4th he would settle for Flag Day, Arbor Day, or any day. But on July 4th he will brag about the biggest crowd ever...as the video ends panning the multitudes assembled to bathe in his glory. We are all participants in the reality TV “Trump Show”, and we won’t be able to change the channel.
20
How ironic. Trump, a wannabe dictator, usurping our national celebration of independence. Our ancestors and forebears fought for our freedom from tyranny in the Revolution; many have fought, sacrificed, and died in wars since the Revolution, so that we can be free of tyrranical governance. We are a democracy and we should all celebrate the Fourth of July by NOT paying any attention to Trump's narcissistic attempt to use our freedom celebration to glorify himself. This is the opposite of what the celebration is all about. We are 'one nation under God', not under Trump. We celebrate our freedom and those who fought for it, unlike Cadet Bonespurs who avoided serving our country. We listen to music together on the 4th, music that unites and uplifts us, not to a bloviated angry voice that divides and demoralizes us. We watch beautiful colors of fireworks on the 4th, not the fake tan orange and fake yellow dyed hair of an old angry man who is not aging well.
We have the freedom to do what we want on the 4th, let's defy the president in the spirit of the early revolutionaries and have fun together, ignore him!!
16
I hope more Americans will, occasionally as I do, stand comically dumbfounded, nay flummoxed, by the events of the past two years:
"Wait, what . . . that's Donald Trump, isn't it? The real estate guy from New York with the reality show. He's President????
He's . . . he wha - he wants to make a speech from the Lincoln Memorial on the Fourth of July?? How did I - how did we get here? Oh man, this has to be a bad dream . . . "
The day we get to used to this is the day our Republic can be stolen from under our noses.
14
What an amazing opportunity for Americans to massively attend and protest this event and display in the tens of thousands their utter disapproval of the travesty of this President.
24
"On a whim"
Does he do anything after consideration and/or thought?
18
If Trump insists on butting in on the 4th, I will fly my flag upside down, in the distress signal.
18
Trump is the degenerate that we let into our lives by our own mixtues of hubris, inanction, and indifference. And, it's up to us to reverse it all in 2020, not just by our own voting action, but by being willing to engage with every other person we can reach. From now forward will not be a time for the politeness of avoided troubling dinner conversations. It is and will continue to be a time to equip ourselves with the facts we need to engage in those conversations . . . to show the evil of the Trump-launched "big lies" and the values of collaborating toward building toward the more perfect union set out for us to achieve in Declaration of Indedpence.
6
Did anyone else notice that he mispronounced "hallowed ground" in his D-Day address? He called it "hollowed ground," as if he had corrupted that cemetery the same way he has corrupted everything else.
23
No one could say it better than Trump’s own mother. She supposedly said to Ivana, “What sort of son have I created?” Indeed. Never did our dear USA ever imagine a president would be such garbage. We’ve had some in the White House that surely made their mothers cringe but this one had a mother who knew he was a monster because that’s what monsters are, created.
18
Even if nobody shows up he'll say otherwise. Even if the protestors and bouncing diapered baby balloons fill the mall and dot the skies he will say they were there to support him. He lies about everything while Republicans do nothing to stop him. If McConnell would just turn against him this nightmare would be over. Who is the real enemy of America?
16
It’s also time someone sits on the pundits and those who call themselves journalists.
2
The best gift Donal Trump could give this country on the Fourth of July, is to announce that he is resigning the Office of President of the United States, and that he and his dysfunctional family are moving to Russia.
Independence Day indeed!
23
I want to know why the usual types didn’t throw a fit at him doing an interview on the actual grass of the US cemetery. Is that normal? Does that always happen? It appalls me that this man visited our Unknown Warrior, so how you guys feel about him slobbering all over your dead I don’t know.
12
Will the audience for Trump's speech be screened, so that only supporters are allowed to celebrate independence?
9
Maybe the person who just won $530M lottery can pay to have a fireworks light show to compete with him- maybe Bette Midler and Barbra Streisand could perform.
12
I don't care. This is one holiday even he can't ruin.
I'll go to our local parade and I'll watch our fireworks. Good thing about fireworks, DC residents, is that you can see them without listening to him, right? So let's all do that, wherever you are. The Mall will see an even tinier crowd that for his inauguration. His only inauguration.
Happy Birthday, America!
20
Why not turn Trump's attempt to honor himself at the 4th of July celebration into a massive protest march. I think the number of people joining an anti-Trump march would rival some of the larger Vietnam protests from generations ago.
18
This sounds like a campaign rally. The American taxpayers should NOT foot any bills for campaign rallies. Congress needs to draft up a law restricting use of funds and bill the Trump campaign for these partisan political events. Sen Warren: any ideas how this could be done?
28
July 4th celebrates the American rebellion against tyranny. Our forefathers chose the rights of man over the divine right of kings.
Perversely, Trump represents all that our forefathers feared when they structured the checks and balances of the Constitution.
The rebellion against tryanny never ends.
28
Trump lives in the fantasy world of his mind. In it he is a great and noble leader, and his subjects deserve to hear him on Independence Day.
This is his way of creating a royal tradition.
Also, using the Lincoln Memorial is a way of MAGA (or MAWA).
13
Here’s the best way to upstage Trumpty Dumpty—time-release 1776 “Trump babies” (complete with red white and blue diapers) over the Lincoln Memorial as he gets ready to deliver his “rotomontade of the week.” Accompany this with a specially-commissioned cartoon depicting Abraham Lincoln getting up from his seat in the Memorial and walking away in silent, rueful contempt.
33
@Uncle Donald
Lots of giant Trump baby balloons over the mall? Even blind Donnie would have to see those balloons. Perfect!
14
Trump thought:
A good old fashioned Nuremberg rally on the DC Mall. Don’t forget your tiki torches for some homegrown fireworks.
23
And bring plenty of books to burn ...
9
“it was very far away, and at that time nobody ever heard of the country.” Jeez, that's what my father should've said when, after training on frozen turf in Kansas, the US Army told him he was going to fight Japanese way down on the Equator to liberate, among other garden spots, Rodrigo Duterte's home town.
22
American has been an unmitigated strategic failure since 1991. A traffic cone or a tea cup would have done a better job than the presidents we have had.
If you don't understand that. If you think any of Bush, Clinton, Obama, or Bush were good presidents, then you are 100% responsable for the divided situation we find our self in today.
1
Our nation is being held hostage by a very sick, malignant narcissist.
If the Republicans weren't such profiles in cowardice, Trump could be contained. But, instead, we get a man so empty he needs to ruin our national birthday to try and fill the endless void.
33
How do we solve this problem of seeing Trump’s vile odious face on tv? The networks and cable outlets should refuse to show his speech!!!
21
Maureen, your description of what the President would bring to the celebration of Independence Day on the mall: "his perpetual resting bitch face and American carnage" is alone worth the price of the next year's NYT subscription. Thank you for that concise rendering of the 45th President.
33
Philadelphia is a hop, skip and a jump from Washington. Come on over here, where you can see the Independence Hall, the cobblestone streets, and the REAL birthplace of America. You will love it. And they have fantastic fireworks to beautiful music!
Stay away from the criminal in the white house. Its a desecration to all who died fighting for this country!
35
Okay, America, let your voice be heard. Stay away from The 4th of Bigly and celebrate Independence Day by being elsewhere.
31
“As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart’s desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.” H.L. Mencken, 1920
“No one in this world, so far as I know—and I have researched the records for years, and employed agents to help me—has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people. Nor has anyone ever lost public office thereby.” H.L. Mencken, 1926
Mencken was correct then, and would be equally correct today...
19
Our long national nightmare continues. Please, vote this imbecile out of office before it's too late!
25
Given your role in helping get Trump elected. I find any of your commentary about him disingenuous. Your pillory of Hillary was impactful - sadly as you fail to recognize our own privilege. You really have no right to write about Trump as in many ways you are a mirror of him.
22
Trump ruins everything.
14
Trump is a fraud and a crook who is destroying our country. Congress needs to step up.
24
Of course the smart guys in Philadelphia got some things right and some things very wrong. ML King and Lincoln were thrust into history for the things for which the fathers were very wrong. Trump took advantage of one the nasty vestiges of the founding fathers, the electoral college. A compromise that periodically creates terrible mistakes. In 1876 R. Hayes lost the vote and gained the presidency and left African-Americans to the tender mercies of the South. Recently George Bush and Trump have benefitted from losing the vote and gaining the office. Neither with good results. Bush was even worse because the US Supreme Court decided the election 5 GOP to 4 Democrats.
11
How do we make this Country to where it was before trump ?
Celebrate our life and those who sacrificed their own lives to save the Country from perils ?
Still today America has so many good decent people of all races and colors who always help another by extending their own hands , but remains unknown and that is how they want to be.
All we want is to have just one day for the fallen heroes and think of them with gratitude .
Is that too much to ask from an accidental president and his whole greedy family to let us do that ?
17
with any luck, the 4th will be rainy in DC this year, forcing President Trump to stay home as he did last year at a memorial service in France. best of all would be if Trump injects himself into this national party and nobody shows up to worship him.
18
"..Trump is now yanking away the one day devoted to celebrating all Americans..."
Celebrating Americans, especially patriotic Americans that manifested their valor on June 6, 1944, at Normandy and at Philadelphia on July 4, 1776, requires reverence and gratitude. Does anyone seriously believe that Trump posses these qualities, qualities that makes authentic celebration of national events possible?
16
Trump loves nothing but himself. One whiff of the idea that he should not do this, and it rises to the top of his agenda. He’s already salivating at the thought of Laura and Sean extolling him as a True Great American.
11
Thankfully, I'll be out of the country during this nonsense. Off to Prague on July 4th, and to Paris on the 14th to celebrate Bastille Day! Isn't there a Bastille somewhere in this country into which we could toss our Infant in Chief?
15
We need to play fire with fire and that is the language con man understands. Let us propose to organize a million march on July 4th in DC and celebrate with a theme Make America Nice Again. Knowing the thin skin of the child bully, I bet the pathological liar will back down giving a vague reason and cancel his outrageous plan to stoke his blind followers. Where are the 23 wannabe candidates - you will be in the forefront to organize the event if you had any political acumen.
24
“It was one of those nights when you’re just happy to be an American.”
That’s on hold.
20
July in DC brings intense heat and humidity. A national picnic on the national mall will create a mountain of garbage which will be a veritable Thanksgiving feast for flies and other vermin. One would have to possess a high pain threshold or be stone cold drunk to celebrate our nations birthday in the deplorable conditions of this "maggot" rally. No thanks. The unimpeachable fun and pleasure of a backyard cookout among good friends and family beckons on the Fourth of July.
20
@Jeff
Garbage at this longstanding event, like at many other large events, it is generally gone by early the following day. Flies and other vermin are not the reason to avoid this year's event. trump, a much more toxic and uninvited pest, is.
20
Wow! President proposes to hold patriotic address on the Washington Mall on the Fourth of July. Definitely sounds like grounds for impeachment! (sarcasm)
9
TDS knows no limits. Tomorrow’s headline will be President Trump threatens MSM by using tweets instead of interviews with liberal biased reporters - democracy imperiled !!!!
5
Donald Trump came to "patriotism" rather late, when a slick veneer of such began to serve his purposes, or hadn't you noticed?
11
@William
Actually, it's Trump's derangement that knows no limits.
12
His inauguration was a bust and I’m sure this also will be a failed attempt to self-stroke his ego. And like his inauguration, he will falsely claim and blather on ad nauseum it was the “biggest and best 4th of July ever.” And he will make this claim forever while wearing a MAGA hat. His narcissist playbook never changes. Ignore him.
23
Stop please.
Yes, Trump is an odious huckster out for only himself and his "brand." Yes, his family are willing participants in the scheme. And yes, Trump is has hijacked the 4th of July for his own selfish and nefarious purposes.
Constantly writing about how despicable Trump's actions are, and how repugnant he personally is not only desensitizes us but also serves to normalize him.
4
Lionel, your name put a good smile on my face. I’m sure the good Doctor is also smiling somewhere.
He is intolerable, yet we continue to tolerate him.
I'm filled with sadness at what we've already endured, fear that we may never be rid of his occupancy of the White House and, even in the blessed event he vacates, the divisions and hatred he has sown, the bastardization of the judiciary, the distrust of facts, the acceptance of ignorance will still be with us and I'm filled with deep resentment and anger that the Democrats remain afraid of his base. This is turning out to be our American tragedy.
As for disgusting demonstrations of his narcissistic bullying, I am still revolted by videos of Trump's rudely pushing the prime minister of Montenegro aside to stand in front of him for a photo op. J K Rowling commented, What a very little man.
26
Ms. Dowd, Please come to Boston and celebrate the Fourth with the Boston Pops, the 1812 overture and fireworks. No political speeches!
14
Donald Trump reminds me of a very large kidney stone, which is very painful and you nearly go crazy until it passes.
35
Too bad Maureen couldn't see this coming BEFORE the election, when she wrote a bunch of columns fawning over Trump.
33
@Naomi
Too bad Americans didn't listen to New Yorkers.
We tired to warn you.
23
Not only that but she constantly denegrated Secy. Clinton when Trump was the only alternative.Too late Ms. Dowd.
17
@Naomi Excellent point, all she ever wrote about were Hillary's emails as if that was important instead of keeping a con man out of the Oval.
14
Hey MSM:
Make the 4th a trump-free day. Here's a thought: don't cover Trump and his minions ruining the 4th on the Mall at all. Don't mention it or him on air; don't mention it or him in print or online. No photographs. Nothing. HE is FAKE NEWS, and so is his Fake Fourth with his plastic ken and barbie family, hypocritical preference for foreign wives and chain immigration for his relations alone, fake bone-spur evasion of service, perpetual spew of venom for anyone who deigns to disagree with his divisive ugliness, and his peculiarly petulant need for attention. His hijacking of America's birthday should be ignored entirely by you-- it is non-news.
I know it's tough --but it's time to give this big bag of hot, Nasty wind not a single pica or pixel for the one day when everyone else in this country is celebrating the many successes of the Great American Experiment. If you must, print a picture and estimate of the crowd size, and the cost to the American taxpayer of this surely shameful charade, and maybe the premium his D.C. Hotel is charging that day for a room.
For everyone else, celebrate in your local town and city with parades, picnics, barbecues and fireworks. And MSM, broadcast instead local celebrations of real Americans in towns and cities across this country, and not the self-aggrandizing bloviations that desecrate the fundamental principles of America. Give America a real present on its 243rd birthday: a trump-free day. I dare you.
32
@Mr. Darcy's mother Great idea, although being snubbed by the "fake news" he claims to despise (but secretly longs for the approval of) might send him over the edge! But yes, by all means, let's see how "real" Americans celebrate the 4th out in their communities minus the trappings of xenophobic nationalism wrapped in the flag (leaving it greasy and stained). The Trump 4th will be covered by Fox for what it is -- Nuremberg lite.
7
Maybe since the surrounding areas are staunchly Democrat, everyone should head down there and loudly boo him instead of staying home. Bring the baby inflatable and good signage, like we saw at the inauguration womens' marches.
By the way Mo....."resting bitch face" -- perfect.
17
Thanks Maureen for the line about Trump’s perpetual bitch face. Every time I see the wannabe dictator posing with that ridiculous smirk I see the second coming of Benito Mussolini. The only thing that is missing is a fake military uniform. Maybe Trump could drag one of his NY Military Academy uniforms out of the closet for the 4th. Might need a few alterations to make his ever expanding gut fit into it in time for the big speech. He could wear the medals that he earned for avoiding STDs instead of serving in that place that nobody ever heard of that was very far away.
26
@Robert Nevins
The ultra-tight, ill-fitting tux certainly didn't stop him from wearing that maître d' costume to dinner with the Queen. Sounds like just the thing to me.
5
I have lived in the Washington, D.C. area nearly all my long life. The Fourth of July celebration on the National Mall used to be my favorite event of the whole year, something I always looked forward to with great and joyful anticipation.
Even in harder times, like the 1970 celebration, it was fun (at least at first) and memorable (as getting tear gassed on the Monument grounds tends to be). But it soon returned to its old sweaty, crowded huge drunken celebration party it had always been before.
But it started to degenerate before Trump and his apparent attempt to deliver its death blow this year. Police presence became more and more intrusive and oppressive throughout the '80s, and then Bill Clinton banned alcohol, which took a lot of the more liberty-oriented fun out of it. Then came the restricted entry checkpoints where they would search your bodies and purses and backpacks and blankets, ostensibly for weapons but more frequently finding drugs and alcohol.
So it lost a lot of its purpose -- which I had always presumed was the celebration of personal liberty -- even before Trump came on the scene.
But now Trump wants to totally ruin it, sap all of its once-proud and free spirit, and use it for his own self-promotion and to further his effort to divide us as a people.
His every word and action is consistent with the theory that he is working on behalf of a foreign adversary to destroy America's strength and influence. He's gotten good at it.
17
This is what we get for not giving this man his military parade. He needs his own day, his own parade.
Isn’t there any other city that could do a party? Reminds me of the family reunion hosted by the relative no one likes. Maybe people could band together and go elsewhere for a party.
7
I can see President Trump in a huge DC parade, being borne in a simple cart, declaiming " 'Tis a far, far better thing I do than I have ever done." as they drag him to the gallows and the masses cheer him on.
