President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani presented radically different views of America in their respective speeches on the eve of July 4, one embracing the country’s history and culture, the other arguing America needs to be fundamentally changed.
Mamdani gave his speech on July 3 from New York City Hall, where he centered unfettered mass immigration in his remarks about what it means to be an American. As he sat at a desk George Washington once used, he was surrounded by naturalized immigrants.
President Trump spoke the same day at Mount Rushmore, where he began his Fourth of July festivities by defending American culture and honoring what makes the country great.
Trump and Mamdani each spoke about immigration, patriotism, and America’s past, but did so in completely different ways. While the president spoke proudly about the country, its people, and its values, Mamdani focused on criticizing America and outlining his vision for transforming it.
Mamdani used his speech to rail against the politics of “division,” while dividing up the country into numerous subgroups and emphasizing the arrivals of different immigrant groups who came to New York City: “Hundreds of thousands of Irish immigrants arrived with stomachs aching from a famine manufactured by imperial cruelty. Chinese sailors settled in what is today Chinatown. Millions more traveled under the Statue of Liberty and through Ellis Island, Jewish people escaping pogroms, Italians fleeing poverty, Syrians seeking economic opportunity.”
He went on to criticize the “nativism” these immigrant groups faced from Americans as they entered the country. To Mamdani, America is a conglomeration of various ethnic groups rather than a unified, coherent nation. Trump’s outlook was quite the opposite.
President Trump said the founding generations “forged a uniquely American character,” a new kind of people who “did not bow before a king or a government, but kneeled only before Almighty God.”
In his speech, Mamdani struggled to identify what an American is, focusing on the national identities passed down from immigrants’ home countries. He told the crowd of immigrants surrounding him that “you each hold a special power, the power to determine what America means.”
In Trump’s vision, though, America already has an identity and a fixed culture inherited from the founders and passed on through generations.
“[W]e must forget that there is no American freedom without American culture,” the president said. “A constitution is only as strong as the people and the culture responsible for upholding it. [W]e have to always remember who we are and what we’re all about.”
Both Trump and Mamdani argued that America was exceptional in their speeches, but they had radically different definitions of what that means. Trump used his speech to show American greatness through what America has done and accomplished. On the other hand, Mamdani says America is exceptional because of what it could change.
“We are told that America is exceptional because we are richer, stronger, more powerful than everyone else,” Mamdani said in his speech. “The truth, my friends, is that America is exceptional because here, nothing is fixed into place.”
Trump argued for the traditional meaning of American exceptionalism that Mamdani harshly criticized: “For 250 years, the entire world has looked to our country and been inspired by the leaps of progress, feats of strength, and acts of selflessness, faith, and hope that could only have happened right here.”
The feats that Americans have accomplished — building the largest economy in the world, winning the most Olympic medals of any country, shaping culture through music and television — could have only been accomplished by Americans, Trump explained. This, he said, is what makes America exceptional.
Both Trump and Mamdani criticized their fellow Americans, but for very different reasons.
Trump told the crowd that he is concerned about rising communist sentiments in America, saying there is a “resurgence of the communist menace” in the United States, including from foreign nationals. He insisted that communist ideology is the enemy of American freedom and ideals: “Communism is the exact opposite of ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’ It’s death, tyranny, and the pursuit of evil.”
Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist who consistently champions Marxist ideology, chose instead to chastise the “powerful,” a group he insists he is not a part of. He tells listeners that this class of people, which he does not define, believes America is “an arena of supremacy, where only a select few are allowed freedom.” One can only assume that this is an indirect attack on Trump and his supporters.
“America, if you ask them, becomes less the more people it welcomes,” Mamdani continued. “America, they will tell you, belongs only to those with the right accent or the right shade of skin.”
On the eve of America’s 250th birthday, Trump warned against the communist faction in America because he says they want to destroy the country and reimagine it. Mamdani presented a radical reimagination of his own.
It’s only 90 miles off the coast of Florida, but it’s a whole different world down in communist Cuba than it is here in the United States.
As the U.S. has ratcheted up economic pressure with punishing sanctions and as the DOJ indicted the late dictator Fidel Castro’s 95-year-old brother RaΓΊl in May for the 1996 killings of four Americans, the island nation has been feeling the heat.
On Monday, they suffered a total blackout, leaving millions of people without power:
BREAKING: Cuba has been hit by another island-wide blackout, leaving roughly 10 million people without power.
Officials say the cause is under investigation as the country's aging electric grid continues to struggle and fuel reserves run low.
It's the second nationwide blackout this year, with hospitals and critical services among those impacted as Cuba faces an ongoing energy crisis.
