Trump remembers the messianic character of the US from Mount Rushmore

WashingtonBeneath the shadow of the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, Donald Trump recalled the "exceptionalism" of the United States as a project touched by "God." "Americans did not bow before a king or a government, but knelt only before almighty God," stated the American president at the foot of Mount Rushmore on the eve of July 4, when the country turns 250 years old.

The messianic airs with which Trump returned to the White House permeate everything. Even the staging of his appearance at the monument to former presidents, where the Republican has hinted several times that he would like to be added there. A month ago, the president published digital mock-ups of his face alongside the rest of the former presidents on Truth Social.

As if the context were not explicit enough, one of the White House spokespeople had made sure to clarify it hours before the event. "There would be no better addition to the iconic Mount Rushmore than the 45th and 47th presidents of the United States," Taylor Rogers wrote in a statement released to the American media.

But the stone and space at Mount Rushmore will not change no matter how many executive orders the tycoon signs. Unlike the White House, where the president has unilaterally demolished the East Wing to build his ballroom, the mountain will not yield. Although this has not detracted from his opportunity to capitalize on the commemoration of the Declaration of Independence.

The Republican, rather than focusing on the country's origins and that text which promised that "all men are created equal," has focused on stirring up the polarization with which the country reaches its 250th anniversary. "Our ancestors did not shed their blood in Normandy just so a bunch of thieves, radicals and lunatics could come and plunder and pillage our nation," he stated.

References to communism

References to communism and Marxism have been on the rise in the discourse in recent weeks, as socialists have gained ground in national Democratic primaries. After the three candidates backed by Zohran Mamdani won in New York's Democratic primaries, Melat Kiros demonstrated in Colorado that the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) was not a big-city fad.

For the Republican, however, "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." The statement resonates with the darkest days of McCarthyism.

In fact, Trump spoke at Mount Rushmore just hours after the Mayor of New York gave a speech for the country's 250th anniversary as well. In a completely different vein, Mamdani recalled the value of the United States according to immigrants, and not a supposed divine character. "They will tell you that America only belongs to those who have the right accent or the right skin color. The rest of us, they insist, should be grateful for the mere fact that they allow us to visit. How small they are. How weak, how unoriginal," Mamdani said from George Washington's presidential desk preserved at City Hall.

Trump had likely heard the socialist's speech, and hence the need to emphasize his idea of what the United States is. "We are the freest people in the world, we have the most just and enduring Constitution in the world, and we are the most powerful nation in the world," the Republican defended.

Trump had already chosen this location to celebrate Independence Day in 2020, during his first term, when he defended historical monuments against protests from the Black Lives Matter movement. He then assured that Rushmore "will never be desecrated".