Following President Donald Trump's Fourth of July address, attendees at the Great American State Fair expressed a mix of opinions about the speech's tone and content.
For some, such as David from New Jersey, the speech was seen as a patriotic call to action, rather than a partisan message. "He's talking about taking down communism," David said. "That's the definition of our whole country. Built on capitalism, that's our whole country. If that's what he was talking about, I don't think that's political at all. It's just about the freedom that we have here. If it wasn't for that, we wouldn't be here."
Thousands of Americans packed the National Mall to celebrate the nation's 250th anniversary, but the sweltering heat and severe thunderstorms that temporarily paused celebrations failed to dampen the mood. President Trump delivered a 37-minute address, honoring veterans and the nation's founding while declaring that "no dream in history is bigger" than the American experiment.
Others, such as Matt from Florida, appreciated the president's emphasis on honoring veterans and Medal of Honor recipients. "It's really nice to see him share the stage instead of just giving a speech and going away like most presidents do," Matt said. "It was just nice to actually see him treat the whole thing as a giant event as opposed to just a limelight on himself."
Ed and Linda from Ohio, who missed the speech while waiting for the fireworks, expressed differing opinions. Ed said he supports the president "100 percent," while Linda added, "You should be able to rise above your political opinion and still enjoy the country's Fourth of July."
Doug and Karen from Texas praised President Trump's message as not being too political. "It wasn't too political, it was what we needed to hear," Doug said. "It was good," Karen added. "People need to hear it."
However, not everyone shared this view. Kim from Michigan sees the Fourth of July as a "political holiday," where people are bound to find something to criticize. "Throughout our history, it's been about our politics and what we stand for as a people, and what we believe in and what we're willing to fight for," she said.
Priya from California agreed that politics naturally belongs in a Fourth of July speech, pointing out that America must change course "from a very negative direction that the country has gone." "I think there's an intricate part that politics play obviously in the 250 years that we have been a nation," Priya said. "For it to last another 250 and hopefully beyond, we have to pay attention to that. We have to understand the political climate and what it's going to take for this nation to last and be prosperous."
