Under the title “A Divided America Celebrates Its 250th Birthday,” James Bennet, the first American columnist to write for The Economist’s “Lexington Column” (named after the Battle of Lexington and Concord), pens a supercilious article designed to widen the divide, while never once mentioning the reasons for the American War of Independence, which the Americans will be celebrating this year.
Bennet’s lunge: “Donald Trump may not be the most literary of men, but he hit upon the perfect metaphor when he proclaimed that he would mark America’s 250th birthday by hosting a brawl on the White House lawn. … Yet the octagon cage to be erected on the south lawn ahead of July 4th, and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bruisers who will grapple within it, will best represent the state of American society, at least as channelled through its politics, in the second year of Mr. Trump’s second term. Only up to a point, though: the UFC, unlike American politics, still honours some rules of sportsmanship, forbidding abusive language and ‘groin attacks of any kind.’”
After claiming that the year-long commemoration will be a “straightforward display of America’s fractured state,” Bennet reveals that indeed there are two “national commissions” planning the celebratory events. (Neither of which is qualified to do so.—ed.)
The first unqualified Commission, the America250 Commission, has the worst of the worst “bipartisan” leadership with the Obamas and Bushes as the honorary co-chairs. Its sponsors include Lockheed Martin, Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and Palantir. While Bennet claims that the June 14th wrestling match is what President Trump’s “Task Force 250” has planned, it is not mentioned at all on the White House website. Rather, Trump’s “Task Force 250” so far appears to be a partnership with Hillsdale College, which has produced a series of short videos on various aspects of the American Revolution, which this writer has not yet had an opportunity to review.