8
My fantasy for his inauguration, and now for his July 4th, is that we all attend. Then when he starts taking we stand up and turn our collective backs on him. After a few minutes of silent protest everyone walks away. It’s all captured on live TV, and the pundits talk all about it and not him.
26
"Never Enough"--what a great title for a man who's shown such neediness, whether it's always being first in the picture (remember the poor prime minister of Montenegro), or breaking all records for tweets released in a one-hour period by the same person.
I don't suppose anybody could pull him aside and actually say, "Mr. President", nobody wants to hear you give a speech on a holiday that most spend with their families or friends.
But it's one thing to be needy and quite another to be rude or to intrude where you aren't wanted. Despite having a fragile ego, Donald Trump's is clearly big enough to assume that naturally, everybody is just dying to hear his words on our national holiday.
The only thing that's going to get him to stop such nonsense is ratings. Although every day we are losing more and more of our freedoms under this nasty man, we still have the freedom not to watch him or listen to him or read about him.
I suggest we all vote with our feet on the 4th, and then with our hearts and minds a year and 5 months later.
1043
@ChristineMcM Well said.
16
@ChristineMcM
Love to read you! Sadly, all his frightening fans will come and disrupt the entire day. He and they are a plague on all that we hope America should stand for... His vicious history will be his disgrace. This too shall pass away, but not soon enough.
28
@ChristineMcM No, there's no one to tell him. He's surrounded by the likes of KellyAnne and Sarah, Mick with his bifurcated tail and pitchfork, Senior Advisors Ivanka and Jared, Scaru Stephen Miller, and somebody named Hogan Gidley (?). They're just going to tell him how great it is , and how everybody really wants to see him, but the mean ol' MSM is lying again. He's in Fox World now.
22
This nation elected President Trump for a full four (4) year term (and hopefully for another four (4) years beyond his present one). We, the Nation, must accept the man whom we elected to represent us in whatever behaviours and characteristics he brings to the job and his Office.
We only have President Trump for a limited finite amount of time at the White House in the Oval Office. I say let him be every bit of himself. He is proud to be our President and I am proud to be able to call him my President. His time in office will not be a long one as condensed by history. He will join the former Presidents who served four or eight years (or multiple terms as did FDR) and his deed will be recounted as part of American History. No one ever dictated that each and every President would act the same way as ny President previous to himself. We would not and could not stand it if he did.
President Trump is not being and is not going to be like any President before him. He is an individual and for that we can thank God. We don't have a lot to thank God for in America right now except a good economy and a healthy job market.
So I am going to let the polluting noise and smoke of 4th of July clear away and celebrate the fact that President Trump is my leader and my President and I wish him good health, safety, success, prosperity and another four years in Office!
12
@Reggie while I respect your right to hold and express your view, you just outlined the problem. The country elected this man (well technically the electoral college did); what does that say about the country’s morality? If he is the best of what our country has to offer, we have lost our way. I can’t buy your argument though. To excuse his abhorrent words and behavior is to sacrifice our honor and values.
243
@Reggie Respectfully disagree Reggie. The Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, said "Character is Destiny"! True to form this saga will end in tears.
129
@Reggie "We, the Nation, must accept the man whom we elected to represent us in whatever behaviours and characteristics he brings to the job and his Office."
No, Reggie, we are not obliged to accept his behaviors. We have a process for removing presidents whose behaviors are unacceptable. The ability to impeach an unfit president is another thing that makes America great. I look forward to seeing it exercised.
127
Don't be such a downer, Maureen. I'm looking forward to his address. This could go down in history as the most talked-about speech EVER! What could be a better opportunity for this extremely stable genius to share with us the revelation of how the moon is part of Mars. Scientists, particularly astronomers, will be riveted by the presentation.
BTW, do you know if good seats are still available?
209
@Tom Q
The Guardian reported the news about the Moon in a very literate way. The flavor comes through this excerpt: "... the moon has not traditionally been regarded as part of Mars."
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jun/07/trump-moon-is-part-of-mars-tweet-nasa
19
when Trump takes the stage, there are no good seats.
6
I am no fan of bloated donnie bone spurs, but I’ve got to think a lot of the controversy about him hijacking the 4th of July sounds like an inside the Beltway issue or just some grousing by the press. On the 4th, I don’t watch tv or listen to the news or do much other than go to a picnic or enjoy the local festivities or watch live fireworks. Even with the highest def tv, who likes to watch fireworks on television? Who likes to spend what is typically a beautiful summer day listening to speeches especially when delivered in a flat monotone from a TelePrompTer or when extemporaneously spewed with hate and divisiveness and lies? You don’t imagine that CNN or Fox News isn’t going to cover this, but really, who’s watching?
3
The constant drumbeat of Trump outrageousness reminds me of my lost innocence. My Facebook newsfeed is so jam-packed 24/7 with perpetual outrage about Trump that I’m constantly scrolling past his image. While I agree with most of it, I don’t always want to feel grumpy. It makes me long for the days when I was a teenager, consumed by mundane preoccupations like homework, girls and what songs were in the top ten. I don’t think we need to constantly be convincing ourselves that he’s an outrage. Let’s vote him out when the time comes, but let’s also try to have a laugh or two in the meantime.
207
@AlNewman - Al the only thing that could put a smile on my face regarding this charlatan show would be him being shot out of a cannon across the Potomac as the grand denouement of the fire works display.
76
@AlNewman
I am curious, why do you have a facebook news page? Do you believe that is the best source of news (you read NYT so that can't be), or even a good source of news. Why does anybody have a facebook news page
25
@AlNewman
The sad truth is that Trump loves those incessant Facebook newsfeeds and scathing editorials, it is simply more "attention to him." He loves the feeling of power that comes with each outrageous act and desecration and, best of all, the fact that he gets away with it. This is a very twisted person.
10
Well, I am certainly not going to bother about Trump on the 4th July. I will make a point of NOT watching and instead will focus down even more on my family, and our country and what a miracle it is.
4
The Republic has survived much worse than Trump. He has and will continue to do damage. However, the damage will be repaired. Do not give in to fear. Do your duty as citizens. Despite DJT, our country remains the best hope of the world. Be faithful to America.
263
@JEC Yes, but you omitted one thing: In November 2020, get up, get out and go vote, no matter how hard the GOP makes it for you, no matter how far you have to go, no matter if you have to miss time at work and some of your earnings.
Americans have risen to the occasions such as this before. As the states began to remove the property ownership requirements for voting in national elections, turnout in those states was so near 100% of eligible voters the shortfall was statistically meaningless. this time we have to do it.
292
@JEC
That's very optimistic. I wish I could be. Please elaborate your reasoning.
14
@JEC can't get here fast enough ...
9
"If ever the time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin." Samuel Adams, revolutionary
Have we any "experienced patriots" in Congress willing to prevent the ruin of our country? Anybody?
18
A Remarkable metamorphosis has taken place in our nation, ramped up in 2010. Television has made a nation of learned well read people, a dumbed down angry and hateful nation. The Republicans began the hate fest following the passage of the Affordable Care Act. From then on, Democrats have passively watched the "Shock and Awe" conduct of the opposition's leadership and resulting social upheavals. Television was the blackboard of national discontent as it sensationally portrayed the hate and anger as the news of the day.
Then along came the Television actor Trump as he sprayed his fuel on the simmering fires until now when the nation is approaching civil unrest, a few instances of which have occurred. Trump, the wrestling fan, appears to relish not only hate and anger, but violence, even flying just under the radar as he instigates animal instincts in his followers.
I think the best example is during one of his nationally televised campaign appearances just prior to the election. He said in so many words that were he to lose, there might be unrest.
I enjoy how you relate the current circumstances to historical memories we all have. I would venture to say, Trump is not so much a "Yankee Doodle Donnie" as much as a real "Dandy" of a troublemaker bent on the ways of anarchy, so well demonstrated by what he has said and done in the last three years.
7
@WITNESS OF OUR TIMES
Mr Trump is the constant victim of those who do not agree with him. For after all he has said to crowds of fawning ill educated folk who blame everyone and everything else for their problems that he loves the uneducated and only he can solve the world's problems.
I am always amazed that so many buy into the idea that Mr Trump is in someway going to help them. As if...
3
I was originally disappointed that my travel schedule will be taking me out of the country on July 4th.
When President Trumplethinskin announced his plans to turn the holiday into a gaudy tribute to himself, I changed my mind.
I now count myself lucky that this travesty will be totally out of sight...if not completely out of mind.
10
The ultimate narcissist just can't resist being the center of attention. I do not know what drives a person to such great lengths to garner attention when they have accomplished so little of value in their life. I am sure we will now have to listen for weeks as to this was the largest crowd in history.
6
No matter what happens on July 4th in DC, Trump will claim that yuuuge crowds came to cheer for him. Big Lie propaganda machine Fox News will spread the Trumpian fantasy and disinformation as they always do. Republicans will ignore Trump’s desecration of the national holiday in their usual cowardly fashion. Until Washington is purged of the lying egomaniac Trump and his Republican lackeys, we will continue to witness the degradation of everything Americans hold sacred.
6
@Jefflz
The Republicans think he's great!!!
They truly disappointed me with their selling their souls and possibly most Americans for a few copper pennies. They (the Republicans) are also afraid Mr Trump will call them names and disrespect them.
1
It's becoming too sad to be funny.
What horror with the enablers allowing this to continue!
5
"Your favorite president, ME"
He has all the subtlety and emotional development of a toddler.
15
He should be met with — and drowned out by — chants of “Lock him up!”
10
The fawn fest Ingraham had with trump was nauseating beyond my ability to tolerate. Two parasites, in a symbiotic relationship feeding off of each other's gaping need for adulation and celebration of the vile in each other.
She, especially revolting. I kept expecting her to address him as "my precious".
And all within view of the final resting place for those who gave everything. I'm glad they can not see what passes for a President in 2019.
16
@Deb
Yeah I found that revolting...on sacred ground in front of the graves of WW2 heroes.
2
He talks to Putin, Kim which he should never do, he went to D-Day anniversary, where he was undeserving and unwelcome, he hits back at his enemies, which is so unpresidential, he acts on border security but is not responsible for the results, and now he’s planning a 4th of July celebration which should not be allowed. There’s a pattern here, and you people have lost your collective minds
4
What would FDR say to an American President turning the 4th of July into a Nuremberg Rally?
8
America elected this clown. Deal with it and stop whining. You're wearing us all out.
3
Actually, Dave, the Electoral College elected Trump. Kind of how that works. As for whining, well, yeah, never heard Trump’s equal.
8
@Dave
NO. Some Americans elected this clown.
Those of us in New York City already knew the deal.
And he's wearing the country out.
11
What if the mall were to be filled with lefties? He only ever speaks to his fans. Let him man up and try his sneers and jibes on an audience he doesn't own.
11
Pray for drenching rain.
13
@Andy Rain! Rain! - Make Donnie go away! Let’s hope he gives in to “...logistical difficulties caused by the weather” as he did in France!
5
Really? The POTUS is going to speak on July 4th and the fate of democracy is at risk, dogs and cats living together, Armageddon, etc.
Common liberals - get a grip - your TDS is out of control.
3
@John King
Wow just WOW!!
But then opinions are like what folk sit on varied and everyone has one.
1
@John King
Sorry to inform you. The fate of Democracy is at risk as long as Donald Trump is in the White House.
And HE is the one who is out of control.
4
imagining this guy giving a self-aggrandizing speech on July 4th at the Lincoln Memorial.... is like imagining Nathan Bedford Forrest giving the convocation at the Martin Luther King Gravesite.. a triumph of stupidity!
2
"...dragging his perpetual resting bitch face and American carnage onto the Mall." Best line of the century to describe Trump. It should be transferred to a banner and hung all over the country on July 4th.
8
Lets make this into the largest protest rally ever!
8
"Hello Congress. This is me Trump. Please stop me. Impeach me. What more do I have to do to get you to do something."
7
Celebrate revolution. Burn a flag in trumps "honor".
4
Trump's will be in full campaign mode for his 4th of July speech to the nation, and his handlers will have written a script that he will read from teleprompters that will be purely intended to make him look presidential, however much of a total charade that truly is. At this point, that will be much of what the remaining year and a half of the Trump reign will be. More pomp and ceremony designed to make him look like a world leader, with other world leaders inexplicably appeasing this dangerous demagogue. During his visit to Japan, he should have been invited to be the first American president to tour the museums and monuments in Hiroshima, to view and be educated about the reality of "fire and fury". Instead, he went golfing. Similarly, in England, he was treated to lavish ceremonial dinners in the palace during the week of the 75th anniversary of D-Day, while he presides over the dismantling of NATO, the UN, the EU and every attempt for international cooperation -- flawed as these may be -- that were put in place in the years following WWII.
A plea to world leaders: Stop appeasing Trump. By making him look presidential, you are helping to re-elect him in 2020. This will bring disaster for the entire world, your nation included.
4
No doubt Trump's "I am the greatest speech" will make us all forget MLK and the crowd will be be the biggest ever seen on the Mall. And almost certainly the advance team is covering up Lincoln's face and planting some sequoias in front of the Washington Monument lest he be offended by these lesser presidents.
6
We don’t deserve this holiday anymore after electing Donald Trump to the Presidency. By not voting or voting third party, or voting for Trump as a protest we as a society failed a basic test in thinking that our actions have no consequences.
17
Donald Trump has always been driven by two forces: self-preservation and self-aggrandizement. Since the release of the Mueller Report, the country has been subject to the former. Now, with the hijacking of Fourth of July celebration, we see the latter on full display. I can envision a simple dignified protest that would deny him his goal. When he speaks, people should turn their backs and remain silent. He should be met not with jeers, but with absolute silence. It might kill off his desire to continue to do this in the future.
9
I am more afraid of this President than any foreign or domestic terrorist. I cannot even imagine what will happen to our country if Trump is re-elected. I am 55 years old,Trump has shown himself to be the greatest threat to our democracy, to our Constitution, to our freedom that I have ever seen or experienced in my life time. It is heartbreaking.
15
you left out Harry Truman. i was 10 years old with my mom and her sisters in 1951. President Truman gave a speech that day on July 4th at the Washington monument.
1
Ah Yes, Thank you Ms. Dowd. That quote by Samuel Johnson is one of my favorites, I've used it a number of times in comments submitted, it applies remarkably to trump ( not capitalized on purpose), " Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel". I suggest also that his"base" lip that one while looking in a mirror, see how it fits. I will submit, however, that in trump's case patriotism will not be his last cover, this scoundrel has found comfort and complicity in a spineless, look-the-other-way, ethically challenged GOP senate.
Another applicable quote trump supporters and complicators should consider: "Illusion is the first of all pleasures." Voltaire.
4
How does trump plan to limit the audience to only his base? I ask that because there is no way he would be able to face a real crowd of American citizens. IF he were actually able to define the crowd then America has to face the fact that it has been taken over by one party. The Republican party has allowed trump to get away with his disgusting attacks on the rule of law in this country. Why? Republicans are rewriting the laws in this country and packing the courts with young conservatives to ensure that well into the future they will determine what is lawful and what isn't.
3
I myself won't be celebrating the 4th this year. It's hard for me to even imagine solemnizing a day so many years ago, when the brave actions of a few has led finally to this national tragedy for so many.
6
He'll be gone soon enough, shooed out of the Rose Garden by the voters. Then we'll hose out the White House and move on. The nation is bigger, stronger, more grand, more important than the narcissist who currently occupies the Oval Office. This nation has seen five years of devastating Civil War, more than decade of painful adventurism in Vietnam, the grinding shock of September 11, 2001. But patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel, as Samuel Johnson (and Ms. Dowd) reminds us. For now, we'll find Trump there. Make certain you vote.
5
Let’s hope the networks don’t carry it. Then we will all be spared.
7
Pray for rain. Constant, drenching rain. And a threat of dangerous lightening. It's our only hope.
8
I hope hundreds of thousands of great Americans will be out there with signs telling the trough about Trump. That will look good on TV.
3
Would it surprise anyone that Trump's stunt leads to violence on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial -- the hallowed symbol of the nation's existential struggle for unity among ourselves? Or that Trump would use it to further divide us?
You don't attain the presidency without a considerable ego, but for a narcissist like him, nothing short of complete and unwavering adoration will ever be enough.
As Shakespeare wrote, ambition should be made of sterner stuff.
4
on the 5th of July Trump will declare he had the biggest turnout ever, with people all over the country taking the 4th off just to listen or attend his speech.
2
Spot on commentary.
Now if only the networks would stay away.
4
One way to handle Mr. Trump's self-idolization this year would be to let him give a party to which nobody comes. Use the rest of the mall (it's a pretty big venue) east of the Washington Monument for the barbecues & parties & grand rock-n-roll, & to leave Mr. Trump all by himself at the Lincoln Memorial, and to watch the fireworks from Georgetown, the Jefferson Memorial, & Arlington.
5
If you do go, turn your back to the man, as he has turned away from all that is honorable and sacred about our country. He doesn’t deserve this ready-made crowd.
5
Narcissistic personality disorder — is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others. But behind this mask of extreme confidence lies a fragile self-esteem that's vulnerable to the slightest criticism.
A narcissistic personality disorder causes problems in many areas of life, such as relationships, work, or financial affairs. People with narcissistic personality disorder may be generally unhappy and disappointed when they're not given the special favors or admiration they believe they deserve.
