THE HALFAX HEIMDALL AUGUR

America is in a mood on the cusp of our 250th birthday POLITICS Politics Add Topic America is in a mood on the cusp of our 250th birthday Susan Page USA TODAY Updated June 22, 2026, 10:46 a.m. ET Hear this story America is not in a party mood. Even as the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence − a celebration of the founding of the world's oldest modern constitutional democracy − most Americans are mired in dissatisfaction with the nation's present and pessimism about its future. By double digits in recent polls, they predict the country's best years are behind us, with more peril than promise ahead. Despite a few glimmers of good feeling, today's fierce political divisions have redefined a milestone that has often been marked by unity and optimism, at least for a moment. A cover of The New Yorker by Barry Bliss portrayed a dyspeptic George Washington, doused by confetti and holding a martini. The caption: "Red, White, and Kinda Blue." A half-dozen recent national surveys − by the Pew Research Center and Gallup , NBC News and Fox News , Elon University and Emerson College − have posed different questions but consistently shown an anxious …

As U.S. Nears Its 250th Birthday, Nearly 3/4 Still Say They're Proud To ... Jets roar over UFC event at White House for U.S. 250th anniversary celebration. Source: Rawpixel. License: CC0 1.0 (Public Domain). I&I / TIPP Poll As U.S. Nears Its 250th Birthday, Nearly 3/4 Still Say They’re Proud To Be American: I&I/TIPP Poll Terry Jones June 30, 2026 1 comment The Fourth of July is usually a time for fireworks, picnics, and, for some, quiet reflection on what it means to be an American. But this Fourth is special, marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. Are Americans still proud of what they’ve built? A solid majority says yes, the latest I&I/TIPP Poll shows. The national online I&I/TIPP Poll asked 1,589 adults: “As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, how proud are you to be an American?” The response was strong: 72% said they were either “very proud” (48%) or “somewhat proud” (24%), while 24% said they were “not very proud” (15%) or “not proud at all” (9%). The poll, taken from May 26 through May 28, has a +/-2.7 percentage point margin of error. But there might be an asterisk on the poll, at least as far as the demographic breakdown goes. For instance, as…

Elon Poll: A proud but deeply uneasy public as America celebrates 250th Many respondents in a new national survey say the United States is not living up to its founding ideals, that political divisions will worsen, and the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be disappointed in modern democracy. Share: Share this page on Facebook Share this page on X (formerly Twitter) Share this page on LinkedIn Email this page to a friend Print this page As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Americans remain proud of their country but pessimistic about the health and future of American democracy, according to a new national Elon University Poll. Sixty-eight percent of American adults say they are proud to be American, and 79% agree the United States plays a uniquely important role in world history. At the same time, 69% believe the signers of the Declaration of Independence would feel more disappointment than pride about modern American democracy. Related Articles Special Report on the America250 Poll (PDF) Survey Topline and Methodology (PDF) The survey of 1,000 adults in the United States, conducted April 30-May 4, 2026, explores …

Poll: America at 250 is riven with doubt and pessimism — but with ... Justine Goode / NBC News; Getty Images Share Add NBC News to Google June 14, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT By Jonathan Allen Americans have a bleak outlook on the nation’s future ahead of its 250th birthday next month, with most saying the U.S. has already seen its best days and a record-low number saying they are extremely proud to be Americans, according to a new NBC News poll . Limited time: Save 25% on NBC News subscription Get exclusive reporting, live Q&As and ad-free reading. Overall, the survey — sponsored by More Perfect, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to advancing democracy — shows that Americans believe their country has achieved many of the goals of its founders, but it is now falling short in living up to certain central tenets of the democratic experiment. They are split almost evenly over whether the Constitution has stood the test of time. And they have little faith in their institutions — including the federal government, the media and the high-tech industry. Even the military, which ranks highest among the institutions tested and retains the confidence of most Americans, has seen a pronounced drop in su…

National Nearly half of Americans surveyed don't know what America 250 commemorates NPR | By Chloe Veltman Published July 3, 2026 at 2:28 PM EDT Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Juan Mabromata / AFP/Getty Images People visit the Liberty Bell on the eve of Independence Day in Philadelphia on July 3, 2025. The crack in this symbol of U.S. freedom echoes the paradox between national pride and civic ignorance revealed in a new national poll. A new national poll reveals a striking paradox in public sentiment ahead of America's 250th anniversary: a disconnect between Americans' strong patriotic pride and their lack of civic knowledge. According to a survey from the libertarian Cato Institute think tank of more than 2,000 U.S. adults conducted in late June, 86% of respondents said they are grateful to be American and 70% believe the nation's founding principles remain relevant. However, nearly half of Americans (46%) don't know that America's 250th anniversary commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. This civic ignorance extends to basic governance: Nearly 60% do not know the main purpose of the U.S. Constitution is to limit government power, and d…