Their power operations have always been touch-and-go:
Grid operator UNE said it was investigating the cause of the nationwide blackout.
Cuba has for months suffered from hours-long, and more recently, days-long power outages linked in part to a decrepit grid and a U.S. imposed oil blockade that has cut off the island's fuel supply.
It’s an especially bad time for this to happen for citizens, because we’re right at the height of summer.
The nationwide outage is more bad news for Cubans already exhausted from rolling blackouts that make it impossible for many to work or sleep in the Caribbean summer heat.
Cuba has frequently struggled to keep the lights on during a years-long economic crisis but the Communist-run government has entered unprecedented territory under increased pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Nearly two-thirds of the country was already without power when the grid collapsed on Monday.
Cameron Arcand, Senior Washington Correspondent over at our sister site Townhall, reports on the response from the White House:
As the democrat socialists are increasingly taking over the Democratic Party, it’s a stark reminder to those blithering communist idiots like NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: socialism and communism have been tried, they've never worked, and they suck.
π¨ HOLY CRAP! Almost ALL of Communist Cuba is WITHOUT POWER, more than 10 million people are suffering and furious
Officials are PANICKING trying to get the island back online
This is why President Trump has made clear communism can never be allowed to win in America.
Surgeries are being canceled, hospitals are desperate.
Cuba's energy infrastructure is crumbling into the ground, fuel supplies are dwindling, and the regime has NO CLUE how to fix any of it.
DOWN WITH COMMUNISM!
President Donald Trump delivered a historic speech commemorating America’s 250th birthday at Mount Rushmore on Friday, giving a stark warning about the country’s future: If we are to sustain the nation for another 250 years, communism can have “no quarter” here.
Speaking hours after New York City communist Mayor Zohran Mamdani delivered an anti-American, communist speech about America 250, Trump took the stage to warn that foreigners are bringing with them ideologies fundamentally at odds with our republic.
“There is now a resurgence of the communist menace in our land, including from newcomers to our country who embrace ideas totally opposed to our way of life and our great success,” Trump said.
The warning is similar to a warning given by Alexander Hamilton in 1799: “I hold with Montesquieu, that a government must be fitted to a nation, as much as a coat to the individual; and, consequently, that what may be good at Philadelphia may be bad at Paris, and ridiculous at Petersburg.”
In other words, not every people is capable of living in and upholding a republic — Ugandan-born socialist Mamdani being example No. 1.
“These are not mere political disagreements, like differences over taxes or regulations,” the president continued, “communism is a mortal threat to American liberty. It is the greatest threat to our country. … Communism is the enemy of free people everywhere. … It’s the enemy of the Constitution. … It is the enemy of July 4, 1776.”
Trump emphasized that communism “can be given no quarter” in America and that it “represents the worst ideas and abuses in history by the worst people.”
“The American founding represents the best ideas and traditions in history by the best people like you,” Trump continued. “You can be loyal to Karl Marx, or you can be loyal to America. You can be a communist, or you can be a patriot. You cannot be both.”
He’s right. You cannot be both a patriot and a lover of America and freedom while also supporting communism, which is what makes the rise of socialists and communists across the country startling.
As explained by the History Channel, “Socialism and communism are essentially economic philosophies advocating public rather than private ownership, especially of the means of production, distribution and exchange of goods (that is, making money) in a society.” Karl Marx — history’s leading communist — was “one of the most influential socialist thinkers in history.”
“Marxists often refer to socialism as the first, necessary phase on the way from capitalism to communism. Marx and Engels themselves didn’t consistently or clearly differentiate communism from socialism, which helped ensure lasting confusion between the two terms,” the History Channel pointed out.
In other words, the rise of socialism is, at the very least, a precursor to the communist revolution. And despite communism having been responsible for the deaths, starvation, and poverty of millions globally, Americans hold increasingly favorable views of socialism.
The Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports found in a 2025 survey that 53 percent of likely voters aged 18 to 39 would like a Democratic Socialist (code for Marxist) to win the 2028 presidential election.
The growing acceptance is reflected not only in polling but in the election of communists across the country. Mamdani won the mayoral race last November despite having said in a 2021 speech for a Young Democratic Socialists of America conference that socialists believe in “seizing the means of production.” Karl Marx, co-author of The Communist Manifesto, also argued that workers should seize the means of production.
Darializa Avila Chevalier, a socialist candidate for Congress, previously advocated for “seiz[ing] the means of production” in a now-deleted Twitter account, CNN reported. Chevalier also complained that public libraries didn’t have “enough Marxist literature,” according to CNN.