Symptoms -
Have an exaggerated sense of self-importance
Have a sense of entitlement and require constant, excessive admiration
Expect to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it
Exaggerate achievements and talents
Be preoccupied with fantasies about success, power, brilliance, beauty or the perfect mate
Have an inability or unwillingness to recognize the needs and feelings of others
Behave in an arrogant manner, coming across as conceited, boastful and pretentious
Insist on having the best of everything — the best car or home
At the same time, people with narcissistic personality disorder have trouble handling anything they perceive as criticism, and they can:
React with rage or contempt and try to belittle the other person to make themselves appear superior
Treatment can help, but this condition can't be cured
7
I think this July 4th should mark the beginning of an exist strategy for this yankee noodle dummy. Those of us who no longer want to be subjected to the reckless and dangerous policies of this president should think "independence" of his administration and work towards defeating him in 2020.
No reason this cannot be contemplated and mulled over while munching on a veggie burger, brat, potato salad, chips and a nice cold one. Oh, and don't forget a slice of apple pie ala mode.
I refuse to allow my July 4th to be marred by this man.
Enjoy this country's birthday everyone. Be safe, be careful and have fun.
4
Over 60 million Americans voted for the excrescence that is Trump. Clearly neither America nor the fourth of July mean the same thing any longer...we'll find out exactly what these terms mean on November 6th 2020.
4
Hate to say it but everyone should boycott the public celebration on the mall. Not even a protest, just silence and vacant space making his crowds in Jan ‘17 look generous. Perhaps Alexandria can “go fund” a fireworks display across the river in a public space that people can view instead. This Presidency is exhausting.
6
Let me echo the idea offered elsewhere in these "Comments" that decent people avoid this travesty and that it not be broadcast by reputable media. Announced this far in advance, there is no justifiable news value in live coverage. In fact, it is simply a taxpayer-funded campaign rally. We have not, yet, at least, sunk so far as to put his campaign rallies on live TV.
Of course, Fox will cover it. Fine. Trump's racists, misogynists, nativists, and other assorted haters can have all the fun they want.
A truly dark thought: perhaps Trump's stage managers should tap "Triumph of the Will" for ideas on organization, setting, and content for this event.
But please leave the rest of alone to honor what is left of our shredded national dignity.
7
Grandeur stands on humility. Trump just can't understand that.
4
The good news is that Abraham Lincoln's countenance will forever preside over on the Mall-- a lasting monument to America's true beliefs and values--and dwarf the little boy seeking the moment. Trump's fiction and fabric of American greatness will someday fade from the consciousness of American ethos like an cheap MAGA cap left in the summer sun.
4
I urge all Americans attending the celebration on the Mall to stand quietly, with your back turned to him, as Trump delivers his speech. Don't catcall and don't boo. Deliver simple deafening silence to him.
5
Please not from the Lincoln Memorial. Is there nothing sacred anymore? Does everything have to be profaned? C’mon Trump! So many people sit on those steps and dream. No, President Trump!
6
This is just more of Trump's abuse of public funds to enhance his brand.
The man enjoys the most expensive rounds of golf in history. One million dollars per round sounds about right.
The antidote? A dozen pouting Trump balloons at the Fourth of July celebration. Blimp would be more apropos, but it would not be quite accurate.
5
Is the 4th of July America's birthday? Or will it be Trump's 2020 Bigtime Campaign Rally at the Lincoln Memorial?
Will we stand for president Trump wrapping himself in the Star Spangled Banner at the Lincoln Memorial as "Your Favourite President" gives our country his brand of birthday bash?
we witnessed and winced at president Trump making his mark on England, France and Ireland last week. Mr. Trump's monstrous hubris -- his yuge signature at the top of the Commemoration of D-Day scroll. Historical Sleaze.
Maureen, can we get the Trump blimps over here from London to hang in the sky above our 45th President at his personal National Independence Day Parade down Constitution Avenue? Maybe hang them over the Lincoln Memorial when he delivers his words on the steps?
"Your Favorite President"? My foot!
8
Trump can hijack a ceremony - he cannot hijack our national holiday. Many of us will be chilling out, having a great time, putting a miserable, needy President out of our thoughts for the holiday weekend, as we pursue the many avenues to happiness that exist without him. Happy Fourth of July everyone!
3
We might all be surprised to discover that statues in fact can come to life, and when Lincoln stands up from his chair and tells Trump to get off his steps, America would finally have the Fourth of July we've dreamt of the past two years.
9
There's nothing like an uninvited guest showing up at a party and hogging the whole thing. But we can ignore him.
3
President Macron should never have invited the SCOTUS to the Bastille Day Parade-it gave this delusional human being delusions of a spectacle with him as the main attraction. As a Fervent Francophile I can only say that Macron committed a "betise enorme" and we will pay the price.
4
As he stands before the Memorial, let us recall the words:
“If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem. It is true that you may fool all of the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all of the time; but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. -Speech at Clinton, Illinois, September 8, 1854.”
― Abraham Lincoln
7
I often wonder how history will handle the 4 years of trump. Is it most likely that it will be characterized by blank spots for 2017-2020 years with a black background and a notice saying "ERASED."
5
We have been warned about the normalization of this president's aberrancy, and the understandable exhaustion we face in fighting it.......day in and day out. His intended hijacking of the nation's Fourth of July celebration leaves me fearful that the takeover of our nation's trust and ideals is near-complete, with the assistance of the Grand Old Party, who continue in their reprehensible silence to allow the travesty to continue unchecked. Combine this with the machinations of William Barr, and the Democrats inability to impose any sanctions or limits on a presidency which thumbs its nose at all legal efforts to reign in the criminality, and we seem to be "done". How frightening is this? And will Americans respond to this threat in 2020, or, out of dispirited exhaustion is this the "new-normal" that we find acceptable? There's really little else to say (even for Maureen Dowd) .......other than............
Americans, VOTE!
4
This guy keeps showing up EVERYWHERE. The whole world is sick and tired of him and all he thinks to do is show up try to take over the joint. How did he get like this? How did he get loose?
How can he just keep doing 'Trump' when he knows how much and how many people are laughing at him?
5
We know that Mr. Trump has a big head and a small brain (Mars is part of the moon - really?). But I think that some other parts of Mr. Trump's anatomy must be very small indeed that he needs everything, now to include our least partisan of holidays, to be about him.
3
Please continue with your resistance to the donald, but please look into his "student years" at the New York Military Academy. I grew up very near there (10 miles away, in Newburgh) and it was common knowledge that it was a "military school" for spoiled rich kids and the the sons of "tin-horn" dictators from Asia, and South and Central America. Donnie must have fit right in, being the son of a rich man, spoiled, not very bright, and an aspiring dictator.
How do ANY Americans still buy what this guy is selling? I would think that they would at least be embarrassed by him, even though ashamed would be a more appropriate.
9
A massive, booing crowd would be good.
6
About 100 years ago, women were "given" the vote after about 150 years of being deprived of the vote. Considering the condition of this country now and the desecration of the Oval Office, perhaps we should try allowing only women to vote.
3
He wants a parade, and I would give him one.
I envisage the declaration by Congress of a great national holiday on the day he is impeached and removed from office, ten days of night and day celebrations, military parades with jet plane overflights of the Capitol Rotunda, hundreds of marching bands replete with with high-stepping drum majors and baton-twirling majorettes, floats manned and womaned by Hollywood celebrities, open-air concerts by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, fireworks over the Potomac and the ringing of church bells throughout the land.
All of this culminating in a solemn ceremony on the White House Lawn in which residents of Puerto Rico are invited to toss cheap paper towels at him.
Of course we will also need to begin planning angry protests demanding the expulsion from office of the awful Pence, Trump’s unindicted partner-in-crime, but let’s leave that for another day.
First, Trump should have a parade. America has earned it.
7
I will vote for for a melting snowman in 2020 instead of and never have even considered ...
2
What greater opportunity to further divide and weaken -- to Trump the nation? Calling all attention to the "I alone" disruption.
Forever the fifth grade class clown. Farcical, far-side dysfunction.
Were this but a cartoon and not a national nightmare.
5
With luck, it will rain buckets on the 4th and Trump will avoid the weather to keep his hair in place.
Trump has a touch equal to corrosive acid on what should be a day of national unity. Let him sit alone in the WH and watch Fox....just like when he closed the government.
4
Perhaps the tribal elder Vietnam war hero who confronted the catholic kids wearing MAGA hats could be requested to show up,then
you and the rest of your journalistic colleagues can fabricate a story about his being attacked by the MAGA folks.As for the senior Democrats
writing a letter of complaint to Trump that this event is unseemly,I would argue no more unseemly than political business is every day in DC
2
trump has become a international and national embarrassment !
Goes to England insults the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan after insulting Meghan, Duchess of Sussex .Then could not stay away from shaming himself by bringing politics of America and of course aiming at Speaker Pelosy who always have an upper hand over thin skinned trump and trump could not stand that coming from a Woman.
Then to observe the D-Day and pay respect to our fallen Heroes standing next to the President of France, Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte , Melania could not bear a moment to take off her enormous sunglasses.
Now the whole trump family is back to torture us even more not to have a non partisan celebration on the 4th of July.
4
Trump has stewed ever since he faced a below average size crowd at his inauguration.How to salvage the damage to his fragile ego-parachute into a already existing crowd celebrating the anniversary of our country’s birth.He is assured of a crowd and can shoot some footage for his 2020 campaign.Maryland has wonderful beaches -go there and enjoy them-Backyard picnics are great-dozens of venues have fireworks-celebrate any way you can but do not traipse down to the Mall and satisfy this egomaniac who has robbed us of our dignity and now wants to be an unwelcome guest at the people’s party.
2
President Trumps 4th of July crowd will be the biggest ever since his Inauguration Day farce. The attempted hijacking of our nations birthday, for his self adoring MAGA speech at the Lincoln Memorial, will be the last straw for a majority of us Americans. Perhaps, he has already surpassed that milestone with his recent failed overseas trip that embarrassed and sullied our reputation worldwide.
Not sure what’s worse for our nation. Donald J. Trump, the fake telepropmter imposter, or the adolescent twitter in chief.
Mr. President, save yourself the ultimate embarrassment and cancel this ill conceived idea.
The 4th of July is to celebrate our nations independence, not your fake personal coronation.
6
Using the Lincoln Memorial and the occasion of a national holiday to further enrich Donald’s family coffers by peddling MAGA hats to 13 year olds? It’ll take several days to power wash the stench from the mall.
6
Let us remember that the only reason Trump gets away with these petulant antics is because the cowards in the GOP Senate are too timid to confront him with his high crimes, misdemeanors, and continual lying.
Sadly, however, when he is finally indicted and tried for the crimes outlined in Part 2 of the Mueller Report, Trump will be found mentally incompetent to stand trial. He'll get off. But the Russo-Republicans, who have aided and abetted him for over two years, are fully aware of their complicity in supporting the delusional and pathological liar who now occupies the White House.
3
As Private Bone Spur continues to dishonor his office and this country, his complicit republican enablers look the other way. They're all going to jail.
6
Trump desecrates every government institution that he touches or utilizes to advance his murky political agenda.It was almost predictable that he would view the 4th of July as a celebration of his life and his presidency.Like most dictators he believes that he and America are one entity. Trump is America. And America is Trump. When is the 21gun salute or fly over honoring this unique American President?
2
Perhaps people— veterans preferably — should consider taking over the Lincoln Monument for the 4th?
It’s not Trump’s monument.
4
We can only hope that the video from what will be a hideous appropriation of "our Nation's day" by this megalomaniac of a President will be terrific fodder for the person running against him next year.
Just when we thought we'd had enough to be ashamed of, Trump brings us what will be a program so devoid of what it genuinely means to be an American.
As always, Ms. Dowd...YOU GO GIRL!
3
I cannot wait for this man to be gone. He ruins and poisons everything he touches.
I am so dystonic regarding our government and how he has runied our country.
I watch the poles and I am disgusted even further by the support he holds on to. What are these people thinking?
I will be keeping the TV off for a week starting on the 4th of July because I don't have enough blood pressure medication to handle it.
That we are not seeing him impeached allows him to see himself as above the law. He knows he is getting away with it.
I am going to vote for those who see their duty to impeach as front and center. The rest need to go.
We should not be surprised that he continues to take over everything he can to promote himself and ruin our day, every day. IMPEACH!
4
The nation's birthday will be tacky, gaudy, and another tossed gold-plated cheap trick from the bunker by cadet bone spurs. His antics are a complete yawn.
5
"It’s one thing to have the TRUMP sign on a hotel or winery. It’s another to slap it on the face of the nation."
THAT is why Trump is so desperate to get his wall.
3
thank you Donald Trump, for your leading role in exposing America's ugly side. we always knew the ugliness was there. Trump has revealed just how huge it really is.
3
Trump stood in Helsinki and took the word of Putin against 17 American Intelligence Agencies. He has no business messing with our Fourth of July celebration in D.C. Trump ruins everything.
4
I imagine a day when the world is not subjected to this charlatan on a daily basis. A day when I can turn the news on and not cringe, not see his face, hear his voice, read what outrageous thing he's written on Twitter, or read the Times and there's not a single article about him or a bad policy decision he's made.
That day cannot come soon enough. Vote him out of office. The country might not survive another four years.
5
And what I find more distressing is that Republicans will stick by him no matter how petulant, criminal and wrong-headed he is. This is a creature who should be in prison, not pontificating on the 4th of July.
4
Americans should fly the flag upside down (an international distress symbol) this fourth and leave Washington or at least boycott the display.
5
Trump wants this photo-op of standing before a large crowd at the Lincoln Memorial to use as an ad for his 2020 campaign.If you do not want to be part of his re-election stay away from his staged event on the Mall.The 4th on the Mall has been the people’s party, a chance to wave flags and celebrate patriotism.This year the patriotic thing to do is to go to the beach or have a backyard barbecue and watch fireworks onTV or at a local venue.To protest Yankee Doodle Donny stay away from the Mall!
2
The Trump family of grifters were happy to impose themselves into a royal dinner in England, why not into an Independence Day celebration.
Remember when blue collar had something to do with being hard working and having family values. Now it appears to mean you celebrate a tyrannical leader while embracing racism, ignorance and hatred.
1
If Trump usurping military gallantry weren’t grotesque enough, it is doubly horrific that he is allowed to be such a poser when he never apologized for making fun of POWs and his continued attacks on John McCain, now deceased for nearly a year.
1
Have no doubt. The crowd will dwarf those at his inauguration. The fireworks display will dazzle like none other. His speech will be more moving than the Gettysburg Address. Oh, how this megalomaniac at the Memorial will embarrass us all.
2
Ha! You think this year's event will be a spectacle? Wait until July 2020, four months before the election.
2
Ambrose Bierce, U.S. Army Civil War veteran, said that patriotism was the last refuge of a scoundrel in his Devil's Dictionary. But I appreciate the sentiment.
November, 2020 cannot come soon enough!
1
He ruins the day only if you let him. If one must watch tv on july 4th, the boston pops will get the job done.
2
We could mark this as the 2nd Revolution. Show up in droves to protest this boil on the hind quarters of the US. Let Trump know before the world (on PBS) that he is detested both as a "human" and as "president". Have someone, maybe LeBron James or Colin Kaepernick, deliver Frederick Douglass' speech from the 4th back in the 1850's citing the America of so many.
Trump and the 4th of July are as disparate Trump and honesty.
2
"...and an address by your favorite President, me...", Wow, an actual speech. Written by whom? Trump could spend weeks putting words to paper (he won't - can't) and yet remain unable to come up with anything remotely having the stature of what one reads at the Lincoln Memorial. Then there's the question of his delivery. If he shines as he did by rote while speaking woodenly at the D-Day commemoration then, oh!, what an inspiring evening is to be had. And what subject will he broach? His favorite - surprise - Trump himself, Maybe we will get lucky. His threat to make the 4th of July a Trump Devotional might turn out to be as empty as his to impose tariffs on Mexico. Or, perhaps Melania will speak instead, eloquently - using borrowed words.
3
Trump is an affront to everything decent not just President Abraham Lincoln, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and Marian Anderson.
3
Gird your loins, folks, because Flag Day, June 14th is Fearless Leader’s birthday. Expect before he leaves office (hope, hope, hope it’s before 2020) that he will declare his birthday a national holiday, eliminating MLK’s birthday and Labor Day, both not fabulous, totally bogus celebrations. Impeach before he messes further with America’s history, celebrations, hearts and minds.
1
No doubt the secret service is going crazy trying to teach its people to differentiate fireworks/firecrackers from real gunshots.
2
What a perfect day for the House leadership to announce commencement of impeachment proceedings.
2
The problem with Trump is that when he became president he thought it meant that he'd bought the presidency and thus, in his ever expanding narcissism, the entire country.
His compulsion to put his brand on everything American as if it all belongs to him is both sickening and another reminder that there is nothing off limits to the deplorable human being he has shown himself to be.
2
It's hard to believe, but I think Maureen Dowd was far more gentle in her sarcasm and criticism of Trump than she should have been.
I suggest that readers boycott the Fourth of Trump, and instead, watch "When They See Us" by Ava DuVernay on Netflix, in order to learn more about people who take freedom away from children by framing them, then sending them to prison.
