Topline
President Donald Trump on Monday said he was “glad” to have missed his first attempt at a second term, since his inauguration this year sets him up to commemorate major events like the nation’s 250th anniversary, the World Cup and the Olympics.
“I missed that four years, and now look what I have—I have everything,” Trump said during Memorial … More
Key Facts
Trump, who spoke during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, said he looks forward to the U.S. hosting the World Cup in 2026 and the Olympics in 2028, though “most important of all” is the country’s 250th anniversary, which Trump said will feature a “big, big celebration.”
“In some ways, I’m glad I missed that second term where it was because I wouldn’t be your president for that,” Trump said, referring to his loss in the 2020 presidential election.
The U.S. was announced as hosts for the 2026 World Cup in 2018 and Los Angeles was named the site for the 2028 Olympics in 2017, as Trump quipped he believed at the time he “won’t be president then.”
Earlier in his speech, Trump said he was “fixing [the U.S.] after a long and hard four years,” in an apparent swipe at the Biden administration, though he noted his plans would not be discussed on Memorial Day.
Crucial Quote
“I missed that four years, and now look what I have—I have everything,” Trump said, “Amazing, the way things work out. God did that, I believe that, too.” The semiquincentennial “blows everything away, including the World Cup and including the Olympics, as far as I’m concerned,” Trump added.
How Will The U.s. Celebrate The 250th Anniversary?
Plans to celebrate the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence have been under consideration since 2016, when Congress established the Semiquincentennial Commission under then-President Barack Obama. Though plans have yet to be finalized, Trump suggested during his latest campaign the U.S. would hold a “spectacular birthday party” and later created a White House task force in an executive order in January to provide a “grand celebration worthy” of the semiquincentennial.
Tangent
Another potential milestone that could happen under Trump’s watch is the return of humans to the moon for the first time since the early 1970s. NASA’s Artemis program could lead a manned mission to the moon’s surface by the middle of 2027, though the effort has been fraught with delays.
Key Background
Trump opened Memorial Day with a Truth Social post attacking “USA HATING JUDGES” who have ruled against his immigration actions. He accused “SCUM”—including President Joe Biden, whom Trump called “INCOMPETENT”—of allowing millions to enter the U.S. illegally, attacking “WARPED RADICAL LEFT MINDS.” Trump also targeted federal judges blocking his mass deportation plans, referring to them as “monsters who want our country to go to hell.” Before speaking at Arlington National Cemetery with Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Trump placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Further Reading