Trump is right — if we are to ensure America sees another 250 years, then we must reclaim the moral clarity of our forefathers and say without apology that not every idea deserves a seat at the table and not every person is fit to be a citizen of our republic.
On July 4, the Democratic Socialists of America announced they passed 120,000 members, making them the largest socialist organization in United States history. They surpassed the Socialist Party of America under Eugene Debs, which peaked at 113,371 dues-paying members in 1912.
They picked the date on purpose.
On July 4, 2026, Democratic Socialists of America passed 120,000 members, making us the largest socialist organization in United States history and surpassing the Socialist Party of America under Eugene Debs, which reached its peak dues-paying membership in 1912.
Join us: dsausa.org/join
This did not happen overnight. The DSA reported a membership surge after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's Democratic primary win in June 2025. The organization then helped Mamdani and a dozen other local candidates win in November 2025 through get-out-the-vote operations, outreach, and other campaign efforts.
Then came New York. On June 23, Mamdani-backed candidates Claire Valdez, Brad Lander, and Darializa Avila Chevalier won three congressional primaries, knocking out two incumbents. Chevalier helped launch Columbia University Apartheid Divest in 2016. The group later wrote that it was fighting for "the total eradication of Western civilization." She still thinks all deportations are wrong. Even for murderers. She said so in a debate with the incumbent she just beat.
When Ali Velshi asked her whether she's a communist, she said: "That framing is one that I've been very proud to be able to say I don't respond to." Two more paragraphs. Never answered.
Trump posted on Truth Social after the wins: "The Communists are finally making their move. I've been waiting and preparing for this for a long time."
On the Fourth, Trump said at his Independence Day speech in Washington, D.C.:
"America will never be a communist country, won't happen. Our warriors did not fight communism on battlefields across the world, only to have that menace rear its ugly head right back here in America. We're not going to let it happen. We'd like to stop a threat like that immediately, and before it begins."
He also told reporters the branding is cosmetic. "They use the word 'Social Democrat' because it sounds so nice, but it's really communism you're talking about."
He is not wrong. The DSA is not waiting to see how 2026 shakes out. National co-chair Megan Romer said the group is already sending surveys to all 250 chapters asking members who they want to get behind in 2028. Responses due back by Sept. 15. The group expects 20-to-40-page reports from chapters coast to coast. Formal endorsement vote at the 2027 convention, though Romer said they could move faster if the primary calendar demands it.
"What DSA represents is a real contrast to Democrats who have run the last couple of elections on fear," Romer said. "You can't run on that. You have to offer an alternative."
That alternative is socialism. They are not hiding it.
The DSA has endorsed about 150 candidates this cycle. Thirty-five have won primaries or advanced without opposition across Oregon, California, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and New York. New York was not a fluke. It was a proof of concept.
Former New York Gov. David Paterson said Democrats risk something bigger than a bad election cycle. "We'd better get that message and turn it around before we become extinct." Rahm Emanuel said the socialist wing is turning "blue districts, dark blue." James Carville said it was time to talk "schism" and that some DSA-aligned candidates "have no place in the Democratic Party." Former DNC Chair Jaime Harrison told DSA-aligned candidates to stop using party resources: "If you hate the Democratic Party, then please don't run for our nomination.”
The Soviet Union tried it. So did Cuba. North Korea still is. The DSA just broke a membership record on the birthday of the country built to oppose all of it. The question is who is going to stop them.
Late last summer, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials. Secretary of State Marco Rubio blasted the ICC and announced sanctions against it.
In a post at the time, Rubio wrote that the ICC "continues to disregard national sovereignty and facilitate lawfare through efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, and prosecute American and Israeli nationals" and added "we will continue to hold accountable those responsible for the ICC’s morally bankrupt and legally baseless actions against Americans and Israelis."
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche penned a letter to the ICC rejecting its jurisdiction.
In a letter this week addressed to the President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote that the Department of Justice rejects any assertion of jurisdiction by the ICC over Americans.
The United States is not a party to the Rome Statute and has never consented to the ICC’s authority. As a matter of international law, a treaty cannot bind a non-consenting country. Accordingly, the ICC has no jurisdiction over Americans — anywhere in the world — and any attempt to assert such authority is illegitimate, unlawful, and a direct affront to the sovereignty of the United States.
“The ICC has acted in an increasingly lawless and illegitimate manner,” writes Blanche in his letter to Judge Tomoko Akane, President of the International Criminal Court. “Its record of selective enforcement and credible allegations of internal misconduct raise serious doubts about the ICC’s impartiality, credibility, and legitimacy.”
