At 4 p.m. Friday at the National Mall, a large plaza in Washington, D.C., on the day marking the 250th anniversary of America's independence and founding, the first thing that caught the eye upon emerging from the subway was a person being carried on a stretcher to an emergency medical center amid a 38-degree heat wave. An elderly person, face pale and pressing a hand to the forehead, was also seen receiving help from medical staff.
Beyond that scene, however, stood a long line of people waiting to enter the event. Those wearing red "MAGA" (Make America Great Again) hats and T-shirts bearing President Donald Trump's face were prominent among the crowd, with so many Trump supporters gathered that the scene resembled an inauguration.
Cody Him, who was met at the site, opened by saying, "I came out of patriotism." On the Iran war, he stressed, "Iran sees right through how U.S. politics and policy work," adding, "President Trump should just jump into Iran and push forward at full speed."
Ben, who said he voted for President Trump in the last election, said, "I especially like his border policy," and stated firmly, "I think it's really a good thing for immigrants to come to America. But they have to come in through legal procedures."
By contrast, Jessica, who came to the event but said she does not support President Trump, said, "The current administration says it respects freedom, but I dislike how hypocritical it is that they suppress LGBTQ people and others who think differently from them."
On social networking services (SNS), posts mocking the event's attendees appeared one after another, starkly revealing the reality of an America politically divided into two extremes. One user of X, formerly Twitter, posted photos of the people standing in long lines to attend the event and criticized them, writing, "Are the people standing in line in 100-degree Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius) heat patriots, or are they fools?"