I'll be very happy when public opinion comes down as harshly on Trump as it has recently on Fairstein.
They both so very much deserve to be shamed.
1
President Trump playing George III on the mall as we celebrate independence day. Long live the king!
1
I have always wanted to go to DC for the 4th. The fireworks alone would make it worth it,
So here is my idea, join me at the Reflecting Pool and moon the first in chief of crass on the 4th.
How else to celebrate the narcissist.
4
Remember Trump's inaugural address?
Maybe in this scary-clown 4th of July address he'll talk about "American carnage", or something even weirder and less appropriate to the moment. Still, Fox and Followers will applaud him and swoon and call him "presidential" and "patriotic."
Shudder.
1
We should start a movement to boycott the 4th of July in DC. Would love to see hardly anyone come this year.
What did he do for the 4th in 2017 and 2018? Has he gained some added measure of “patriotism” in 2019? And what, god forbid, will he do in 2020?
1
I will boycott all media coverage. I doubt if I am the only one who needs a break from Trump.
2
I am thinking 1968 Democratic Convention.
4
I have a prediction to make. When Trump finishes his second term as President you will have been won over to his side. I am sending you a Trumpy bear to celebrate the next 5 1/2 years. If he can charm the Queen of England, I think even you are susceptible to his charm.
@Babel. I wouldn't take that bet anywhere near Vegas.
4
I sometimes wonder what Trump will be like when he actually becomes “dictator for life” as he dreams.
What will happen to the “free press”?
What will happen to the “traitors” who conspired against him?
What will happen to those who don’t properly recognize and celebrate “dear leader day” on the 4th?
This man is far more demented than anyone realizes.
4
As the days go by trump seems to take relish in attacking and desecrating or democratic institutions. He is so far from what any thinking, honest and decent person would want to lead a country it is almost a joke and would be funny if it wasn't so tragic. With less than a third of the US supporting trump makes me wonder how governing (?) from a minority position can do any good.
3
It’s short notice, but the perfect response would be an alternate national picnic somewhere, completely nonpartisan and commemorating the genesis of this country. A huge turnout would send the message that the people will not have THEIR celebration hijacked. Surely there is a patriotic billionaire somewhere...
1
A Remarkable metamorphosis has taken place in our nation, ramped up in 2010. Television has made a nation of learned well read people, a dumbed down angry and hateful nation. The Republicans began the hate fest following the passage of the Affordable Care Act. From then on, Democrats have passively watched the "Shock and Awe" conduct of the opposition's leadership and resulting social upheavals. Television was the blackboard of national discontent as it sensationally portrayed the hate and anger as the news of the day.
Then along came the Television actor Trump as he sprayed his fuel on the simmering fires until now when the nation is approaching civil unrest, a few instances of which have occurred. Trump, the wrestling fan, appears to relish not only hate and anger, but violence, even flying just under the radar as he instigates animal instincts in his followers.
I think the best example is during one of his nationally televised campaign appearances just prior to the election. He said in so many words that were he to lose, there might be unrest.
I enjoy how you relate the current circumstances to historical memories we all have. I would venture to say, Trump is not so much a "Yankee Doodle Donnie" as much as a real "Dandy" of a troublemaker bent on the ways of anarchy, so well demonstrated by what he has said and done in the last three years.
2
As I listened to Donnie's inaugural address, I was waiting for that "Ask not..." moment and I got it..."the carnage that is America" and I can't get it out of my head. I knew then, we were in for it.
8
Not surprising that he would attempt a 'do-over' of his last mall show. Maybe we gals in pink hats should pull a do over too....I'm free that Saturday!
7
Trump is inserting himself into this formerly non partisan occasion to irk the liberals. That's been his goal from the beginning. It's retribution for progressive elites not letting him into their club. Simply put, he's trolling democrats.
5
Is it possible for the urban liberals to ever stop attacking President Trump ?
The POTUS is giving a speech on July 4th - attend, don’t attend, watch it on TV, don’t watch it on TV, whatever you want to do is fine with us normal people.
But please stop criticizing every decision the President makes - just because he made it. We all understand if Obama did it (I voted for Obama 2X) it would be no big deal.
If President Trump discovered a cure for cancer tomorrow morning, brought peace to the world tomorrow afternoon, and paid off the national debt tomorrow night, you all would attack him for using twitter instead of press conferences to announce it.
President Trump did fine on June 6th, he’ll do fine on July 4th, grab a beer and a hot dog and calm down.
@Jennifer Wilson
Besides attempting to reign in China’s unfair trade practices, those things would be the first positive things Trump has done as the executive that might benefit the people. He wouldn’t likely try to profit off the cancer cure, only provide it to his base, and who knows what else.
He has rendered American Democracy less functional when we need to think and work together. The Chinese and Russians make long term decisions for success, T-Dump makes decisions for this news cycle. Who will win that’s one?
2
@Jennifer Wilson
You should get a Pulitzer for your effort to portray Trumpet as a victim.
Will the South ever get over its hatred of "liberals" for depriving them of a lavish plantation lifestyle made possible by enslaved human beings?
No, I didn't think so...
And no, I am neither urban nor a liberal. I am a septuagenarian living in a town of fewer than 60,000 and my DD-214 lists the Vietnam Service Medal and the Vietnam Campaign Medal. Based on what I have seen on the bumper stickers of the pompous, you can thank me for the freedom we will celebrate on July 4th.
5
@Jennifer Wilson
I don’t doubt your sincerity, and I do understand your wish for more civility in our political discourse. But the public backlash is precisely because Trump would never in a million years be civil, let alone bring world peace, discover a cure for cancer, or pay off the national debt.
Trump is the embodiment of the Antichrist, the ultimate devil playing around with the most powerful office in the world. He committed crimes to get elected, and then a steady stream of more to stay in office. He’s already done untold damage to our environment, our economy, our tax system, healthcare, our federal courts, international relations, and women’s rights.
In constant need of base affirmation and deflection from damning revelations, Trump threatens to do more damage every single day. And it’s not for some warped view of the greater good. It’s for a zero sum political game he views through the lens of what best for individual 1.
There’s no limit to what Trump might do, and informed citizens need to continue vigorously pushing back.
1
If only we could put a tarp over Trump so Lincoln doesn't have to see him.
6
What can I say? "It's a total disgrace as never seen before"
4
If not now, when?
If not him, who?
Read the Report, America!
6
So start with a few hundred thousand regular attendees. Add a hundred thousand Trumpers. Add a hundred thousand protesters. Add fireworks and nightfall. What could go wrong?
1
Who are they going to march out on the 5th on Fox and Friends to proclaim that it was the largest 4th of July crowd ever in DC. PERIOD!
2
Not a "Dead War Hero," Ms. Dowd. 2 Admirals and Senator McCain he is afraid of because of his family history. Don't forget Dad and Granddad. They fought for us too.
Raving egomaniac. What do you expect? I actually feel sorry for his wife. Trump looks to co- op everything he can. New Yorkers have known this for years and when he got “elected” we could see this coming from a mile away.
I hope it rains!
4
Perhaps a true patriot could sabotage the Jumbotrons on the Mall during his vanity address, playing the infamous "Access Hollywood" tape on it in lieu of his expected vapid, incoherent, word salad.
5
A book by the former republican political consultant and MSNBC contributor Rick Wilson is titled 'Everything that Donald Trump touches dies'. Hopefully the traditional fourth of July celebration in our nation's capital won't be the next to go in the Orwellian universe of Donald Trump.
1
If Trump shows up to bloviate about himself at the national Fourth of July celebration, I hope protesters against him will show up too. Nothing too activist, maybe simply turning backs on him while he prattles on about himself. The man is without shame, until a media moment shames him. Why do we let this bozo take over and besmirch our country's traditions? Appeasement never works.
1
Maybe attendees can sport USS John McCain t-shirts and hats or Sen. McCain face masks to honor his and his family's role in securing our Independence.
6
A tale of two sitting presidents. One, a monumental leader reclining in contemplative repose pondering the nation's fate vs. a monumental liar squatting on a garish throne seeking to contemptuously depose democracy’s future.
4
"It's one thing to have the TRUMP sign on a hotel or winery. It's another to slap..." the nation in the face with it.
Trump's hijack of America's birthday is alone grounds for impeachment. While we know he cavorted (if not conspired) with the Russians to get elected, engaged in a coverup and obstructed the investigation, we also know he would not be convicted by his cynical Russian Republican henchmen. Despite Republicans' shameless anti-Americanism we should impeach him for the pleasure and catharsis the nation needs.
Wonderful article. I wish the media would just ignore his defiling speech completely. He is just too disgusting for a national holiday, or really anything else.
3
This is absolutely sickening. Trump is such an egomaniac, such a malignant narcissist, that he can't let us have our holiday without him crashing the party. The Fourth is now about him. This is exactly the type of thing that happens in North Korea. The only difference is there, attendance is mandatory and if you don't applaud you get shot.
Trump can't go as far as his romance with Kim wants to go, (remember, Trump said that he and Kim fell in love) so he tries to make our national holiday about him.
People died so we can have that holiday, lots of people. People do everything they can to uphold the rule of law and respect the rights of others, which is the core of our American tradition, and Trump steps on the weakest amongst us and breaks every law he thinks he can get away with.
Americans have fought in great battles to rid the world of tyranny and Trump idolizes the greatest tyrants in the world.
Trump has now forced us to have our own party. I wouldn't be caught dead at his. Boycott the Trump Fourth and let's have our own without him. He is not taking anymore from us.
7
@Bruce Rozenblit: No, in N. Korea if you don't applaud hard enough, you get killed. Hard enough. But, give Trump a couple of years and our Dear Leader will be exactly like their Dear Leader.
3
Unlike your writer, many (at least sixty million) patriotic Americans are proud of our democratically elected president and absolutely thrilled to have President Trump stamped all over a resurgent America.
@SDDoc
"...Electoral College-ly elected..."
Fixed that for ya.
3
@SDDoc. You are correct that in 2016 60M people cast their vote for Mr Trump, while 63M cast their vote for the Democratic candidate, the calculated margin of victory in the key states was about 150k votes.
Since then many Republicans have switched to Independents, this means that the remaining Republicans are those who support Mr Trump or those like me that want to vote him out of office in the next election. My hope is that voter turnout reaches the highest in history, despite the efforts of some to restrict voting rights.
It is more important than ever to vote for the candidate you want to see in office!
3
I predict a future Independence Day holiday, based on the date the toxic Trump family clears out of town.
5
trump will take the spotlight in front of Lincoln and stomp on the city's annual celebration. His dark message will smother the light of the bombs bursting in air; he will so diminish this grand holiday with his drivel that sparklers will refuse to spark. Some party.
2
Where's our Baby Trump balloon to float over Washington DC when he's giving his speech? Where's our Trump on his throne to march through the streets? Somebody said that the UK protests are better than Americans.
We need to show them that we can protest too!
Let's protest to protect the red, white and blue from the orange you-know-who.
4
If he goes through with this, it will be the first time in who-know-how-long that he won't be able to select his audience. We should organize the crowd to "boo" his speech. Just the threat of it would be enough to make him back down, coward that he is. Of course, he's so delusional that he might interpret a long swell of boo's and hisses as cheers of adulation.
2
Let Trump have this pathetic attempt at a park on the Potomac to make the 4th of July shaped in his image.
Dems should jump all over the traditional Independence Day experience and with music stars to an event on the Mall, inviting Presidents Obama and Bush to preside in a bipartisan celebration of America.
The fireworks from the Mall will illuminate the paltry numbers from Trump’s Potomac event kind of like his inauguration.
3
Meanwhile, every GOP Member of Congress remains mute on this. Their shameful behavior takes the stain and grinds it into the carpet fibers of our nation.
2
Trump seems to want to spoil every tradition our country has. I guess we’ll have to endure the spectacle of scores of angry, smug old men wearing MAGA caps. Can somebody tell Trump that the Fourth of July was not invented by President Obama?
2
@EJS: Can they come to D.C. with their guns? Serious question.
1
“Major fireworks display, entertainment and an address by your favorite President, me!” A most cringe-worthy declaration by the most cringe-worthy-man-child on this planet. Trump’s ineptitude, vulgarity and complete lack of common decency will forever be a blight on our national conscience.
1
Trump's ego simply cannot adjust to things that are not about him. An old question is "what if they gave a war and no one come?" That can be easily adjusted to "what if they gave a 4th of July event and no one came." If no one else came, however, Trump's bootlickers would be there bowing down in front of him.
#45 will never be content to allow a national holiday to be observed without him being the at center of attention. He polluted the D-Day ceremonies this week to make the 75th anniversary of the Normandy invasion not about defeating the Nazi threat to overrun Europe but to excuse and apologize for his Viet Nam draft evasion. Last year the rain kept him secluded in his hotel room.
#45 is in the market for a memorial not unlike the Lincoln Memorial that he'll defile with his presence on America's birthday. After that, he'll have his sights set on Mt. Rushmore. Since he wants to make America great again, he expects to be celebrated for it.
Miss Dowd I think that providing a subject and this space for release of the TDS that has overcome our populace in the last three years is a good thing. Of course we have the internet for that but that tends to get vulgar so this is more of a 'safe place" for the sufferers to vent.
It kind of makes you their Therapist or maybe Band leader; from reading these comments they seem to range from a mild rage to a wild animalistic rage, but at least they are talking about it and getting it out.
My concern is that if by chance President Trump is voted in 2020, will the nation again be in a new Civil War, (flyover country against the left coast and the Northeast), Trump hate is real, different and doesn't seem to have a cure, so it's good that we at least talk about it.
Finally I have attempted to post on here already but I assume that because it's Trump favorable my words are not allowed to be printed here. But please consider this as a Public Service Announcement and include it in your space.
1
If this happens as you describe it, it will be another piece of evidence for history of the ridiculous reign of this child. in my head, I have already put Trump behind me. Unfortunately, he is sticking around in the real world.
The so-called spirit of the Fourth of July is based on a whitewashed legend. Our history is imperialist, exclusive, bigoted, and exploitative. If you think you live in the home of the free and the brave, you have bought into a fiction. And part of that fiction is that Trump represents our worse -- worse than Presidents who massacred the Indians, authorized the slavery of blacks, laid claim to lands that belonged to others, wreaked destruction on the natural world, ruled by force with conventional and nuclear weapons, done shamelessly little to assist the needy, and on and on.
If you think -- as most do -- that Fourth of July celebrates our singular greatness -- you should be ashamed of yourself. What America symbolizes is that history is told by the winners. And the demonization of Trump singles out one of many American anti-heroes, the one who most offends you because you have either forgotten or never known about the many others.
Trump is a terrible President. But in arguing that he will uniquely dishonor America on the Fourth of July, be assured that he is not unique at all. And if you feel that he besmudges our otherwise honorable history, you know far too little about our history and far too little about our present.
1
Another well crafted satire on Trump which is totally lost on him.
I am waiting for the pundits and media to take him head on with respect to his projections. “Lock her up”really means lock him up. “Pelosi is nasty”really means Trump is nasty and so on. It is clever projection by Trump and Fixed Fox news which the Dems now need to redirect.
And for the life of me, I don’t understand the veterans who aren’t sickened by this treasonous coward. I am a veteran who remembers the Soviets.
4
Trump having a MAGA mob rally at the Lincoln memorial as the national celebration of our nations birthday, what could go wrong? Instant Karma, expect lots of fireworks.
1
The D-Day commemoration in Portsmouth on June 5 was locked down for 'security' reasons, invitation-only and the locals were only able to see it on TV.
Will July 4 on the Mall be the same and broadcast on state TV aka Faux News?
1
Don’t go. Stay away. Attention is his only oxygen. Let’s for once stop playing his game. Let him desecrate the holiday all by himself.
2
It is funny in a tragic sort of way seeing so many who despise this country almost as much as they despise Trump pretending to be upset about his purported activities at the 4th of July celebration. How many of you own a flag and even display it? Does anyone on the left display Old Glory or do they consider that an overt act of despicable nationalism? Such a charade.
I’ll happily be at Drag Queen Story Hour before I’d step a toe on the grass of the National Mall this year. Or any year until this presidency a distant memory.
I look forward to seeing the Washington Monument devoid of all spectators on the Fourth of July. Take pride in our country and boycott Mr. Baby pant's ridiculous display of narcissism. America needs to plan it's own 4th of July celebration honoring all Americans left, right and center.
1
I am extremely happy that I am retired from military service and not on active duty, with Donnie as the CINC. What a disgrace he is
4
Actually, my favorite president was this one’s predecessor. President Obama, your nation needs you. Could we please prevail upon you to make a speech on the Fourth of July?
The girls walking behind Trump is priceless stuff; thank you.
1
My favorite president was Obama. Trump's MAGA-rally will turn the Fourth of July into a day of mourning.
1
This guy never stops, he is a weed that keeps coming back, a recurring nightmare. You think you go down a different street and there he is. He has inserted himself into the American psyche and festers until the will to see anything of beauty is destroyed. That there are his base that aligns with this is disturbing.
Traveling in Asia, everywhere we go, people greet us scratching their heads. They ask, is your President for real!!
Dearest Maureen,
That was delicious. Thank you. Oh, and nicely skewered too.
Best regards,
Judy
1
Will he claim fake news when the photos show a much sparser crowd than in other years?
