America 250

On America's 250th Birthday, Celebrate Liberty

Most Americans still appreciate the freedom the country was founded upon.

J.D. Tuccille | 7.3.2026 7:00 AM

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Nearly half of Americans don't understand what we're celebrating for America's 250th anniversary, according to a new poll. Clearly, the festivities aren't about the quality of the country's public schools, since this year marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Something else we should be celebrating, though, is this country's continued legacy of individual liberty. Our freedom may be under threat from people who don't appreciate its value both within and outside the country, but it endures with the support—mostly—of Americans themselves.

You are reading The Rattler from J.D. Tuccille and Reason. Get more of J.D.'s commentary on government overreach and threats to everyday liberty.

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Americans May Be Historically Ignorant, but We Love Liberty

"Nearly half (46%) of Americans don't know what America's 250th anniversary commemorates," Emily Ekins reports of a national survey of 2,253 Americans by the Cato Institute, conducted in collaboration with Morning Consult. "A little more than half (53%) correctly answered that it was the adoption of the Declaration of Independence."

The survey also contains good news. Asked "which would you most want children to learn from America's 250th anniversary," the most popular answer chosen is "freedom is rare and must be........

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