Dem insider shreds Mamdani bidet proposal, notes Trump WH bathroom reno hypocrisy

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has officially moved into the historic Gracie Mansion, and he’s already hoping to make changes. The mayor spoke to reporters on Jan. 12 and shared his “aspirational hope” to have a few bidets installed in the mayor’s residence.

“One thing that we will change is we will be installing a few bidets into Gracie Mansion,” Mamdani said. “That’s an aspirational hope. We’ll see if we can get it done.”

A prominent New York City Democrat mocked the mayor’s idea, painting it as a rich man’s fantasy coming from someone who preaches socialism.

“He’s been mayor for a minute and now the socialist thinks he’s flush with so much cash he can buy bidets,” the prominent Democrat, who asked to remain anonymous, told Fox News Digital.

MAMDANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP HAVE BEEN TEXTING AT LEAST TWICE A WEEK — AS UNLIKELY BROMANCE BLOSSOMS: SOURCES

When speaking to Fox News Digital, the prominent Democrat pointed out the difference between the reaction to Mamdani’s “aspirational hope” to add bidets versus President Donald Trump‘s renovations to the White House’s Lincoln Bedroom bathroom.

Trump posted photos of the renovated bathroom on Truth Social in November celebrating the upgrade which included “highly-polished, statuary marble.” While the president argued that the renovation was in line with the original vision for the space, historians disagreed and comedians mocked him. John Oliver, the host of “Last Week Tonight,” called it “tone-deaf.”

The president’s renovations to the East Wing ballroom have also drawn criticism and mockery with Democrats taking aim at the president over the project. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said during an appearance on MSNBC that Trump “found time to demolish the East Wing of the White House so that he can build a ballroom where he can be celebrated as if he was a king.”

The East Wing renovation was mocked on “Saturday Night Live,” which did a skit featuring James Austin Johnson as Trump and Miles Teller as Drew and Jonathan Scott from HGTV’s popular home makeover show “The Property Brothers.” The mockery didn’t end there. During a “Weekend Update” segment, Michael Che said he was glad the floor looked “slippery,” according to the Architect’s Newspaper.

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The Gracie Mansion Conservancy’s website notes that the residence was originally built by Archibald Gracie, a prosperous merchant, in 1799 and was originally a country house located five miles north of what was then known as New York City. Since then, the city has expanded and the mansion is currently located in Manhattan’s Upper East Side, which is known to be one of the wealthier parts of the city.

The conservancy also stated that Gracie Mansion is one of the oldest surviving wooden structures in Manhattan and has served as the official residence of New York City mayors since 1942.

“Parks Commissioner Robert Moses convinced City authorities to designate the Gracie Mansion as the official residence of the Mayor in 1942 when Fiorello H. La Guardia and his family moved into the house,” the conservancy’s website reads.

HomeAdvisor, a home-improvement cost and contractor marketplace owned by Angi, said in 2025 that the average cost to install a bidet was $640, with a typical range of $400 to $1,500. The site noted that costs can run as low as $40 or as high as $2,000. The bidet type, size and quality, as well as necessary plumbing modifications can impact the installation cost.

Meanwhile, HomeGuide, a home-improvement cost guide that compiles pricing data from contractors and project estimates, broke down bidet pricing by unit and installation. The site said a standalone bidet could cost between $700 and $2,600 including installation, while the unit and installation cost for a bidet attachment typically ranges from $100 to $300.

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It is unclear how exactly the city would install bidets in Gracie Mansion.

New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection celebrated Mamdani’s announcement, saying that “more bidets = fewer wet wipes.”

Democrat slammed for staying seated during Trump speech honoring victims’ families

Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., was confronted over his refusal to stand during President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress when honoring families of children raped and murdered by illegal immigrants.

In a heated exchange with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Thanedar criticized the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts.

“I did not stand because the president, I was just sick of the president,” Thanedar said Friday on “Hannity.”

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Hannity responded, “You wouldn’t stand for families that lost children – a 12-year-old girl raped and murdered – and you couldn’t stand for them because you were playing politics.”

“I would not stand for this president,” Thanedar reiterated. “He was lying.”

Thanedar claimed Trump was “using a tragedy” for political purposes.

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During the speech, Trump honored several young women whom law enforcement says were murdered by illegal immigrants, including Jocelyn Nungaray.

Many Democrats in the chamber remained seated as the families were recognized, including Jocelyn’s mother, Alexis Nungaray, who was in attendance. Nungaray later described the Democrats’ reaction as “shameful” during a March appearance on “Hannity.”

“I found it very cowardly that a lot of the Democrats didn’t stand, didn’t clap, didn’t do anything to support anything that Donald Trump was trying to do as president to make this country better,” Nungaray said.

“It’s just very disgraceful to us as U.S. citizens that those are the people we have here in Congress,” she added.

