Americans have been so beaten down by corruption, ramped up since the Reagan Revolution, that many act like they forgot their rights. Gaslit Nation is here to remind you: Trump's UFC cagefight White House party is illegal, and so are likely many of the events of Trump's Freedom 250, his shell company for illegally collecting bribes and selling access to the White House in the name of celebrating America's 250th anniversary.

While a shocking amount of corruption has been illegalized, we are still a nation of laws. It's illegal to use money that Congress appropriated for a different purpose. It is also illegal to mingle corporate money with public tax-payer funds appropriated by the government, without, getting permission from Congress. That is exactly what Trump is doing: he stole tax-payer funds appropriated by Congress from America 250–the bipartisan planning event–and is using that, along with corporate funds/bribes to hold MAGA rallies for his death cult. Dan Friedman, an investigative reporter for Mother Jones, breaks down our path to accountability, to stand up to yet another king–there's no better way to truly honor the American Revolution.

Remember when we all cheered when Trump's name was taken off the Kennedy Center? We can do that again if lawsuits reclaim our stolen funds for Trump's Freedom 250 grift. Congresswoman Joyce Beatty of Ohio brought the Kennedy Center case with Democracy Defenders Action and the Washington Litigation Group. Email her office to demand another case.

Two-hundred and fifty years ago, a group of rebels defeated an empire. We can and must do it again. Gaslit Nation is here to remind you who the true patriots are.

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Show Notes:

Number of National Guard troops deployed to Washington, D.C. set to double https://www.npr.org/2026/05/25/g-s1-124213/number-of-national-guard-troops-deployed-to-washington-d-c-set-to-double

Michelle Obama at the opening of the Obama Library: https://www.instagram.com/p/DZvKNDhEnfj/

Mayor Mamdani at the Knicks parade: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZvFVSJjIlj/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Trump's efforts to turn the 250th in a partisan party for himself. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/06/military-parade-army-trump-american250-a250/

Trump's War on History: As America's 250th anniversary approaches, the president wants to control the country's future by bulldozing its past. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/02/america-freedom-task-force-250-trump-anniversary-history-smithsonian-kennedy-center/

Piece on Interior/NPS effort to get rid of National Park signs: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/02/donald-trumps-national-park-signs-francis-newlands-chevy-chase-circle/

Trump's Christian Nationalist rally on the Mall https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/05/trump-maga-freedom250-christian/