America’s 250th birthday just got hijacked by the Christian right

America’s 250th birthday was supposed to be a national celebration. Instead, it’s becoming a stage for Christian nationalism and partisan mythology. The Freedom 250 event on the National Mall blends worship, patriotic branding and Trumpworld politics into one giant political spectacle. In this video, I break down the real agenda behind these “faith leaders” taking the stage. My guest, Hemant Mehta of FriendlyAtheist.com, explains why critics see events like this as part of a growing Christian nationalist movement threatening hard-fought freedoms in America. This is only the beginning of the America250 story — subscribe to Salon's channel for my upcoming coverage. 00:00 What Freedom 250 Is Really About 01:17 Rededicate 250 Will Look Innocent—It’s Not 02:54 Franklin Graham’s Vision for America 04:00 Why Trumpworld Embraced Evangelicals 05:25 Is America a Christian Nation? 07:00 Paula White’s Religious Messaging 09:26 How Faith Turns Into Tribalism 10:00 Hemant Mehta of the Friendly Atheist 11:00 Attempting To Rewrite American History 12:42 Submission, Power, and Christian Nationalism 15:36 Paula White’s Hidden Messaging 19:20 Brett Cooper Questions Paula White 20:50 Why Separation of Church and State Is Necessary 22:03 Rededicate 250’s Deeper Agenda 22:58 Atheist Groups Aligning with Christians 24:13 Encore Recommendation Subscribe here on YouTube for more Standing Room Only, airing weekly Thursdays at 5 PM ET on YouTube. 🥳 Standing Room Only started as a newsletter. Join the party and get it in your inbox 2x a week by clicking here: https://www.salon.com/newsletter 🤓 Read Amanda Marcotte's writing on Salon.com here: https://www.salon.com/writer/amanda_marcotte 👍 Follow Amanda on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/amandamarcotte.bsky.social ✌️ Support Salon’s mission—become a member: https://www.salon.com/premium?utm_source=youtube-sro&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=become-a-member-ytsro 🎵 Like our Encore segment? Follow the Standing Room Only Playlist on Spotify to hear the full songs and more recommendations from Amanda: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5xGJv3dQ8BPbO2gMw53dvB This episode provides commentary about America250, American 250, Rededicate 250, What is Freedom 250, May 17th event on the National Mall, Paula White, Franklin Graham, Robert Jeffress, Eric Metaxas, Christian nationalism, evangelicals and politics, Christian Right, Pete Hegseth, Marco Rubio, Mike Johnson, Repealing the 19th Amendment