Trump reviewing displays at museum that houses the Liberty Bell for violating his anti-DEI orders
The move is apparently part of a broader move to fight"corrosive ideology" at national parks, says the New York Times.
Independence Park is home not only to the Liberty Bell, but to Independence Hall, where both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were signed.
Back in March, Trump issued an order demanding the censoring of any information at federal parks, public monuments, or statues added since 2020 that "perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history."
Federal employees had until last week to flag any displays or materials that failed Trump's ideological purity test, according to the Times.
The "corrosive ideology" found at Independence Park reportedly includes a panel at the Liberty Bell describing its 1800s travel and which addresses the 'systemic and violent racism and sexism that existed at the time.'
An outdoor exhibit at the President's House — where George Washington and John Adams lived and conducted business while in Philadelphia — notes nine of Washington's slaves and includes descriptions of the brutality that slaves faced. Under Trump's guidance, that must also be censored.
Independence Park also has displays noting the contentious relationship between the U.S. and Native American tribes. They have been flagged by federal staff.
The Trump administration also allowed the public a period of time to offer feedback on Independence Park and the wokeness or lack of wokeness in its exhibits. The U.S. Interior Department received fewer than 20 comments, according to Axios.
The deadline for federal workers to remove all the "inappropriate" content from federally managed land and monuments is September 17, according to the Times.
Trump may be especially eager to get the Philadelphia sites censored to his liking, considering the nation's upcoming 250th anniversary will be celebrated in the city of brotherly love.
The celebrations are expected to draw many out-of-state visitors, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
21 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Donald Trump 'caught cheating' at his Scottish resort as caddie moves ball for him
A video has emerged from Donald Trump's golf course in Scotland appearing to show a caddie dropping a ball for the US President on the fairway as he played a shot Donald Trump has found himself embroiled in another golfing scandal after footage emerged seemingly showing a caddie dropping a ball for him during a round in Scotland. While on a European trip and visiting his golf resorts, the US President was caught on camera playing at Turnberry when it appeared one of his caddies may have overstepped the mark to help him. The video, shot from within a nearby building, captures Trump arriving by golf cart on the left side of the fairway. With a bunker and some light fescue between him and the green, as he stopped, two caddies walked past – with one seemingly pausing to place a ball in front of Trump. The 79 year old exited the cart, golf club in hand, and approached the newly positioned ball, seemingly ready to take his next stroke. The clip concludes before he takes the swing. the Express. "Who needs a foot wedge when you have a personal ball dropper? ? ?" joked one user on X, previously known as Twitter. Another user humorously suggested, "Him and Kim Jong Un would be INSANE scramble partners." A self-proclaimed PGA professional chimed in with, "Such a perfect metaphor for our Commander-in-Cheat." Some social media users playfully admired the incident. "Wild... Looks like I need these fellas as Caddies with the way I hit it anymore," one comment read. This is not the first instance of Trump being accused of bending the rules on the golf links. Is Donald Trump a cheat on the golf course? Earlier this year, Samuel L. Jackson, the esteemed actor, alleged that Trump had cheated during a game they played together. When queried about who was the better golfer, Jackson confidently stated: "Oh, I am, for sure. I don't cheat." Trump has since refuted the claims of having played with the 'Pulp Fiction' star, asserting on social media that such a game never took place. Actor Anthony Anderson has echoed similar sentiments. During an appearance on 'Late Night with Seth Meyers' in 2016, Anderson remarked, "Trump is a great golfer. I'm not going to say Trump cheats. His caddy cheats for him." When pressed for details on whether he witnessed Trump cheating, Anderson affirmed: "Oh yes, several times. Several times." He recounted an occasion where both he and Trump had poor tee shots. "Trump hit the exact same shot but went 20 yards further left than mine," he explained. "I couldn't find my ball in this trash. Trump's ball had the fluffiest lie in the middle of the fairway." Anderson concluded: "Like I say, I didn't see Trump cheat because he was on the tee-box with me, but his ball was right there in the middle of the fairway." Sportswriter Rick Reilly has delved into these allegations, asserting in 2019 that Trump frequently manipulated his ball's position and even took credit for others' shots. In an article for The Sunday Times, Reilly revealed that Trump's caddies had even dubbed him "Pele" due to his frequent ball-kicking antics. "To say Donald Trump cheats is like saying Michael Phelps swims," he penned. "Trump doesn't just cheat at golf. He cheats like a three-card monte dealer. "He throws it, boots it and moves it. Whether you're his pharmacist or Tiger Woods, if you're playing golf with him, he's going to cheat."
