![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0024a32a-614.jpg\"\/)
\nSpeaking at Mount Rushmore, Donald Trump claimed there was ‘a resurgence of the communist menace’<\/p>\n
US President Donald Trump lashed out at what he called a fresh threat against the country’s identity, taking aim at domestic “radicals and extremists” as the US celebrates the 250th anniversary of its independence.<\/p>\n
In a speech dripping with patriotism, Mr Trump lauded American exceptionalism and praised its past leaders, speaking at Mount Rushmore with its giant carved heads of four of his predecessors.<\/p>\n
“As we approach this magnificent anniversary, we see our American identity under a renewed attack,” he said.<\/p>\n
Mr Trump claimed that there was “a resurgence of the communist menace in our land”.<\/p>\n
It is a theme that he has repeatedly emphasised in recent weeks, as the anti-establishment left of the Democratic Party carried a surge of US primary victories.<\/p>\n
The president has cast the rise of the left ahead of November’s midterm elections that “communists” are on the rampage, posing a major “threat” to the country.<\/p>\n
‘Undeniable attempt’<\/p>\n
“In recent years there’s been an undeniable attempt to change this exceptional character, to beat the American spirit out of us, alienate us from our history,” Mr Trump said.<\/p>\n
While his language fell short of the more violent anti-immigrant rhetoric he has regularly wielded in past speeches, the underlying message was clear enough.<\/p>\n
“You do not have to be born here, but you do have to love what we have built,” he added.<\/p>\n
The location of Mr Trump’s speech strikes a fitting image for a president who views himself as being one of the greats.<\/p>\n
\nSpeaking at Mount Rushmore, Donald Trump claimed there was ‘a resurgence of the communist menace’<\/p>\n
![\"Fireworks](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0024a32d-614.jpg\"\/)
\nFireworks pictured over Mount Rushmore following Mr Trump’s speech<\/p>\n
His supporters have even introduced legislation to have his likeness chiselled beside those of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.<\/p>\n
At every stage, the 80-year-old Republican has sought to turn the United States’ big anniversary into a celebration of himself.<\/p>\n
On 4 July, Mr Trump will hold a campaign-style political rally on the National Mall in Washington, along with flyovers by military jets and what he has billed as the world’s biggest fireworks display.<\/p>\n
‘Really long speech’<\/p>\n
However, the US, under Mr Trump’s leadership, is deeply divided at what should be a time of national unity.<\/p>\n
His approval ratings are near historic lows, fuelled largely by the war in Iran and the skyrocketing cost of living.<\/p>\n
His Democratic opponents have castigated him over his immigration policies, family’s growing wealth and attempts to expand presidential power.<\/p>\n
Mr Trump’s attempts to stamp his political brand on America’s 250th anniversary have, meanwhile, not always gone to plan.<\/p>\n
A Trump-linked organisation called “Freedom 250” has taken control of many of the festivities from the bipartisan “America 250” group, leading many people to stay away from key events.<\/p>\n
A “Great American State Fair” in the capital designed as a celebration of the country’s birthday has drawn sparse crowds and widespread mockery for its empty booths.<\/p>\n
A record-breaking heat wave also kept many visitors away, although Mr Trump declared himself undeterred by the heat.<\/p>\n
“On July 4 it’s going to be approximately 107 degrees (41C) out, and I’m going to go and I’m going to make a really long speech – just to show that I can do anything,” he said earlier this week.<\/p>\n
A recent Quinnipiac University Poll showed 61% of Americans thought the US was not living up to the ideals stated in the Declaration of Independence – though opinion on that was divided, with most Republicans thinking it did, and most Democrats thinking it did not.<\/p>\n
“The Fourth of July really is a moment of freedom, but I have to be honest, in these political times, it hasn’t been as exciting to me,” Amy Kimaara, a 49-year-old special education teacher, said in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"US President Donald Trump lashed out at what he called a fresh threat against the country’s identity, taking…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":532504,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-532503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=532503"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532503\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/532504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=532503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=532503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=532503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}