Congressional Investigation Reveals “Deeply Troubling” Politicization of 250th Anniversary Celebrations
A new report from Democrats on the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources alleged that donors seeking to support the bipartisan America 250 celebration were instead steered to the Trump-backed Freedom 250 initiative through misleading fundraising tactics. The report also found extensive involvement of former Trump campaign operatives in organizing the 250th anniversary celebrations, raising data privacy concerns.
The House Democrats’ allegations follow a report by Public Citizen and the Revolving Door Project documenting more than $100 million in taxpayer-funded contracts and grants directed to the Freedom 250 network and other politically connected entities.
In response to the new report, Public Citizen co-president Robert Weissman issued the following statement:
“It should surprise no one that Donald Trump has turned the nation’s 250th anniversary into a scam on America.”
“Congress established America 250 to honor the nation’s 250th anniversary with the intent of appropriate civic celebration and reflection. Donald Trump has hijacked the enterprise, siphoning America 250’s public money into a MAGA-oriented nonprofit called Freedom 250 and remaking the nation’s 250th anniversary into a celebration of Donald J. Trump.”
“Now come allegations that private donors who intended to support America 250 were tricked into contributing instead to the partisan Freedom 250. Americans deserve a thorough investigation of whether this alleged deceit rises to the level of unlawful or criminal wrongdoing.”
”Since Freedom 250 was created and established by Trump, corporations that lobby the federal government are required to report any donations to Freedom 250 on their federal lobbying filings, a requirement that does not apply to the congressionally chartered America 250 organization.”
“Further investigation into any potential civil or criminal violations stemming from Trump’s takeover of the 250th anniversary celebrations must continue.”