Daily Mail
22 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Trump posts bizarre meme comparing Obama to infamous OJ Simpson episode
President Donald Trump has posted a bizarre meme of himself and Vice President JD Vance chasing down Barack Obama in a recreation OJ Simpson 's infamous 1994 police chase. In the picture, Obama drives a white Ford Bronco, trailed closely by six police cars. In the two closest cars, Trump is pictured in the driver's seat of one, with Vance in the other. While Trump is all smiles in his photo, he has chosen a less flattering picture of his VP, with Vance depicted as bloated and with long curly hair. Vance didn't take the unflattering picture to heart, sharing the meme to his own X account and adding a laughing emoji. The post he shared read 'look closer at JD's face. No way!' Trump offered no explanation for the meme, but it came amid his latest attack on Obama in an effort to shift criticism of his handling of the Epstein files onto his predecessors. He has repeatedly tried to distance his administration from his campaign promise to release Epstein's client list and investigate his cause of death after Attorney General Pam Bondi revealed no such list exists and confirmed he did die by suicide. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard also released a declassified report allegedly implicating Obama and his administration of 2016 election interference that accused Trump of colluding with Moscow. Trump has accused Obama of treason, while Obama issued a statement denying any allegations. His latest post was a bizarre reference to a famous picture of retired NFL star Simpson, who at the time was accused of killing his ex-wife and her friend. Simpson was sensationally acquitted of the alleged murders during what was dubbed the 'trial of the century.' The decision is still considered controversial 30 years later. Trump's fixation on Obama's alleged crimes came after being asked yet another question about Jeffrey Epstein – a matter that is itself so explosive that House Republican leaders sent members home on recess, thereby avoiding a difficult vote on the issue. 'I don't follow it too much,' he said of the Epstein matter, before immediately turning the tables on Obama. Trump went on to share an AI generated video of Obama wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and sitting down inside his cell. Even as Trump tries to paint Obama as a criminal, the Supreme Court ruled in a monumental 2024 decision that the President of the United States has immunity from prosecution for official acts in office, in a case argued by lawyers on Trump's behalf. Trump was asked if 'presidential immunity' would apply to Obama before his trip to Scotland on Friday and the president didn't deny it, going as far as to say he'd done his predecessor a favor. 'He has done criminal acts, no question about it. But he has immunity and it probably helps him a lot. He owes me big. Obama owes me big,' Trump said. The ex-president's team argued in late 2023 that Trump, and any president, must have absolute immunity from prosecution over actions taken while in office or it could impair important decision-making. The 6-3 decision split along the court's ideological lines ensures that Trump will not face another blockbuster trial anytime soon - with the case sent back to a lower court to determine what is considered his 'official' versus 'unofficial' acts. Obama spoke out about the case via his spokesperson Patrick Rodenbush earlier this week, refuting many of the accusations circling around him. 'The bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction. Nothing in the document issued last week undercuts the widely accepted conclusion that Russia worked to influence the 2016 presidential election but did not successfully manipulate any votes,' Rodenbush noted. 'These findings were affirmed in a 2020 report by the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee, led by then-Chairman Marco Rubio,' Rodenbush concluded. GOP leadership in both the House and Senate are pursuing investigations into members of the Biden and Obama administrations as they fend off clamoring calls for transparency in the Epstein scandal enveloping the Trump administration. Democrats have portrayed the reintroduction of the 'Russian hoax' saga as a way for the Trump Administration to distract from the demands around Epstein. Trump has repeatedly shared outrageous memes since his return to the White House, including making himself the Pope after the death of Pope Francis and sharing an AI video of his vision for Gaza complete with bizarre bearded belly dancers and a statue of himself.