2
Love him or hate him he is getting what he wants. People are talking about TRUMP. What he's doing is wrong but ignoring him would drive him nuts (he's already a little there). Unfortunately the media will drive this to the fourth and beyond.
1
Listen I have no cable, no Netflix but an antenna that beams free whichever channel is available. Unfortunately all those channels will be drooling over him and his rantings because other than lost dog and cat stories what else do they have? And we love fireworks! So we have no option but to watch it! That is to sum up the present day America(ns)
I can’t force a even a small grin as I read Ms. Dowd’s satire about Trump ruining America’s Fourth of July—with his mere presence. I became angry when I saw a photograph of Trump being interviewed at Normandy, the hallowed white crosses of the American dead in the background, as he bullied, mocked, Majority Leader Pelosi. I’ve reached my limit. All boundaries of political respectability have been crossed. It’s time—yes, Democrats, the time has come to impeach him.
5
An important column describing President Trump's complete narcissism. His ever constant neediness is about to turn the July 4th into another "watch me" event. What a way to ruin a holiday that, as Ms. Dowd wrote, had been a blissfully nonpartisan and joyful celebration.
I have only one note about her column. I just visited the American Cemetery at Omaha Beach this April. She writes that the President announced his plan while at "...a cemetery full of white crosses for D-Day heros who fought the Nazis..." I only wish she'd written "crosses and Jewish stars." Why? Because it would be a positive rejoinder to the flood of ugly bigotry happening throughout the U.S. and the world.
2
"But now Donald Trump, certified Roman candle, is spoiling America’s fireworks show."
How can people, suffering from such intense TDS, be unaware of their affliction?
Poor Maureen, Trump is living in her head 24x7 and she's not even getting rent!
How Americans don't see the dismantling of their free and democratic society is beyond me.
But then again, I lived in a country divided and surrounded by Soviet Russia and know the difference between what many here ignore as a threat and the real thing.
And Donald Trump's efforts to build and maintain a cult around himself, starting with his expropriation of the July 4th holiday is just the beginning of an agenda that will further reduce the liberties this nation has represented and cherished since its foundation.
Nevertheless the question remains, how can a President claim to represent America when he not only fails to represent all Americans -- but only seeks to represent himself?
2
I live across the Potomac from D.C. I will make it a point not to attend any 2019 July 4th activity there. I don't think that anyone should. Celebrate America's founding privately with family and friends; or in your community with your neighbors.
Stop giving that man the attention that he craves.
9
Way back when, flags flew limply on the 4th of July as summer heat finally brought on those
languorous days of summer.
Now, the changing climate, politically and globally, threaten to obscure our once closely held passions for freedom and truth.
5
Boycott. Don’t watch or stream it/him. Do something local instead. Turn your backs. It’s her birthday not yours Donnie
9
The major “fake news” networks should not televise his remarks. Let Fox do it.
8
I would love to see him face the kind of reaction he and his lies deserve.
European reporters are much tougher on him and his minions than American ones. The UN openly laughed at him. He is too cocooned from reality here.
I was appalled at the lying, childish vitriol he spewed on D-Day. I would love for him for once to get the ugly response his ugliness deserves.
Do his supporters never get bored with his "low IQ" bombast?
7
Everyone who intends to vote for a Democrat and all Republican and Independent voters who despise or mistrust Trump should attend this event and turn your backs on him in silence when he speaks. Being deliberately ignored or mocked are things that make him crazy [crazier]. Lashing out because he feels embarrassed exposes his puerile pettiness and “schoolyard bully” temperament. He can’t abide the thought that people are refusing to take him seriously, laughing at his foolish behaviour, concluding that he is too unqualified, inadequate, and morally compromised to hold the job, and that his election was invalid.
1
Yes, the Fourth of July is the quintessential American holiday. You can go to a Native American reservation to buy contraband explosive devices that shoot sparks, make a whole lotta noise, and keep ER doctors extremely busy tending to injuries like permanently damaged eyes and missing fingers. Millions get drunk and stupid, then hit the highways for the traditional American Carnage, or just grab their guns for more of the same. We eat lots of ground up meat products formed into patties and tubes and charred over flame.
And now millions of our finest can don dumb read hats.
We give rapt attention to smarmy, chest-thumping ‘patriotic’ bloviators, most of them abject cowards and hypocrites, who extol the glory of our military might, purchased at enormous expense, draining away tax revenues that could be used for the common good and to meet our real needs, like readily available and affordable child care, health care, education, housing and transportation and clean water and air.
Yup. It’s tailor-made for a legend in his own mind, just the ticket for a ghoulish figure like Donald J. Trump. We may as well rename it “Trump Day” - a registered trademark of the Trump Organization. MAGA!
4
Get to get together with friends, have a block (neighborhood) party, if there are kids have them stage their own parade, anyone remember crepe party woven in the wheels of your bikes and the small American flags? Get a big sheet and screen Yankee Doodle Dandy or 1776 on it. And if you are ready for a big challenge, try a quiz on the Constitution and the government.
3
Maybe Congress could schedule Mueller to testify on the evening of July 4th. Fireworks.
1
Trump is worse than a “certified Roman candle”—
He’s an orange wrecking ball in a cavernous suit and equatorial necktie. Who knows where he’ll strike next.
We must not let him turn our Fourth of July into his own parade.
2
The National Mall is the nation's front yard and trump needs to stay off of it on the 4th of July!
1
If Trump follows through on plans that are suspiciously reminiscent of Richard Nixon's "Honor America Day" fiasco in 1970, we're undoubtedly heading for another 4th of July riot.
For Nixon, it was a naked ploy to morph patriotism into presidential devotion, despite his unpopular tactics during the Viet Nam conflict. The backlash against violent 'hippies' also helped bring most conservative law-and-order folks into his fold for the '72 election landslide.
For Trump, his problem is the 50-60% of Americans who detest most aspects of his criminal presidency. It may as well be called National Impeachment Day for many of them. I imagine there may be very fine people on both sides, but the crowds against Trump will probably outnumber the MAGA folks more than 10 to 1. And judging from Charlottesville, some will be looking for a scrap or counter scrap.
But how it plays out, or is spun, will be crucial to its real political intent. That is, to solidify Trump's base ahead of impeachment hearings and his later re-election campaign. I have little doubt that Nixon acolyte and dirty trickster, Roger Stone, played some role here.
If Trump's clownish idea isn't quashed, I just hope majority public sentiment shows through with minimal violence. I also hope Trump is unfamiliar with the Nazi Party's use of the Reichstag fire to create an illegitimate mandate.
1
So what do we suggest we do Maureen? Do we Americans cancel every national holiday and important anniversary until Donald Trump is finally out of office?
I like it.
Yes.
1
The only way to fight back is for all broadcast media and media in general to refuse the coverage of any such infamous event
Trump is a sociopath who doesn’t understand the meaning of shame let alone patriotism, love of country or anything good and constructive.
Should Trump insist of presiding over his 4th of July re-election rally, an alternate patriots’s concert can still be held in an alternate venue - perhaps Philadelphia? He can’t destroy everything.
1
The day I watched the Vietman Draft-dodging Donald Trump stand in an American war dead cemetery in Normandy and attack Nancy Pelosi and Robert Mueller -- a decorated Vietnam War hero -- in the pettiest of terms with thousands of gravestones behind him -- I reached a tipping point. He desecrated a sacred place and revealed once again what columnist Peter Wehner calls "the bonfire of anger, resentments and grievances that is Donald Trump." I want this craven, ignorant coward out of office and prosecuted for his crimes. Is that clear enough?
13
Ah, the fourth of July.
Now a symbol of Putin’s dominance over Trump.
Republicans, like McConnell who is in bed with both communist Russia and communist China, couldn’t be happier.
Bring on the fireworks!
1
I support President Trump BUT I cannot criticize this article.
1
I confess that it will be very difficult for me to NOT watch the July 4 event in DC. It’s the can’t help but watch the train wreck syndrome. I have some fear of violence among the crowd should protesters meet MAGA hatters. The outcome from any such aggression could be horrific.
Though I also harbor some hope that a rogue bolt of lightning may find an orange target!
2
All I want to know is will your brother be at the memorial to listen to him speak? I just want to know that he remains a die hard Trump fan and really has become nothing more than a member of the cult.
1
What if they gave a Fourth of July celebration and no one came?
2
“...wicked-smart guys in Philadelphia pulled off that miracle...”
Reason enough to tear up our Constitution.
Guys.
Wicked smart.
Violated two tenets of equity in one fell swoop without even looking under the bed for more sins.
Oh, and we do not believe in miracles. Miracles are for soft-headed types in Red States.
1
I'll be wearing black on the 4th; just like Johnny Cash I now wear black all the time, although I'm in mourning for what was a grand country now awash in injustice.
Let's just burn it all down this time, eh?
In sorrow,
Typical Gen Xer
2
Since you're in DC and Donny boy is in DC you might want to convince him that George Washington, did not throw a silver dollar across the Potomac River. He threw a boomerang!
Since there were no silver dollars in GW's time and DJT is a boomer, you might be able to make America Great Again. Just stand far enough away when you goad him into making the greatest toss in human history!
Bet, that will make July 4th an international holiday!
Sorry, no rational comments today.
Who knows if we'll ever be rational again?
3
Will this nightmare never end?
2
Next up: Trump proclaims Thanksgiving to be a day that we gather to give thanks for the greatest President ever. There will be a giant feast on the great lawn where McDonalds is served with Diet Coke.
1
For those who attend in person and those who view at home may I recommend that you leave the event at the time trump is introduced. What none of US need or want is yet another fake patriotic "I'm with you" performance from the Liar-in-Chief. It's bad enough that his openly racist rallies get media coverage. Trump's high jacking of our Independence Day celebrations for yet another trump self aggrandizing ego display is an
out rage. He MUST go. Lock HIM up.
2
How will our military participate in this grotesque political charade? Surely there are rules against this sort activity. Will there be a MAGA flyover? A squadron of tanks to silence what I hope will be several thousand "Lock him up" chanters. Tiananmen on the Potomac!! Is there any hallowed ground that our leader will not mark as his spot...maybe Central Park???
The day can't come soon enough when we no longer see or hear anything about this disgrace of a human being.
4
A smart vendor (or vendors) can make a ton of money on July 4 in DC with a slew of large Trump Baby balloons, l-o-n-g strings, and a tank of helium. Sell them for $3 each or two for $5 and let the visuals in front of the Lincoln Memorial fill with Trump Babies. Have your fireworks and kill a Trump photo-op at the same time. Enjoy!
2
@me
Great idea, but I'm pretty sure if Trumpet's White House sycophants could get a naval destroyer hidden from view to appease the boss, they could get those Baby Huey balloons removed as a violation of restricted airspace.
Re: "AZ, unfortunately" LOL! Life is too short to spend in an inhospitable place!
Maybe it will rain on the 4th We al know how Donald does not like to go out in the rain to pay homage to hero’s
1
I saw a paperback copy of “The Silmarillion” at one of those wonderful tiny libraries in my neighborhood, and decided to re-read it for old times sake. When I got to the chapter during which Morgoth poisons the two trees in Valinor, I sat up and cursed. My wife said, “What’s wrong?” I said, “I know this man!”
2
Maureen’s stinging opinion piece could apply to virtually every step Trump has taken ever since he began his demolition march on America’s institutions.
To her frightening image of Ants at the national picnic I’d add a scene of a petulant child hitting a hornets nest, watching cruelly how much chaos he can create by unleashing them, until concerned grownups take his stick away and send him home.
2
The curtain has been raised on us, and we stand naked and ridiculous on the world stage.
It's not, by a long shot, all of what we are, but it does show our dark, stupid side, and a big side it is: some 60 or so million Neanderthals.
We've always largely been a rough, under-educated, rambunctious horde. You got a war going on? We're your guys; we're good at it. Practice makes perfect. And everybody knows that real men, specifically American citizens, are dauntless warriors: first in battle, bored in peace.
And, importantly, our super-sized military is not compensating for anything. We are behaving rationally: Every nation wants to be the boss, right?
Well, we made it. He with the most toys, wins. Sure, we burned up the Earth getting and remaining on top, but our horde demands it. And if some nation wants the title, they will have to come take it. Might makes right.
Onward, Christian soldiers!
4
Enough talk, find a candidate to beat him.
2
I never understood the attraction of bombs bursting in air. That is, fireworks are lovely to look at, but they needn't be so loud.
The dog gets nervous. The noise sounds like incoming fire from the Vietnam war. And it's always during some touching scene on an old movie.
Turn up the volume, put the dog on your lap and breathe deeply until the big noise is over.
1
Can the Times please keep a running tab of the financial cost to taxpayers of such self indulgences as this imminent folly? Ms. Dowd mentioned the price of one of his golf outings. How many have there been and what are the costs? How about his stay at his golf resort in Ireland and commute to the continent last week?
The complaining posts I read are certainly purgative, but constant reminders of where our hard-earned taxes are going might just change a few minds about the spendthrift- in-chief, especially when he pushes to cut vital programs. Enough of the verbal protests. Let's fight this outrage with facts, and nothing speaks louder than money.
6
Maureen, you have had your say. The vast majority of the NYTimes readers are appalled. Now, let's ignore the whole thing. People in the DC area, don't show up at the Mall for the speech. Go to the Potomac and watch the fireworks. Americans, don't tune in for the celebration and the speech on TV. If you need fireworks, watch the ones from New York, Boston, Chicago, or your hometown. Make the Mall a ghost town, and the television ratings for the Washington fireworks the lowest ever. Let's stop giving this malignant narcissist the attention he craves.
8
Not my favorite president. In fact, not my president at all.
3
The problem for trump in this plan is that you cant screen attendees at the mall like you can in his typical rally, and protesters will show up mixed with the crowds spoiling his fantasy and leading possibly to ugly confrontstions.
1
How about a July 3rd or July 5th "Enough!" Rally?
Let's make our voices heard.
3
Who is Marian Anderson?
@LL Try Google.
1
When will this national disgrace end?
4
Please, can someone organize to get that blimp from London over to DC for this occasion? It's really the only answer. The media will report this to death without any clue that they are simply making the problem worse. If the blimp is floating above, it would make for a nice counter-image. Get it together, resisters. Bring on the blimp (the one that is inflated and flown on a rope, not the one just returned from Europe where he looked absolutely ridiculous).
4
trump had a nice visit to the palace last week but it paled in comparison to the Birthday parade that England just threw for Queen Elizabeth yesterday. Somehow I hope it is really bothering him that they didn’t throw that kind of parade for him.
The highlight of his visit to #10 was when they couldn’t get Larry the Cat to come out from under the Beast.
Maybe it will rain on his 4th of July.
1
I recall when you were eviscerating Donnie's opponent in the
presidential election campaign.
Repeatedly. Whole heartedly. Nastily.
Kindly reflect for a moment on that.
4
The Trump only serves one purpose and that is distract. He is paid nicely by the oligarchs to do this. He distracts while the wealthy rob this country. So his arrogant antics totally fit the robbery plan.
5
This is not acceptable....keep it as it has been and hopefully the Dems will be able to block this partisan campaign effort btw on our dime....if they can't and Trump forces it and actually speaks from the Lincoln Memorial I would hope that rather than avoiding it I would suggest that enormous crowds of resistance, including #MeToo, #GunsDown etc show up and block whatever fan base (how many are paid to show up eh?) may attend, then loudly boo him down until he has to depart w/ his security guards. Use the GOP's only strategy of total obstruction, simply loudly boo him down, nothing thrown or any violence just loud ear splitting booing.. and when he finally leaves then keep on dancing. It is American's birthday after all and the anti-American traitor we know as D J Trump & Co work for Putin. They are not welcome at our party...only well wishers can attend. He is not a ligit president and we know that.
2
The Dr. Johnson quote is certainly appropriate here. Better still is this from 19th Century writer and Civil War veteran Ambrose Bierce: "In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer I beg to submit it is the first.” -The Devil's Dictionary (1906).
3
I'd like to imagine that the more Trump defines what a despicable phony and dangerous narcissist he truly is, the more stark and simple and easy the transition to normalcy may be in the future, both within this injured nation and amongst our allies throughout the world...when he's gone.
And he will be gone. And the nation will heal. This isn't the apocalypse, it just feels like it every day.
In the meantime I'm waiting for him to declare his birthday a national holiday.
ps Britain: can somebody send us that big balloon with trump texting on a golden toilet for our Fourth of July celebration?
I wish nobody or only trump's sycophants would turn up at his July 4th travesty. He would claim that the turn out was the biggest, best, whatever. Who cares anymore about the lies he spews. The rest of us should watch our local celebrations, cook out in our backyards or parks and drink beer. We need to ignore the ignoramus. It would drive him crazy, or crazier.
1
Wonder what it would take to book Barack & Michelle for an alternate celebration?
3
As Jimmy Breslin said of Guiliani, Trump is "a small man in search of a large balcony" Maybe he will demand that the fireworks spell MAGA.
3
"At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. O! had I the ability, and could I reach the nation’s ear, I would, to-day, pour out a fiery stream of
biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke.
For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the
whirlwind, and the earthquake. The feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the
hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against God and man must be proclaimed and denounced." ....... Frederick Douglass, 1852
3
In simple Yiddish, the whole idea is a"shanda."
