Fireworks, heat, hot dogs and politics: America celebrates its 250th birthday
Military planes perform a flyover of the Hudson River, above the the Manhattan skyline, as seen from Weehawken, N.J., Saturday, July 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The 250th anniversary of American independence is colliding with a country gripped by political polarization and a heat wave bearing down on millions of people across multiple states as celebrations got underway Saturday throughout the United States.
The signing of the Declaration of Independence, one of history's most celebrated articulations of democratic ambitions, is being marked in myriad ways.