Reuters
22 minutes ago
- Reuters
EU's pledge for $250 billion of US energy imports is delusional
LAUNCESTON, Australia, July 28 (Reuters) - There are strong echoes of Donald Trump's failed trade deal with China from his first term as U.S. president in the framework agreement reached with the European Union. Trump and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the deal for a 15% tariff on U.S. imports of EU goods at the U.S. leader's golf course in Scotland on Sunday. But more important than the 15% tariff rate was the apparent commitment by the EU to massively ramp up energy imports from the United States. The agreement calls for EU imports of U.S. energy, which currently are mainly crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG), of $250 billion a year for three years. This is a delusional level of imports that the EU has virtually no chance of meeting, and one that U.S. producers would also struggle to supply. Even if the EU did manage somehow to boost its energy imports from the United States to the $250 billion a year mark, it would also prove massively disruptive for energy flows around the rest of the world. The numbers show the scale of the challenge. The 28 members of the EU imported 3.38 billion barrels of seaborne crude oil in 2024, according to data compiled by energy analysts Kpler. Assuming the 2025 volume stays the same and the price paid per barrel averages around $70, this means the EU will pay about $236.6 billion for its crude. The EU's imports from the United States were 573 million barrels in 2024, which if replicated this year would be valued at around $40.1 billion. For LNG, the EU imported 82.68 million metric tons in 2024, which would have cost around $51.26 billion assuming an average price of around $12 per million British thermal units (mmBtu). Imports of the super-chilled fuel from the United States were 35.13 million tons in 2024, worth about $21.78 billion. The EU also buys coal from the United States, the bulk being higher-value metallurgical coal used to make steel. Total EU imports of metallurgical coal in 2024 were worth $6.72 billion, assuming an average price of $200 per ton, with those from the United States valued at $2.67 billion. Putting together the value of EU imports of U.S. crude oil, LNG and metallurgical coal gives a 2024 total of around $64.55 billion. This is about 26% of the $250 billion the EU is supposed to spend on U.S. energy a year under the framework agreement. If the EU did ramp up its imports of U.S. crude, LNG and metallurgical coal to $250 billion, it would account for 85% of its total spending on those energy commodities. The United States exported 1.45 billion barrels of crude in 2024, according to Kpler, which would be worth $101.5 billion at a price of $70 a barrel. U.S. shipments of LNG were 87.05 million tons in 2024, which would be worth about $54 billion at an average price of $12 per mmBtu. The U.S. exported 51.53 million tons of metallurgical coal in 2024, worth $10.3 billion at an average price of $200 a ton. Putting together the value of all three energy commodities gives a total of $165.8 billion, meaning that even if the EU bought the entire volume it would still fall well short of the $250 billion. The scale of the delusion probably exceeds what Trump and China agreed in their so-called Phase 1 trade deal in December 2019, under which China was supposed to buy $200 billion of additional U.S. energy by the end of 2021. The reality is that China never even came close to buying that level, and its imports of U.S. energy didn't even reach what they were before Trump launched his first trade war in 2017. There are a few caveats when looking at the framework agreement between Trump and Von der Leyen. The first is that not all the details are known and the $250 billion of energy is also said to include nuclear fuel, although this will only be a small value even if included. The second is the deal will probably include refined fuels, with U.S. exports to the EU of products such as diesel, being almost 110 million barrels in 2024, worth about $10.9 billion assuming a price of $100 a barrel. But it's still clear that the commitment to buy $250 billion in U.S. energy is completely unrealistic and unachievable. The smart people in the room must know this, begging the question as to why agree to what is obviously a ridiculous number? What happens when the inevitable failure is realised? Perhaps the EU is hoping for the same outcome as China did with the first trade war with Trump in 2019. Run down the clock, talk nice, and hope the next U.S. president is easier to deal with. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis of everything from swap rates to soybeans. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, opens new tab and X, opens new tab. The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.