2
He’s the president of about 40% of Americans. He should go to a private venue for his silly campaign rally. Most of us despise the sound of his voice.
3
We need a baby trump balloon on the 4th in the mall. The brits can do do it! Let's do this
2
Years ago upon my first trip to Washington DC I was in awe of the power and history there...the Capitol, White House, Smithsonian, and memorials. But the one monument which brought tears to my eyes was the Lincoln Memorial. It looms large over our small bodies, yet undeniably it is poignant and moving. Here was a statue of one of our greatest, if not the greatest, presidents. "Honest Abe" united our country and ended slavery. Think of that accomplishment. And he paid the ultimate price for his country. He died at the hands of an assassin. Now let us juxtapose The Unifier with The Divider, This narcissist and wannabe king, Donald Trump, does not know the definition of honesty. Every utterance, every action is borne of lies. This bigot and racist shuns and exploits people of color, of different ethnicities if not Anglo-Saxon, the Muslim, the Gay and transgender..the woman. Every time I think he can not go any lower he does. The dishonor he will be bringing to our Independence Day celebration is unprecedented. However, it is not only he but also his Republican Senate, formerly of the Party of Lincoln, who do nothing to stop this disgrace of a man. Add to the toxic mix the Red Hats who will be cheering him on and feigning patriotism. The biggest and "ugest" adoring crowd ever! But let OUR apple pies be the tastiest and hamburgers the juiciest; let our young ones romp and play. Let us play with them. As for Trumpians, watch out for those ants. They bite.
7
If there's still justice in America, two years from now Trump will be able to give a July 4th speech from prison.
3
Trump at the Lincoln Memorial! Oh, well, there goes the neighborhood.
3
Trump's speech will be a campaign rally event and that's unacceptable to all but the terminally stupid, his base. He'll lie about the size of the crowd and complain about the Democrats not being at the Lincoln Memorial with him. Someone on his staff or Cabinet needs to do the right thing and have him removed using the 25th Amendment.
1
At this point, the nation will be relieved if Trump refrains from wearing a military uniform with full epaulets and brandishing a sword as he struts across D.C.
Why can't we stick to the facts ? All Democrats ( and Republicans) who can read and have not been living under a rock "know " Trump is a criminal.
The Con Man in Chief has in fact abused his power and broken the law hundreds of times.
And the House of Representatives has a duty to hold the so called President accountable and start impeachment inquiry Trump now which will lead to impeachment.
And the Senate will in turn have the duty to determine if Trump should be convicted and the Senate cult led by Politburo Chief will have to defend their non-guilty vote or vote the truth.
4
The notion of this buffoon addressing the nation, which will surely be nothing but a tirade of insults and denials, on this of all days, is appalling. Is there nothing that this foul man will not besmirch?
3
So, Maureen, what else is new?
You need to get out of the Trump universe. Even these superciliously witty critiques contribute to the man’s endless desire for publicity, by participating in his reality TV show.
I suggest you peruse your junior colleague Mia Armstrong’s latest effort, “Two Women, Divided by Opportunity” (June 7, 2019).
I was quite impressed and taken by Mia’s journalistic maturity and deft, buoyant style.
Mia’s contribution is one of the better Op-Ed pieces I have encountered in recent months.
The NYT does some things right.
It is all an act...a very bad one, at that.
Ignore the fake president.
3
The Founding Fathers listed 27 grievances against King George III on July 4. There's not enough paper to list all the grievances against King Donald.
4
Due to circumstances beyond my control I will be out of the country this 4h of July. I'll be missing the whole thing. It'll just be a normal Thursday in Europe. Lucky me!
1
The way to stop the narcissist is to not show up to his parties. Never look at or watch or listen to them. They will then burn up in their hate and ego. Just because this propaganda-liar cult leader is president makes it irrelevant. The more people fawn on the narcissist, the more the 3 year old will demand all the toys in the toy box.
1
Trump has mocked the disabled. Denigrated women. Smeared a POW for being captured. Demeaned immigrants and put babies in cages. Stoked racial hatred. Used an American Military Cemetery as a stage for petty, partisan politics. Now he wants to hijack the Fourth.
Trump didn’t win the popular vote and he is even less popular now. My guess is that most Americans won’t like this and, unless he manages to somehow limit admittance to his supporters, his reception on the mall will be deservedly ugly.
3
If you must see “bigly” fireworks, try Boston or NYC. They’re fabulous and will be Trump free.
1
Comparing Trump to a Roman candle seems a bit too much... or too good... for him. I’d have to put Trump at just a regular little firecracker, a Lady Finger.
Who better than a five-time draft dodger, all-time grifter and full-time divider and hatemonger to despoil our foremost patriotic celebration?
And if that weren't enough, having the unmitigated gall to do so under the gaze of Abraham Lincoln at the shrine to our country's greatest unifier.
How typically, cynically, narcissistically Trump. In other words, how disgusting.
2
At the time of JFK assassination, Bill Maudlin, the Chicago Sun-Times political cartoonist, drew a picture of Lincoln in his memorial with his arms crossed in his lap and his head resting on them. This was a was to link two martyred presidents and to see our nation's greatest president mourn not only for JFK, but for our country.
Is it time to republish that cartoon for the 4th of July? Certainly Lincoln wouldn't recognize the Republican Party, or how we elected a buffoon who would desecrate this sacred temple, or even the Republic he saved. "For this? A fireworks display? A political hack, who is shredding the fabric of our country, and is sullying one of our most esteemed sites?," he might add.
1
Embarrassed and now ashamed to be an American. It's not just the primary symptom -Trump, but half of the population. What a pox on humanity they are!
2
Let him be humiliated by sparse attendance like was the case at his inauguration parade. I hope DC residents stay home or go to the alternate site. He is a disgrace to our nation.
1
The fawn fest Ingraham had with trump was nauseating beyond my ability to tolerate. Two parasites, in a symbiotic relationship feeding off of each other's gaping need for adulation and celebration of the vile in each other.
She, was especially revolting. I kept expecting her to address him as "my precious".
3
Thanks to Mo for continuing to excoriate the buffoon and his minions. We appreciate your exceptional barbs and hope they provide effective bruises.
1
As a 72 year old independent turned serial protester against this vile, vain and otherwise dense aberration occupying the WH by dint of a minority mandate, I am totally unsurprised at this attempt to hijack our national birthday... my real fear is that this corrupt man will attempt to hijack the 2020 election. Resist. Be vigilant.
3
In a curiously convoluted irony, note that when Trump says "nobody" he means himself ("nobody ever heard of the country"). Same with "you." How many speeches and "answers" to reporters questions has this embarrassment of a president started with "When you look at." What he means is when HE looks at those things (trade, poverty, brown people coming over our southern border, white supremacy activities, crimes committed by African Americans, and on and on).
He is all id. A rolling, roiling, non-stop, self-promoting, self-satisfied, childish, unrepressed, willfully ignorant, incurious package of the worst of humanity.
1
Maybe previous Presidents didn’t care about the 4th of July and just wanted to stay in Martha’s Vineyard.
Or maybe they were big enough to get out of the way of the people’s celebration.
1
Dear Our Dear Leader:
Stay away from our celebration. It’s about celebrating democracy, so you won’t be interested.
2
Trump cannot kidnap our 4th of July celebrations unless we allow him to do it. Ignore this vile and despicable man and go about your normal day. If he is on TV, change the channel. If he is at the Lincoln Memorial, don't go there. Don't give the narcissist what he craves, which is our attention. Don't let this small man ruin our big holiday.
4
Jimmy Buffet, Willie, Beach Boys, Springsteen, where’s your 4th of July Concert going to be DC, Maryland, or Virginia? Honor our freedom from tyranny by giving us a live televised concert with fireworks and flag waving. Let freedom ring and rock!
Usurping traditional holidays for political gain. It's so Trumpian. I can hardly wait to see him dressed in swaddling clothes on Christmas when the faithful celebrate the birth of "The Savior."
1
Ok, I give up NY Times. Here's what I'll change it to:
Let's use this opportunity to go to the Mall on the Fourth and cheer our President!
Is there some other significant location in or around the DC area where Obama could could hold or attend a July 4th rally? That would be stellar. It might be sort of like George W. Bush's inauguration. Does anyone remember how the television cameras kept going from streets lined with protesters protesting Bush's Supreme Court-granted victory to Bill Clinton's motorcade down streets lined with adoring crowds and then to the airport, with more throngs of appreciative Americans, as he departed? Those images eased my pain considerably.
3
Great column Maureen. And thoughtful, well-written comments from readers. I often reach the point where I just cannot absorb another instance of atrocious behavior by President Pinocchio. This is one of those moments. I try to overcome them by watching late night comedy which so skillfully satirizes the President's actions and behavior. Obviously I will not watch his speech. There will be enough coverage by the media, if I choose to follow it. And hopefully late night tv will help me laugh at the absurdity and regain some sanity and perspective, until this man is back in Trump Tower and out of the White House for good.
2
Madam Speaker, you control the next move:
Institute Impeachment on July 4, 2019 with all appropriate papers filed by the House on July 5, 2019.
It is time for Democracy to stand up and be counted.
Let the 4th be glorious once more.
5
Boycott his 4th and do the family /neighborhood thing then watch WGBY and the Pops. Best way to deal with this fool is to ignore him.
6
The Fourth is the summer holiday you share with friends. Don and Melania, go have a burger with Steven Miller and enjoy the day.
4
This 4th of July celebrations cannot replace the true holiday.
Only the media and true Americans can fight to preserve the true meaning of the fourth. No fake news and no egomaniac’s dreams
should allow a replacement.
I hope the media refuses to participate in this charade.
If Trump wants to celebrate his failures, let him have rallies.
If he wants us to celebrate his presidency, let him put people and country first
3
Everyone stay away. Nobody watch, or speak of it.
This is strictly a grand and demented photo op for use in his campaign ads.
4
In the immortal words of the Beach Boys "It's Student
Demonstration Time" (from their album "Surf's Up). Looks
like Trump is following quite closely in the foot steps of Richard Nixon and his ill advised "Honor America Day". That was July
4th, 1970. Didn't turn out very well.
Where is the straight jacket and net for this guy? Can America
be any more debased? Take his whole family too. Are they the
"Munsters", the "Adam's Family" or the "Beverly Hillbillies"?
Where is the doctor in the house? The White House is going to have to have a full on formal exorcism when they leave.
Sounds like the perfect place and time to hold an anti trump rally. Let’s show the infantile how independent we are!
4
A wonderful and rare opportunity to give him unfiltered feedback in the form of heckling, boos and "lock him up" chants.
4
I sure wish you had written like this about him in the summer of 2016, instead of constantly snarking about the Clintons and Obamas, while treating Trump as mildly amusing.
13
@flydoc--C'mon. Nobody took Trump seriously. And, don't forget that he lost by more votes than any other losing presidential candidate in history. He never brags about being the #1 loser though. I wonder why?
2
@Ms. Pea ~
That "he lost by more votes than any other losing presidential candidate in history" may be indicative that the Russians helped more than we yet know. I hope the history books get it right.
2
As an American by naturalization, not by birth, I have always appreciated July 4th as the one national holiday on the calendar that's not only free of exploitative commercialism but ironically enough relatively free of jingoism; I think that's because the Declaration of Independence stressed principle over nation. The anniversary of D-Day was a reminder of that; however reluctantly it entered WW II the US, once it was in, saw it as a battle for principle rather than national aggrandizement.
Fast forward to 2019, and a US leader who wants to turn Americans' attention on July 4th not towards a free nation but towards himself. So long after WW II, I fear that it does not enter many American minds that the German people under the Nazis were required to pledge loyalty not to their nation and its institutions but to the person of the Führer himself.
15:15 EDT, 6/08
3
Trumps behaviour explained to me why America is the best place to sell snake oil
2
Worse than seeing a draft deserter on TV on the Fourth of July is seeing a racist giving a speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
I wish I could be there to protest the despicable man, but his visage makes me physically ill.
3
I posted this earlier on my FB page.
Turn on channel six, the President comes on the news...
Bob Weir* and Dead & Company sing his traditional
"One More Saturday Night" as a second set closer
last night at The Gorge Amphitheatre, George, WA, USA
On the same day that George Orwell's 1984 was published in 1949...
And now this 4th of July holiday will be spoiled by _________ .
I won't type my thoughts...
*Words and music by Bob Weir
1
He is a total loser. We need to make laws that he can’t do most of what he has done. As it is, I’m a Philadelphian and I will honor my country by not even watching or listening to this criminal
2
I know you can't print this, but we're dealing with Eric Cartmann. I knew that should he win the 2016 election, the P.T. Barnum persona would vanish, and as if by magic South Park's own Eric Cartmann would move into 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
With every lame brained decision he makes I hear Eric's "maaaaaaam!"
We can only hope all those over the top patriots who back him finally will realize he's not on their side. He's only on his side. (I can't help but wonder whether he's ordering extra and special items for dinner as he is rumored to have done when he first was in the White House. Eric would.)
1
I say, let's rent the Trump baby balloon and get our own small ones made and gather in front of Fox news cameras. Then we can have our own ceremony, sending the small ones up in the night sky during the fireworks.
And at certain points during the speech, we can all shout ... Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire.
We don't need co ordination, the timing will be Organic.
1
Actually, Trump has presented us with an enormous opportunity.
All good people, from near and from far, should gather on the mall for this, and exercise their First Amendment rights by shouting him down. And what if Trumpers gather in kind to shout us down? Shout back, but I think that there are more of us than there are of them. We'll see.
Trump is a fraud and a liar. He's a pig toward women and a racist to boot. A coward with foot issues. Even Republicans cringe at the stuff he says and does.
And so let's gather in D.C. on July 4 and let our voices be heard. This is, exactly, the sort of thing the Founding Fathers would celebrate. We can make America great again by confronting Trump with a six-figure crowd screaming "Oh no don't!" No violence, just masses of people showing that this country is better than Trump.
See you in D.C.
3
Best response to this...stay away. And how refreshing it would be if the media had the backbone to not cover the fool.
2
Everything he touches turns rancid. I'm sick of it.
4
This time Trump is actually going to make me throw up. Maybe I will from know until July 5th. Turn off your TVs and celebrate the 4th on your porches with your families. Do not read about it in the NYT or anywhere else. Pray that this disgusting anomaly ends in one term, and that we awake from a long nightmare alive. Excuse me, I was going to write more, but I’m feeling too nauseous.
1
When will the media stop fueling Trump’s power? C’mon, Maureen. Why not lead your colleagues down the path to obliterating his relevance, and ignore him? Oh yeah, it is all about revenues. So you are part of the problem (until you help fix it). Stop pouring fuel on the fire of racism and stupidity and create something of value like policies that educate poor kids, cover health care for all, and protect the environment. Please.
2
Based on the crowd Trump usually draws, 4th of July in the Capitol is likely to resemble a white nationalist rally with a sea of MAGA hats and NRA bumper stickers. Don't forget your tiki torches!
Better to keep the celebrations local, at least until the Trump family clears out of town for good. And turn off the TV, because the networks will dutifully cover Trump's self promoting speech and a few attacks on Mueller, Pelosi and Biden for good measure.
Our Seattle area public 4th of July celebrations tend to attract disproportionate numbers of recent immigrant families. I am not sure what happens to the long termers. Maybe large crowds and loud bangs remind them too much of the Mandalay Bay massacre in Las Vegas and the lack of an assault weapons ban.
Perhaps a future EPA will ban all things Trump as destructive to the environment and health. Until then, make sure you are registered to vote this clown outa town.
What after 2 and 1/2 years I still don't get is why Mo enabled and promoted trump and continually bashed HRC during the campaign only to then write unflattering columns on trump. That's the column I'd like to read.
3
is there nothing Trump can do that will lead his base to abandon him? After his cheap shots against his political rivals at the American cemetery at Coleville-sur-Mer with the graves of D-day heroes arrayed behind him, he now seeks to turn the national celebration of American independence into a 2020 campaign rally. Come on folks, it's time to see him for the narcissistic phony that he is. Is this what you want in an American president? Truly?
Certain nations in our era ask loyalty of their citizens to a person in the form of a king or queen. That's innocuous enough when the Head of State symbolizes the nation and wields no real power, which is reserved for a separate Head of Government.
But when the functions of Head of State and Head of Government are combined into a single position, such a focus on personality is downright dangerous.
trump's plan to hijack July 4th to celebrate himself rather than to celebrate the nation and its institution is an assault on the spirit if not the letter of America's institutions. Maybe the institutions are robust to survive his assaults; but this one calls to mind the history of the '30s, when citizens of Germany were required to pledge loyalty not to the nation or its institutions, but to the person of the Führer.
20:20 EDT, 6/08
3
Thank God for the mute button.
1
Good for you Ms. Dowd, finally joined the majority of humankind after 3 years of your conservative support for trump.
1
Trump is in a slow panic- seizing the headlines with phony posturing (Mexican trade threats,4th of July pomposity, name-calling, etc)- as he senses the walls closing in.
He cannot start a war against Iran since every rational person in and outside the current administration is horrified at such a prospect. He can't invade Venezuela without stumbling into a messy civil war.
So he just flails and has 'twantrums'- imaging his tweets are convincing bits of state craft. Does he think we are really such suckers ?
1
This sounds like another attempt to turn a National Day of Celebration into an ego=promotion?political rally in the style of another dictator , decades ago in Germany.