Half of Republicans and 11% of Democrats define patriotism as ... Anew YouGov surveyon patriotism explores how Americans feel about their own levels of patriotism, how they define patriotism, and which political party they believe is more patriotic. 70% of Americans say they are proud to be Americans; 16% say they are not. The vast majority (96%) of Republicans say they are proud to be Americans, compared to just 58% of Democrats and 59% of Independents. 1% of Republicans, 23% of Democrats, and 21% of Independents are not proud to be Americans. Americans over 65 are more likely than younger adults to say they are proud to be Americans (82% vs. 66%). 68% of Americans — including 92% of Republicans and 57% of Democrats — say they consider themselves to be very American. 18% say they are somewhat American, 4% say they are not very American, and 3% say they are not at all American. 40% of Americans believe that America’s best days are in its past; 30% believe the best days are in its future. Fewer (10%) believe America’s best days are happening right now. Among Republicans, 31% say the country’s best days are in its past and 41% believe they’re yet to come. Among Democrats, 42% be…

Proud But Uneasy: New Survey Reveals Americans' Mixed Feelings About ... As the United States prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a new national survey paints a portrait of a country that remains proud of its history while questioning its present and worrying about its future. The Elon University America250 Poll found that 68% of Americans say they are proud to be American, and 65% said there is no other country where they would rather live. Nearly 80% agreed that the United States plays a uniquely important role in world history. At the same time, 73% rated the health of American democracy as only fair or poor, and 52% said the nation is not successfully living up to its founding ideals. “We found several points of optimism among Americans, including pride in being American and belief that the United States has a uniquely important role to play in world history,” Jason Husser, director of the Elon University Poll, wrote in the survey’s analysis. The survey of 1,000 adults found Americans sharply divided over the nation’s condition. Nearly 7 in 10 respondents said the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be more disappointed …

The majority of Americans are proud but worry about direction of the ... Policy and Politics The majority of Americans are proud but worry about direction of the country NPR | By Saige Miller , Maham Javaid Published July 1, 2026 at 4:00 AM CDT Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email American pride is strong, the latest NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found – but nearly one third of Americans say they are worried about the direction the U.S. is headed in and almost half of Americans think the country has moved far away from the nation's founding principles. The way Americans are feeling about the country today is largely split along partisan, gender and generational lines. The survey of 1,340 respondents was conducted June 8-11 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.0 percentage points, meaning results could be about 3 points higher or lower. Respondents were surveyed online and by phone and text. NPR followed up with several poll participants about their thoughts about America ahead of the 250th anniversary. Majority proud to be American but believe the country has shifted away from founding ideals Even though some Americans believe the nation is on the wrong track, the majorit…

New Poll Shows American Pride Falling as U.S. Democracy, History and ... Spread the love America is heading toward its 250th birthday with fireworks on the calendar and doubt in the air. A new wave of polling shows that pride in the United States is no longer the easy national reflex it once was. Many Americans still love the country, still value its freedoms and still feel a deep pull toward the flag, the Constitution and the idea of belonging to something larger than themselves. But the mood has changed. The country is not simply asking whether people are proud to be American. It is asking what kind of America they believe they are being asked to celebrate. Here are some of the biggest ways the new poll reveals a changing America, from falling national pride and weaker trust in democracy to sharper divides over history, identity, patriotism and what the country’s 250th anniversary now represents. American pride is falling, but the story is not as simple as national shame. Image credit:gabesdotphotos photographer/pexels The most striking takeaway is that great American pride has fallen to a historic low in Gallup’s long-running trend. Only about one third of adults now describe t…

Now 80° Sat 90° Sun 81° byThe National News Desk Are you proud to be an American? Vote in the poll above orclick here. As Americans celebrateIndependence Day during the nation's 250th anniversary year, President Donald Trump is making patriotism a centerpiece of his administration, using Freedom 250 events across the country to promote American history, civic pride, and what he describes as a renewed sense of national purpose. Yet, as celebrations ramp up nationwide,new polling suggests Americans remain deeply divided over what patriotism means.

Americans' pride in US history and democracy dropped steeply over past decade, poll finds Americans’ pride in their country's history or the way its democracy works has dropped noticeably over the past decade, according to a new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Sharp divide on patriotism splits Democrats, Republicans, poll shows Patriotism in America is fracturing along political fault lines, with a new poll exposing a chasm between Republicans and Democrats. A National Research Inc. survey reveals that 91% of Republicans proudly claim the patriot label, while only 50% of Democrats do the same, as theNew York Postreports. This stark divide signals a deeper crisis in national unity that demands attention. The survey, conducted by a GOP-affiliated firm in New Jersey, polled 1,000 registered voters from June 21-23, showing a clear partisan split in national pride. Among 2024 voters, 90% of Trump supporters embraced patriotism, compared to just 55% of Kamala Harris backers. Conservatives (87%) far outpaced liberals (51%) in self-identifying as patriots, highlighting ideology’s role in shaping allegiance. Gallup’s parallel poll paints an even bleaker picture, with only 58% of Americans expressing extreme or very high pride in their country. This marks a nine-point drop from the prior year, the lowest this century. The data suggests a nation drifting apart, with political tribes retreating to opposing corners. Democrats’ pride has cratered,…