In 2002, Congress passed the American Servicemembers’ Protection Act which expressly repudiates ICC jurisdiction over U.S. persons, including U.S. servicemembers, government officials, and civilians. The statute prohibits cooperation with the ICC and authorizes the President to use all means necessary and appropriate to secure the release of any U.S. person detained pursuant to any ICC warrant or request.
Blanche addressed the letter to Judge Tomoko Akane, ICC President and Karim Khan KC, the ICC Prosecutor.
"The United States Department of Justice unequivocally rejects any assertion of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over U.S. persons," Blanche wrote. "The United States is not a party to the Rome Statute and has never consented to the ICC's authority. As a matter of international law, a treaty cannot bind a non-consenting country. Accordingly, the ICC has no jurisdiction over U.S. persons — anywhere in the world — and any attempt to assert such authority is illegitimate, unlawful, and a direct affront to the sovereignty of the United States."
"Notwithstanding these well-established principles, the ICC has acted in an increasingly lawless and illegitimate manner. It has repeatedly asserted jurisdiction over non-consenting countries, disregarded its own complementarity requirement, and pursued investigations that appear driven as much by political pressure and institutional self-interest as by legal merit. Its record of selective enforcement and credible allegations of internal misconduct raise serious doubts about the ICC's impartiality, credibility, and legitimacy. The United States does not recognize or submit to the authority of a body that claims powers it does not possess and exercises the authorities it purports to have in a selective manner, untethered to fairness or legal principle," the letter continued.
This is the only correct response. We do not want to cede our sovereignty to the ICC or any other international body that has a clear political agenda and an animus towards America and Israel. The ICC has no jurisdiction in America and they can never be allowed to gain it.
Unsurprisingly, The View returned from the holiday weekend for another day of talking about how much they hate America. Today, Sunny Hostin decided to talk about the American Flag and how it's been "co-opted" by white supremacists.
"There are times when I walk into a community, and I see American flags all over the community, and I suddenly feel unsafe because there is a section of this country that has co-opted the American flag. They equate being an American, or an American flag, with white supremacy," she said.
This isn't the first time Hostin has expressed a sentiment like this, which she mentions in the clip. Back in 2021, she stated that she "felt threatened" by the American flag being paired with pro-Trump flags and said it had taken on a new meaning.
"The flag belongs to all of us," Hostin said in the show today. The American flag should represent and belong to all of us; however, it is constantly diminished and ridiculed by the radical left, which she supports. Firstly, one of the left's favorite hobbies is creating a flag for the latest and greatest "social injustices," and they will literally devalue American principles by flying their flag higher.
Take a look at this transgender/gay/Palestinian pride flag. What a remarkably ironic creation!
Besides making new flags, Sunny Hostin led the support and cheers for athletes who refused to stand for the national anthem, kneeling in front of the flag, and disrespecting all those who sacrificed and died for their freedom to do so.
The left has hated the flag for years. Just last month, a recent poll revealed that only 27 to 28 percent of Democrats would display the American flag for the Fourth of July, with 24 percent saying they had no plans to celebrate Independence Day.
The American flag, meant to be a unifying symbol for all, has naturally become an indicator of a slightly right political lean, thanks to progressives' demonstrated hatred of it. No, Sunny, you are not a victim, and the American flag has not become an indicator of "white supremacy." Like it always has, the flag symbolizes life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and a rejection of the woke nonsense that you idolize. Do not pretend like the flag that you constantly dishonor has been stolen from you, and stop villainizing all those who still respect and take pride in it. You gave up on its meaning years ago; do not try to reclaim it now.
A woman has just come forward to Politico with a direct accusation that Platner raped her.
(Via Politico) – A woman who dated Maine U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner says he forced her to have sex with him nearly five years ago despite her repeated objections, an allegation Platner denies.
The woman, a 41-year-old Maine resident named Jenny Racicot, detailed the alleged incident to POLITICO in three interviews over the past two weeks. POLITICO also spoke with a man Racicot dated and confided in the years after the alleged incident, and reviewed documents, including emails between Racicot and her therapist and messages between Racicot and an acquaintance whom she warned against getting involved with Platner years before he ran for office.
[…] he entered her rural Maine home uninvited one night in late 2021, deeply intoxicated, and forced himself on her while she repeatedly told him to stop. She said she cut off contact with him after telling him the encounter was not consensual.
“I remember him grabbing my pelvis and being really forceful of me,” she said. “I remember the specific moment where I thought to myself, like, ‘This is no longer my choice.’”
[…] Racicot said she was torn over coming forward in part because she agrees with Platner politically. (read more)
It is not accidental these damning revelations are surfacing now with a sense of urgency behind them.