Will there be brown-shirted youth? Will there be rousing cries demonizing the "enemies" such as Latinos, immigrants and Muslims???
The level of disgusting behavior by this empirically inclined buffoon is beyond words.
1
Anyone else notice that Trump’s chin tilted upward, serious scowl is very much like that of Mussolini? Fill in the blanks on what that might suggest.
I told my 10 year-old grandson of Trump’s plan and he can back with, “Oh, ya, right, and what’s his dream - that we might all be racists one day?”
Useless as usual.
Happily so as usual.
She is reliable.
What requirement is there that the MSM must offer free wall to wall coverage of his speech?
Can't they just run a few highlights on the evening news?
You know, the difference between reporting and propaganda?
Trump from the steps of the memorial...."I want to give a shout out to my Saudi friends in the audience. They're spending a lot of money at my DC hotel. Right guys! A lot of dough! Hey....they love me! They spend money with me and I give them nuclear secrets. That's how it works. Love you guys!"
3
I imagine Trump wants the photo op of him at the Lincoln Memorial with fireworks overhead booming while he crows “how great I are”. If there was anyone who could drag institutions into the mud it’s our “American carnage”president. Yessiree.
1
C'mon, Maureen. If obama was giving a speech on July 4, you'd applaud. Sit on a blanket and munch a hotdog and watch the fireworks.
But he didn’t, did he?
Remember all the right-wing complaints about Obama’s golf? And pretty much everything else that was trivial?
2
@Scott K
Hey, Scott: There is nothing wrong with the president of the United States giving a speech on July 4. No matter what he does, you and others on this board would find fault.
Will people of color be allowed at the ceremony? Or will the bloated Southern and Midwestern Evangelicals demand that it be whites only affair. Lord knows how people of color terrify the Trump base.
3
Who is going to be paying for this? The trump campaign should be sent the bill. In fact, it’s sacrilege at sacred American space, spave that should never be allowed to hold political rallies. The networks should pass on the speech, people should go to their neighborhood fireworks and the mall should be an empty and silent protest of an American draft dodger, coward and liar.
With the traitorous and criminal oligarchs and their agents the Republicans, so-called "evangelicals," and extremist propaganda machine gaining power by the year, I wouldn't bet 25 cents that this country will still exist to celebrate its 300th, and maybe not even its 250th, birthday.
1
Suppose everyone showed up with John S. McCain masks wearing hats from the John S. McCain?
4
I read very little of Dowd since she bashed Hillary and heLped Trump to the presidency. Seems late to see through him now...
13
@Gloria ~
Yes, Gloria. I too read Dowd now, with a jaundiced eye. She did not have a bad word to write about trump before he was elected. But she was relentless in bashing Hillary.
2
Trump is much worse than a "certified Roman candle"—
He is a wrecking ball and national disgrace.
Indeed this orange wrecking ball must not be allowed to swing from one of his long neckties at our Fourth of July, wreaking more havoc and damage.
4
Can anyone imagine what we would witness had President Obama declared that a national holiday was all about him, and he demanded an ego-stroking spectacle?! Suffice to say, ensuing fireworks would not be of the celebratory type...
3
Here’s an excerpt from Frederick Douglass’ 1852 speech about the meaning of the 4th of July. His searing words still resonate today.
“What, to the American slave, is your Fourth of July?
I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciation of tyrants, brass-fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy-a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States, at this very hour.”
6
Pray for rain, lots of rain.
6
There's very little love for Trump in DC, right? So don't cede the mall to the MAGAs. Get out your protest signs and get ready to boo the creep. See how much he enjoys speaking at an anti-Trump rally.
6
I like scoundrel but, it’s too dignified. Wastrel (waste and scoundrel) more covers the actual man. Scoundrels would be the Senate.
2
I would encourage everyone to look at the “14 characteristics of fascism”, attributed to Dr, Lawrence Britt.
The very first characteristic seems in play here:
“1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.”
As to the rest of the list, it looks like Herr Trump and his administration are going for all of them. Read them for yourself and see what I mean:
https://www.ratical.org/ratville/CAH/fasci14chars.html
My prediction? A twelve-year old will shoot a bottle rocket across the Mall, Trump will be smothered by the Secret Service and then dragged away. Later, Trump will describe it as an assassination attempt and order the immediate arrest of Hillary Clinton.
There. That should just about do it or have I left something out?
Trump is both a child and a clown. Pathetic.
4
If only Leni von Riefenstahl were still alive to capture it on film!
3
The picture which accompanies the article -- Melania looking bored and himself looking smug and self-satisfied. But I digress -- himself and Melania alone together, the world continuing to spin around the sun and nobody cared diddly squat about The Donald.
This sad insecure man-child is so fearful of being ignored that he''s hijacking our most important day, the day the USA was born.
We must act now -- it's boycott time.
The nation's 4th of July celebration turned into a giant Trump rally--let's see what we should expect. Imagine the ranting, the insults, the screams for Hillary Clinton to be hanged. Not to mention the claims to greatness from the little man and the lies he'll spread. Happy 4th!
When he starts to speak let us all drown him out with a spontaneous rendering of America the Beautiful.
3
Sounds like a great opportunity for a "Yuge" anti-Trump rally. If enough people protest his presence, he might decide to have bone spurs that day. Maybe the Brits could loan us that Baby-in-diaper balloon.
1
Dowd has to do a column on what has happened to our country that we sent this kind of person to the white house and that he is a serious contender for re-election.
This is without a doubt the best column Ms. Dowd has ever written.
2
I always expand my vocabulary reading Maureen, and recommend her to every high school student aspiring to an 800 on the verbal SAT. This week, in addition to a real gem, (why hasn’t this become part of everyone’s vernacular the past two years?), bollix , (just do Look Up with your iPad), she adds the edgy RBF ,(not to be confused with our beloved RBG), which I am afraid to type in full words, lest the Times AI for screening inappropriate language blocks my post altogether..
With Piers on the British news, our King D, (the French papers joked he thought the D in D-Day stood for Donald), proclaimed that the Democrats vying for the Presidential nomination have no Winston Churchill among them.
Which is an eerily apt analogy. Because just as England needed their Roaring Lion to confront the ruthless Nazi dictator who was sending blitzkriegs across Europe, so does America need one now, for our own continent. We don’t need a Chamberlain.
My dear friend, the late Stefan Lorant, a newspaper editor in Munich whom Hitler imprisoned without trial soon after taking power in Germany, and who had previously known Hitler from interviews and even picnics, came to England after his release, started the magazine Picture Post, and most important, warned Churchill that Hitler could never be trusted. The “peace in our time” Chamberlain had negotiated was a sham. Give Hitler an inch and he’ll take a mile, Lorant warned.
We need our own Churchill now. Nothing less. We shall never surrender.
1
Shout him down, boo him. This is our chance, if the narcissistic fool is actually going to make a REAL public appearance. This is the day Americans have been waiting two years for. Let's turn this into the best 4th, since the first one. A national rally against a fascist tyrant who has no place making a speech at the Lincoln Memorial, only steps away from the Vietnam Memorial. He has no shame. Have we?
2
I suppose it is the only way he can hijack, or rather attract, a big crowd on the Mall. Plus he can get the National Park Service to organize and finance the festivities. No need to send out his consiglier to get money from shady characters, or for Melania to hire a friend from New York to handle logistics. I don't know about you, but I am sick of all this winning. Just a simple man of the people. In fact, our simplest of men. MAGA
Where was this Ms. Dowd back in 2016? Oh, that's right; she and the NY Times were wallowing in the irrelevant "missing" e-mails and doing their very best to demonize Ms. Clinton. Well, you've gotten what you worked so hard for - Donald J. Trump Now's there's buyers' remorse? Euro-Americans, please!
2
Once Trump finds out how many people will likely be there protesting, (downing out the deplorables who thought they'd be going to a MAGA rally), the Coward in Chief will cancel the event.
1
We all know that Trump is a liar
Whose threats take us down to the wire.
The truculent bum
Simply mutters 'ho hum'
As he sets then admires his fire.
2
All of a sudden I remember that witty old Maureen Dowd I used to loved to read back in those early twothousandsies.
He has no respect for anything. Everything is subject to his cheap theatrics. He coarsens all events. He can't control his egomania. He is the most unfit president ever!
3
I say, show up, sing America the Beautiful, and drown him out! PLEASE!
What an arrogant beast is Donald J. Trump, in addition to being so 'bulky and loud' as to upset the environment he so passionately abhors. Narcissism is his 'original sin', convinced as he is that he is the center of everything (akin to the maturity of a 2 year-old)...and a well deserved applause for his abuse.
America must take back the soul of our nation from this mountebank scourge. His narcissism is well skewered here by Ms. Dowd. I urge all genuine patriots to roast Trump on the 4th of July like the cheap weenie he is.
2
Maybe we could burn him in effigy for the 4th. Build a monumental Trump and then set off fireworks in place of his ridiculous hair. Then whole thing could go up in flames leaving a puddle of melted wax at the bottom.
1
Why waste all the words? “Trump is a malignant narcissist.“ That says it all, doesn’t it?
1
I was with Maureen Dowd for most of this essay, but when the Times prints a comment referring to Donald Trump's "bitch face," it's allowed her to go too far. Why sink to his level? And it's also a terribly sexist remark.
"Resting bitch face": perfect! I have never seen two more miserable looking humans in my life, considering that they are supposedly the best people ever with all the nicest stuff.
Maureen Dowd has a gift for evisceration. In recent months she has bestowed it on deserving malefactors ranging from Tarantino to Weinstein to Trump. Of the last she writes in this column:
"Trump is going to turn a holiday that had somehow managed to remain nonpartisan and playful into a MAGA rally, dragging his perpetual resting bitch face and American carnage onto the Mall."
Masterful! "...his perpetual resting bitch face..." Priceless.
The chorus of "the emperor has no clothes" grows louder the deeper we sink into this catastrophe voters unleashed on election day 2016, and not just from NYT sensibilities, even from several hundred former federal prosecutors representing the breadth of the political spectrum who find a clear basis for obstruction of justice charges against Trump in The Mueller report.
So why do I have the sick feeling that this malignancy on the nation's governance just might pull out a second term in 2020, from an unholy alliance between his true believers, principled Republicans willing to look the other way for the undoing of 60 years of social progress, and bickering Democrats who would rather lose an election than close ranks behind a nominee who prevailed over their particular favorite?
2
July 4th in my small city has great fireworks and our school bands quite professional overall.
What a joy it will be to once again enjoy them both.
We are so lucky not to be living in DC on the 4th and having the holiday desecrated by a man campaigning for another term of putting America last.
4
For me the Lincoln Memorial has become a homage to a quaint old era when the country's conflicts were over important issues and ideals were still something that intellectuals strived to explain and editorial pages debated.
Now, the US is no different in the fundamentals than Russia and China where the majority of people live lives without the moral certitude that good principles will prevail and representation is fairly won. Under Trump, the whole of America feels like a flyover state.
2
No one can hijack the fourth of July, 2019. All over the nation, bands will play, flags will wave, fireworks will soar.
In D.C., a heel-challenged man will be commercially televised ineptly reading a speech he doesn't comprehend, intruding in front of the huge memorial where Lincoln's own true words are inscribed on the walls, including healing words to the nation torn by civil war, "with malice towards none; charity for all."
The ant at the picnic will be brushed off.
8
The Mueller Report lays out evidence of obstruction that would get any ordinary citizen convicted. While his campaign's interactions with the Russians may not have risen to the level of a legally defined conspiracy, collusion was rampant and cynical. Yet our Representatives refuse to begin impeachment.
If Congress will not stand up to the criminal in the White House, what surprise is it that the Park Service didn't say, "No, Mr. President, you cannot hijack the Fourth of July celebration in Washington"? Every day in every way, Bill Barr is being proven right: the president is above the law.
Folks worry we are headed for an authoritarian state. We are already there; we just haven't come to terms with the facts.
16
Perhaps there could be a split screen reading of the Mueller Report.
1
It does amaze me that pundits such as Ms. Dowd don't seem to have any conservative friends on social media. During the Obama administration, conservative media would loudly announce that this was going to be the last Fourth of July festivities because Obama was going to cancel them. The reasons varied (ozone emissions, birtherism, etc) but the statement was clear: the non-American president was going to take away the most American of holidays. Trump taking over the capital celebration and speaking is a clear signal to many of his followers (not unlike its ok to say " merry Christmas") that a real American is back in charge.
3
@Bill Horak
‘Real’ American...in charge...Huh? What’s real is that Trump is a front man for the Russians and Saudis, and he’s too busy admiring his tan and may not know they’re in charge...however, taking their cues from Flynn, I’m sure that Pompey, Bolton, Pence, Miller etc know exactly where to deposit the checks hailing from Moscow & Riyadh.
1
Unfortunately, I have made it a habit to leave the country for the 4th of July since the 2016 election. Last year it was Montreal and Mount Tremblant, despite a brutal heat wave. Having just relocated to Denver, I'll head to the mountains, far, far away from coverage of the "celebration." I look forward to the day when pride in my country is restored, and the stain that is donald trump begins to recede into the past.
VOTE as if the future of our nation is at stake, for it truly is.
30
Trump's 4th of July speech is basically a tax payer funded campaign rally that completely politicizes this hallowed holiday. This year, a national event that celebrates our over throw of tyranny, will be in fact be presided over a president who is attempting to install himself as a tyrannical monarch. The cynical nature of this planned event once again puts Trump in a win win situation. If there are large numbers of protests planned Trump will unleash his neo nationalist followers and there will be violence and he will gloat. If the event is boycotted and poorly attended then he will be enabled to lie and claim the largest crowds ever for such an event, the best speech ever. If there is a such a thing, I would like to know how to contribute to the Baby Trump Ballon fund to ensure that the area around the Lincoln monument is flooded with them; silent witnesses.
23
@PaulM
Hear, hear! I would contribute to that display. Bring on the Blimp!
4
Fire ants at the national picnic. In your pants.
7
@Jeffrey Stark
And "Liar, liar, pants on fire"!!
Trump is a man inspired by his WWKD (What Would Kim Do) wristband.
6
Watching him stand in front of the great Lincoln Memorial, stumbling through a TelePrompTer filled with bland platitudes, it will be hard for even the most craven of Trump’s supporters to not notice how he pales in comparison. Lincoln was actually very intelligent and supremely at ease with who he was and his place in the history of this great nation. Trump has to beg people to believe he is a stable genius. For god’s sake he can’t even spell. His idea of sacrifice isn’t relatable to young soldiers dying on a faraway beach, or in the fields of Gettysburg, it is not being able to use his gold toilet. Do his red state residents and blue collar voters realize this is a grown man who actually uses a gold toilet, cheats on his wives with highly paid porn stars, and thinks fashionable out on the town attire is a suit with a baseball hat?
I want the Senate lackeys to stand next to the President while he praises himself beneath the shadow of Old Abe. Let America see the honor, the courage, the humility on display. Let Russia and North Korea beware, here are men with the wherewithal with the power to place young children in small cages in cold rooms, and to grab any woman anywhere it please them. Perhaps Kanye could sing a rap song after the National Anyhem?
20
The though of this crass excuse for a man will be a his typical carnival barker self on this day is absolutely sickening.
13
I think it's a waste of time for Ms. Dowd to write about Trump. One can kick a dead horse, but why?
1
@victor g Because it's our civic responsibility to call him out each and every time he does or says something inappropriate, wrong, or immoral which sadly is almost on a daily basis.
18
@victor g, because the dead horse stinks, and its addled gut still issues gas-filled orders to America.
Maybe look up the word 'civics' and take 10 minutes to read what the 4th of July means to America. When he says he's going to give a speech "by your favorite president, I hope!", it's obviously about him in his own rotting brain. His brand gets a boost, and that's his precious.
I feel inspired to communicate my outrage, and you don't. Got it. trump likes it when you don't waste your time being outraged by his rotting carcass of a presidency.
That's why we kick this. We want this particular rotting mess out of our nation!
1
Let’s hope this is a prophecy for 2020.
Who gives a you know what about Donny Trump and July 4th? It's a waste of time. Let's get on with the drumbeat of hearings and drafting of Articles of Impeachment.
12
Any chance England would let us borrow the Trump blimp for the first week of July at the Mall?
23
Maureen Dowd is endowed with a delightful, genius way to turn a phrase. Would that she had turned that ability toward doing what she could to stop the ascendency of this abomination instead of turning it on Hillary Clinton. But, no.
She is one of the reasons the United States is being embarrassed and taken down by the so-called president (who is so "unpresidented")
15
@Leslie--Maureen Dowd is hardly responsible for Trump's election. Hillary Clinton got three million more votes than Trump, and she would be president today, if not for the antiquated electoral college system we have. Trump loves to brag about how he's so much better than his predecessors, but he never mentions that he lost by millions more votes than any other losing president in history. How come he never brags about being the biggest losing president of all time?
8
Leslie, you are so correct.
Maureen Dowd never missed a column
where she didn’t harangue Hillary during the run up to the 2016 election.
Before she put “pen to paper”, maybe she should have considered what she was doing to enable Trump.
Looks like a “bigly” case of buyer’s remorse.
3
How many Trump supporters do you think actually read Maureen Dowd? And how many of those do you think would have voted for Hillary Clinton if Maureen Dowd had urged them to? I suspect that the answer is pretty close to none whatsoever.
