In case you weren’t already confused or repelled by the Trump administration’s attack on universities, immigrants, science, and history, let’s think about how the White House plans to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. They will stage an Ultimate Fighting Championship event there on July 4, 2026. It is surely in keeping with what the founders of our democracy would have imagined. Perhaps, on the South Lawn, they can arrange a cockfight, and in the West Wing, they can have a dog fight, selling tickets to all, no doubt.

I have no issue with UFC fans. When I was a young boy, I liked professional wrestling. Even then, I would have been unsettled by a President inviting Lou Thesz and Gorgeous George to perform at the White House.

It seems that retaining a sense of appropriate use of symbolic facilities is just another idea to be dumped on the ash heap being created by this administration. As a believer in a sense of the importance of community, I continue to wonder where this will all end.