Quick Hit:

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday to establish Task Force 250 in preparation for the nation's 250th anniversary on July 4th, 2026. The order mandates a "grand celebration worthy of the momentous occasion" and reinstates previous executive actions on protecting monuments and establishing a National Garden of American Heroes.

Key Details:

• Trump’s order establishes the White House Task Force on Celebrating America’s 250th Birthday (Task Force 250), which he will chair. The Vice President will serve as Vice Chair, and an Executive Director will oversee day-to-day operations. The order directs Task Force 250 to work with federal agencies and the United States Semiquincentennial Commission to organize the celebration.

• The National Garden of American Heroes, originally ordered in 2020, is reinstated, requiring the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy to propose additional figures for inclusion, bringing the total to 250. The order states the garden should be built "as expeditiously as possible."

• The executive order also reinstates Trump’s 2020 directive protecting monuments from vandalism, citing "pro-Hamas-related vandalism of historically significant public monuments and related assaults on Federal officers and employees" following the October 7th, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel.

Diving Deeper:

President Trump’s Wednesday order formally launches preparations for the 250th anniversary of American independence, emphasizing the administration’s commitment to a celebration that "honors the history of our great Nation." By establishing Task Force 250, Trump directs a broad coalition of cabinet members and White House officials to coordinate efforts to ensure a "grand celebration worthy of the momentous occasion."

The order mandates that all federal agencies submit reports on their planned contributions by March 1st, 2025, and that the Department of Defense provide administrative support. While the task force will be housed within the Pentagon, Trump has set a deadline of December 31st, 2026, for its dissolution unless extended.

Alongside event planning, the order revives previous Trump-era initiatives, including the National Garden of American Heroes. The reinstated directive reverses actions by the Biden administration that had shelved the project. The order amends prior language to require the garden’s construction "as expeditiously as possible" rather than merely "prior to the 250th anniversary."

In addition to celebrating America’s history, the order highlights concerns over vandalism targeting historic sites. Trump explicitly references attacks on federal monuments in Washington, D.C., citing incidents from June and July 2024, where "the exterior of the Department of the Treasury and of statues in Lafayette Square" were defaced, alongside the "vandalism of the Christopher Columbus Memorial Fountain and Freedom Bell at Union Station."

With this move, Trump positions himself as the defender of American heritage while laying the groundwork for a historic national celebration ahead of the 2026 milestone.