Will there be a flyover of a squad of Trump's favorite airplane, the F-52?
2
@CJ13 - Flanked by B-35s, launched by giant rubber bands from the USS Trump, anchored in the Potomac River where it is taking on Clean Coal. MAGA !
2
The Fourth of July crowds will be even less than the Inauguration on the Mall. This man is so pathetic. I hope future July 4th's limits him to spouting off to his cell block buddies.
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Too bad Maureen's beautiful writing has to be wasted on a piece of garbage like Trump.
I say wasted because the people who should be reading, absorbing, thinking about, verifying, then acting on every vile action this pseudo-president has taken and every nasty lie he has uttered — and there are a lot — will stay glued to the hateful, destructive pundits they know and love.
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Good on you for trying Ms. Dowd, but there's just nothing funny about that vulgarian dirtying the US holiday.
Recall the pathetic speech he gave to a national gathering of boy scouts. There's no mystery how this will turn out.
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My first reaction on hearing about this was that there might be a huge, ad hoc counter-demonstration like the ones in 1968-72, a "Shut Him Up!" rally. But then I realized he is counting on that. He reveled in harassing and threatening demonstrators at his campaign rallies. He longs for some 'Reichstag Fire' incident that he can use to clamp down on dissent. Do not play into his fascistic dreams.
Instead let's have our picnics and local fireworks and just ignore it. Do not watch TV that night. (You can always check it out later.) Low ratings are his kryptonite. Let him and his minions slow cook in their own juices while the rest of us have fun and remember that the lyric is 'God Bless America', not him.
13
Little Donnie's plans for the Fourth present a perfect opportunity for this megalomaniac to stand there and proclaim himself President for life.
There isn't a Congress to stop him, because we don't have a functioning Congress. He has the backing of his hero Vladimir Putin and the Russian State and the Republican Party sold their souls to the devil, Donald. The military will go along to get along.
This very "stable genius" honestly sees himself as the savior for the world.
This pathetic little little man is so disturbed.
6
You said it!! Sparklers in the backyard for all this year! Boycott it WA!
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free” oh wait, that describes Americans who need a reprieve from King Trump. There are 331,500,000 people in America and dipstick is the best we could come up with?
Parents who care about their children should have parental controls on anything Trump. We want a future generation of children to believe that becoming the POTUS is an honorable endeavor.
Help!!!
7
Sadly Mr. Trump represents the United States of Central North America. Perfectly.
Trump reinforces what the rest of the world thinks: the ugly American. Vain, self righteous, ignorant businessman hiding behind wealth. A bully.
Blowback kiddies.
6
Donald Trump simply wants to remind America that it's still--for now, anyway--a white country. And that he aims to keep it that way.
You're obviously a Beach Boys fan, Ms. Dowd, a historically racist group ("we're white and we sing white") without much more talent than Ted Nugent. Why doesn't the president invite them? Because they fronted for Mitch Romney in 2012?
I would twist the title of a Sister Sledge song; what the 45th president means is "We Aren't Family."
Have a happy Fourth, America.
2
Boycott it.
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There is no July 4th when this monster is president.
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What to do? Americans opened the door and let this bull into the China shop, so now we’ve got to endure some ironically patriotic and most likely offensively ostentatious display of the president’s ego.
Our nation’s founders would hardly recognize what we’ve done with the place. They couldn’t have imagined a country that would have the wealth and power that it has, or would welcome immigrants or grant civil rights, women’s rights and LGBTQ rights that would make it possible for anyone to become president.
Literally anyone, we discovered to our dismay.
What would they think to hear that our president is denying the destructive reality of climate change, undermining education, making a mockery of the country’s leadership and robbing its citizens with underhanded tax breaks for billionaires?
The Forth of July should be a day of national pride, not a teeth-clenched anticipation of some potential national embarrassment. But a president who kisses up to Putin and Kim Jong-un can hardly be expected to exude decorum.
Let’s save the parties, the fireworks, the banners and the massive cheering crowds for the day with this man is no longer in charge. That will be a day worth celebrating.
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@gemli ~
"Let’s save the parties, the fireworks, the banners and the massive cheering crowds for the day with this man is no longer in charge. That will be a day worth celebrating."
Absolutely perfect!
5
Sometime before this year's fireworks, would it be possible for someone to interpret the following passages from the Declaration of Independence to the orange tufted reptile currently occupying our White House?
"A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people."
" He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands."
"He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions."
"Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."
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you nailed it Ms. Dowd...
DJT gets his slimy goo all over everything and everybody in his sphere.
Hoping for collective sanity for 2020 and beyond.
by the way what's your brother, Kevns's current opinion of this administration (besides the court appointments)???
3
Pray for rain.
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Please everyone enjoy the Fourth somewhere out of earshot of our National Disgrace!
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It’s settled then. We’ll call it the Fourth of Boo-ly Celebration. The Donald’s Me First, E Pluribus Trumpum address at the hallowed Lincoln Memorial should receive an earsplitting barrage of boos louder than the artillery assault that inspired the Star Spangled Banner. To paraphrase Francis Scott Key, let the “raspberries red glare, the boos bursting in air” drown out Trump in deafening aural fireworks and chase that lying, narcissistic, child-caging, women-assaulting, lawbreaking, white nationalist disgrace back to the White House to play with his golf machine.
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Trump is an obscene waste of America's time. Ignore him except to vote him out. Independence Day will be election day 2020.
4
Pray for rain.
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I think a general's uniform in powder blue with high black leather boots, a la Hermann Goering, would be best. Or white, like in other banana republics. And one of each military and civilian medal ever available, which he can award himself by executive order and put on backwards.
America, look yourself in the mirror...
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Trump is poison. He poisons everything.
3
I’ve never been a huge fan of July 4th. My patriotism has always been a struggle between the ideal and the reality. Until Obama who made me so proud of us. Now this orange thoughtless man breaks our country. And I’m up in arms and willing to defend US to the end of time. And the fact that he will make this fake performative tv production all about himself and will undoubtedly gin up his base is sickening, as is he. Impeach the bum.
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Here’s a man who for most of his life sought cheap labor, in some cases close to slavery. He’s going to stand before Lincoln?
The racist president is going to stand on the same steps as Marion Anderson, denied Constitution Hall by the DAR because she was black. The racist president I’d going to speak from the same steps as Martin Luther King, Jr.
Nauseating!
3
I guess missing the Queens Trooping of the Colors, the #PLIC, Bone Spur, Orange Jump Suit man was more inspired to have his own celebratory (sic) event.
Scoundrel, defiler, narcissist, infantile. That pretty much sums it up. Oh, and Individual One. Why is this man still President?
3
What I wouldn't give to see James Cagney tell Trump; "You dirty rat!".
You had to see the movie.
I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy. C'mon, sing along as our great nation founders.
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A treasonous, sociopathic con man who demeans war heroes, the disabled, pays off porn stars, ridicules vets for going to war and wants to sleep with his daughter while challenging his rubes to lock up the free press and his opposition?
Welcome to Hannity/Trump America
2
You really can't tell me any more about trump than I knew three years ago....without Fox news or NYT; anymore than you could have told me about Cheney, Bolton, Bush. I saw them interviewed and listened to their speeches. People like these need no translation or explanation. News services breathe air into these dead bodies and give them a life they don't deserve. To me, the president's office is vacant, in stasis, on hold until it is filled by a President.
You and other columnists and reporters have an easy job albeit monotonous. Tell me something I don't know....a.k.a. News.
3
If it's not about the Dear Leader it's not happening.
2
The imposter president must continuously insert his ugly mug into our consciousness along with his hateful speech. He has deeply fatigued the American public with the worst impersonation of a president ever thrust on the public. Go away already, Trump! We all deserve a vacation from you and your constant toddleresque need for attention.
2
He's sounding more like Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un every day. Remember when we thought Kim was the crazy one?
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Those present could just break into song when he speaks. Drown him out!
Maybe there should be an organized mass reading of the Presidential Oath of Office....? On repeat...
" and (he) got the (Catholic) girls bumped so they marched behind the boys." Really Donny? What red blooded, hetero American male, doesn't want to walk behind a dozen of so Catholic school girls? How Un-American, and un-male could you be?
2
Maybe no one should be present this year.
Thanks for your brilliantly written column. I've been stewing about this since the president's plans to ruin the 4th of July were announced. But, perhaps since seven of my relatives served in WWII, I found trump and his grifter family's participation in last week's D-Day commemoration far more upsetting. So I'll just spend the day celebrating locally, praying for our democracy, and giving the tv a rest. But please, anyone, don't give this monster a flag to hug!
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There is a way for the media to deal with this, but it is unlikely they will be brave and patriotic enough--just don't show up to broadcast the Trump speech.
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Independence Day is a commemoration of the electric moment in 1776 when the founders captured on paper a revolutionary lurch in human consciousness. The smell of barbecue and gun powder, the recollections of summer and family, are all part of our shared national experience.
But I wonder if many of us take the time to re-imagine that combustible moment of national creation, and, more importantly, do we realize, how fragile that flame was, and is? We celebrate the day with fireworks, which provide a perfect visual and sonic metaphor for the explosive idea of the day. But fireworks crash and glow for just a few seconds, and then it is night once more. I fear there is a tendency to take for granted the permanent, self-protecting nature of the words framed by Thomas Jefferson, as though the language defining such a mighty idea were somehow sufficient to protect our nation and its ideals.
As the Fourth of July approaches, I sense something new, smoldering like a slow match next to the fireworks box. The next lurch forward will require courage and love. And whether Trump knows it or not, his rhetoric, his fear, his bottomless hunger and his current attempt to co-opt the legacy of the patriots who for our freedom – and sadly for Trump’s freedom to desecrate their memory – all of these things are lighting a new spark under our nation. We will be whole again.
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@Jersey John, only if all voters do their duty and vote the monster out of office.
My only concern with respect to Trump setting foot on the Lincoln Memorial is whether there is enough disinfectant to cleanse it once he leaves.
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Independence day is to celebrate our escape from those British narcissist, to to have our own self promoting one hijack it.
It seems those GOP supporting farmers in Iowa, want it to be that way, as do some self promoting Kansans, and a few other from the Red States of Failure, for whom the Constitution was an impediment to their states rights, like owning black people.
This coming Fourth celebration will forever be known as the day of the Clown, the hero of the Bones Spurs War, riding to victory on his golf cart, recording the scores as he wants them to be. His speech if it can be called that will not be remembered very long, with his down inflections at the end of each sentence, it sounds like a funeral dirge, his is unlistenable to those of us who still have some reverence for the language, and thank those hardy individuals that gave usthis day in 1776, Dishonest Donald brings his dishonor to it for the last time we hope.
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I hope the entire police and national park service stage a sick-out and upend the entire affair. It's already a national mall logistical disaster which they know based on experience. I also predict a high probability of rain and thunderstorms, by, the National Weather Service, as back-up. No one in charge of these events supports this plan. No one. Every White House event staged for the public is a dud. This will be no different.
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Let's hope this doesn't develop into a pitched battle between DC natives and bussed-in MAGA hat wearing nutters.
5
The Washington 4th of July Trump rally is simply an attempt to reenact the Nuremberg rallies. All hail the gloroius leader,
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please stop writing columns about him. just say: On the 4th turn on your TV and enjoy the music and fireworks but when someone co-ops the festivities with a speech about MAGA turn the TV off.
3
That the NY Times doesn't call for his immediate impeachment and removal from office is more disturbing than the mentally ill president planning yet another "Look over there, it's a squirrel!" moment.
6
If you agree that an impeachment inquiry, or proceeding, whatever you want to call it, needs to begin immediately, then please call Nancy Pelosi's office, whether in Washington DC or San Francisco, and remind the Speaker of her constitutional duty. Pelosi's stubborness is immoral, ridiculous, and wrong. To not impeach Donald Trump sends a terrible message, basically saying we are cowards in the face of tyranny, and the idiot king in the White House is above the law. Pelosi is looking stupid and sounding worse. Get to work Madam Speaker, and impeach Trump or immediately resign.
3
Hail to the Chief on the Trump of July.
Make America Glibbery Again!
2
Will we survive this clown who cares only about having his ego stroked?
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We will look back on this "celebration" of this 4th and wonder how we could have been so naive. We will wonder how columns such as this one could have blithely tossed petty insults, thus relegating Trump to the status of a crazy uncle, while wholly ignoring his true status as our nation's first dictator.
Folks, we cannot joke our way to November 2020. And if "dear leader" decides to declare a national emergency and cancel the election, no amount of joking will get us out of the horrific situation we find ourselves in.
But the fact is, Trump will not leave in 2020, or in 2024. He will leave only at a time of his choosing. And he knows that his power is limited only by his imagination and the laws of physics. And how does he know this? Because his cult-like, heavily armed followers remain in lockstep with him. Think of the tens of thousands of adoring crowds cheering on Hitler. This is where we are today. Here. In this country.
But there is one way that we might have some semblance of a "celebration" this week. We may actively support efforts to partition the country. Blue states contribute to this nation, while Red states are a net drain on the rest of us. They need us a whole lot more than we need them. And most of us in Blue states do not want to live in a racist, ignorant Republic of Gilead.
So my resolution this July 4th is to do whatever I can to secure our Constitutional rights and freedoms. Sadly, that is no longer possible in these United States.
3
Didn't Forrest Gump speak at the Lincoln Memorial? Not too bright, difficulty speaking, and kept showing up at national and international events...
Stupid is as stupid does.
1
On July fourth he’s going to announce that July 2 his face will be on fifty dollar bill
1
Hamburgers, hotdogs and now.....Trump? Naaaa....., I'll just keep it "All American" and turn off the TV.
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On this Fourth of July let us consider some of the great Americans who sacrificed their lives for this nation. Let us consider FDR. In many ways FDR sacrificed his life for the United States. He was told by doctors that a fourth term in office would kill him, that he needed rest, but FDR knew something that his doctors did not know, FDR knew a terrible secret, FDR knew about the Atomic bomb. There was no way to know what was happening in Germany, no way to know how far along the German scientists were on their way to creating a nuclear weapon. The knowledge of atomic weapons made the war in Europe a race against time. The clock was ticking on the entire human race. Adolf Hitler with an Atomic weapon in his hands was a thought too terrible to imagine. A President is the chief worrier of a nation, the man who must imagine and reimagine every possible nightmare scenario. Watching Trump disembark from air force one and then step onto marine one, while much braver men then him guarded his every step, while people much more accomplished then him scurried behind him with suitcases and notes, while people much more self sacrificing than him salute him; is a different type of nightmare , it is the nightmare or all of us intelligent enough to worry about the future.Like FDR we can’t sleep at night, the hour is getting late, and this imposter President is enjoyable the pomp and pageantry more and more everyday. Truly the ignorant sleep soundly where the brave find no rest.
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Maureen.....the Times should give you a big raise for the most descriptive phrase of the year for The Donald: “perpetual resting bitch face”. Priceless!
9
Holy Cow! Maureen used to be at least partly subtle.
It is unlikely that my views are shared by many, but here it is: Trump knows less about the world than a 6-year old, he is an idiot and a liar. But... I will vote for him again enthusiastically.
More the fool who knows himself ...
2
Maureen,
Trump knows, in this day of saturated media, that the way to get power, and stay in power is to show off and brag and look like a real Amurcan to a huge audience. Like he did with the Apprentice.
What better place to show off and brag than the Washington Mall on the fourth of July?
Everyone will be there to take his picture. Then, post it to their facebook and say what a tremendously patriotic President he is.
Even you can take his blurry picture thereby somewhat obscuring his "bitch face".
:-)
1
Is there anyone left in the country that doesn't realize that Donald Trump is a certifiable whack job?
This bigmouthed buffoon sinks further into insanity with each passing day.
He desecrated the beaches of Normandy, and now he's going to disrespect the Fourth of July.
The Founding Fathers would have disposed this liar and traitor at the first opportunity. We need to do the same thing. He's a walking time bomb that needs to be defused before his tiny little brain explodes and gets us all killed.
What a pathetic little little man Donald Trump is.
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All I can think of M.D. is how you poisoned H.R.C.'s chances. Are you able to sleep at night?
4
The American voter, and a flawed electoral system, elected Trump, and will have long lasting, ultra serious--if not fatal consequences-- in the future. His policies and destruction of environmental safeguards will affect the nation negatively for generations.
Unfortunately, with McConnell and company owning the Senate, and a friendly SC, the House has limited power to control the excesses of this unhinged man, Trump.
If he is elected for a second term, holy hell will befall this nation's people. The rule of law will be meaningless. The end of 'the great experiment' will be over.
2
Didn’t the dipstick say that he’s the greatest president ever, and then corrected himself; perhaps Washington is the best?
It was disgraceful enough when standing in front of a bigger-than-life image of FDR at Normandy he read those words spoken by Roosevelt.
trump such a small man.
Now he’s going to stand before Lincoln?
I feel bile rising in my gut.
4
I take issue with calling that scowl of his a "resting bitch face." When I looked that term up the definition indicated that it is a unintentional countenance. There is nothing unintentional about his scowl. The idiot thinks it makes him look serious and important. Always the fraud.
5
Pull out your pussy hats! Fly the Trump Baby balloon! Time for the Resistance to appear in one place YUGE numbers again!
3