Americans step out for their nation's 250th in a proud moment sown with division and doubt

By — Calvin Woodward, Associated Press Calvin Woodward, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/americans-step-out-for-their-nations-250th-in-a-proud-moment-sown-with-division-and-doubt Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Americans step out for their nation's 250th in a proud moment sown with division and doubt Nation Jul 1, 2026 5:52 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — One of the stars of the American firmament once advised citizens of all stripes how to express their love of country. Mark Twain's long-ago words capture how Americans are stepping out this week to wish their nation a happy milestone birthday. "Our patriotism is medieval, outworn, obsolete," Twain wrote in 1905. "The modern patriotism, the true patriotism, the only rational patriotism, is loyalty to the Nation all the time, loyalty to the Government when it deserves it." READ MORE: Poll: Most Americans think the U.S. has strayed from its founding principles In these rabidly partisan times, those who think President Donald Trump deserves their support and those who don't are joining in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Whether all the partying to come gives the nation a breather from disunity or aggravates it is an open question. It's a proud and loud moment, sown with division and doubt. WATCH: Americans divided on nation's history as 250th anniversary nears Love of country comes in different flavors, of course. Some love it as is. Some love what it could become and press on with their activism and protest in pursuit of history's call for a "more perfect union." Some love what it used to be and might be once more — the underpinning of MAGA. But overall, belief in American exceptionalism has waned. More people in the U.S. think there are better countries in the world than those who think the United States is the best. That's according to an April poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research that found 44% endorsing the United States as just one of the best. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. This is not the America of, say, Teddy Roosevelt, whose presidential library Trump is visiting in North Dakota on Wednesday. Roosevelt mirrored the brashness and ambition of a country surging in innovation, industry, influence, military muscle and spirit. In its place is a country where the president is his own brand of brash, but millions of the people he leads wonder if it's all coming apart. Who's in charge here? For the 250th, the division starts at the top, with two organizations claiming to be the one leading the commemoration and all but ignoring the other. A decade ago, Congress created the bipartisan America250 group and charged it by law with planning the country's local, national and international events for the 250th. Trump stepped on that wi