During Friday’s segment, Hannity repeatedly pressed Thanedar on whether he had personally contacted families of Americans killed by illegal immigrants. He responded, saying he speaks with his constituents “all the time” and claimed they are being “terrorized by ICE.”

He was pressed on his decision to file articles of impeachment against Trump over the deportation of suspected gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia, as well as his calls to entirely abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

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Thanedar recently introduced legislation to abolish ICE, calling for the agency to be dismantled entirely. He told reporters that he believes “ICE is beyond reform.” A press release from his office explains the act as a step toward creating a “more humane approach to immigration policy.”

His comments come as ICE faces intense scrutiny from activists and Democratic leaders following the death of Minneapolis woman Renee Nicole Good during a confrontation with immigration agents earlier this month.

Veteran actress shuts down online jabs after comments target her looks at 68

Rachel Ward is responding to the fans that criticize her for aging naturally.

Over the holidays, the “Thorn Birds” star sparked conversation around her appearance after sharing her farm in Australia with her followers online. Users bombarded her Instagram video with comments, suggesting she looked older than 68.

The video has reached almost 1 million views and has thousands of comments, mostly of people praising her for showing “what true beauty is” with a few nasty messages about her looks.

After her video reached many viewers, Ward decided to upload a follow-up video on Thursday, discussing her age and choice to not get work done in her 60s.

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“Dear those of you who responded to the brouhaha over the trolls criticizing my appearance, I have tried to do a little better today. I ran my hands through my hair, etc. but anyways, just to say, do not fear aging. It’s a wonderful period of life, in your 60s. I am more fulfilled than ever and I have no regrets, leaving my youth and beauty behind,” Ward said in her video.

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She continued, “I’m not youthful, but I am a very happy camper. Later years are to be exalted and welcomed. You wait until you get there. They have so many other gifts to bestow that you have no idea what they are until you get there.”

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Ward ended her video message by thanking her fans who sent kind messages after a “few trolls” left unkind comments about her looks.

“Don’t worry about me. I do recognize that we’re all a little bit worried about losing our youth and resorting to rather drastic ways of holding on to it, but let it go,” Ward concluded.

The star captioned her video by stating she was “overwhelmed” by the people offering her compliments after “a few fearful trolls went on the attack of my rather unkempt appearance before Christmas.”

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The actress said that she lives on a farm now, so doesn’t spend too much time on her appearance every day.

Ward runs a beef cattle farm in Australia with her husband and former “The Thorn Birds” co-star, Bryan Brown. The couple have three adult children: daughters Matilda and Rosie and a son, Joe.

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Iranian escapees reveal ‘medieval’ torture used on anti-regime activists

As protests spread across Iran and security forces intensify their crackdown, former political prisoners are warning that what is visible on the streets represents only a fraction of the violence unfolding behind prison walls.

In interviews with Fox News Digital, three former detainees described a system designed not just to punish dissent, but to break it through solitary confinement, beatings, medical neglect and threats of execution. Their accounts span nearly two decades, from the 2009 uprising to the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement and the current wave of unrest, pointing to what they describe as a consistent and escalating pattern of abuse.

Maryam Shariatmadari, one of the faces of the “Girls of Revolution Street” protests against Iran’s mandatory hijab laws, was sentenced to one year in prison in March 2018 for what authorities described as “encouraging corruption by removing her hijab.”

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Speaking this week, Shariatmadari said the scale of the current protests has pushed the regime beyond its capacity to detain demonstrators.

“According to the testimonies of eyewitnesses, the suppressive forces of the Islamic Republic … are delivering ‘final shots’ to wounded protesters, killing them on the spot,” she said. “This has been unprecedented over the past 47 years and indicates that the number of detainees has become so large that the Islamic Republic no longer has the capacity to hold them and is killing them without any form of trial.”

She said that while detainees in earlier uprisings were transferred to prisons or unofficial “safe houses,” authorities expanded detention during the 2022 “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests to schools, ambulances and food transport vehicles.

“They used ambulances and food transport vehicles to detain protesters, something I believe to be unprecedented in human history,” Shariatmadari said.

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Inside detention facilities, she described systematic abuse.

“These include beatings, transfers to prisons without separation based on the type of offense, and the deliberate incitement of other inmates to harass and abuse us,” she said.

One of her most traumatic experiences occurred during interrogation.

“I was ordered to remove my clothes and remain completely naked for a body search while cameras were present,” Shariatmadari said. “I knew that men were watching me, and I could hear their voices.”

She also recalled being denied urgent medical care after an injury.

“Only after approximately 24 hours was I taken to a hospital to undergo surgery,” she said. “I believe this happened as a result of media pressure and public support.”

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Eight hours a day, blindfolded

Shariatmadari’s husband, Mehdi Ghadimi, a freelance journalist who worked with reformist newspapers Etemad and Shargh, was arrested in January 2023 during protests and taken to an undisclosed location. He spent nearly his entire detention in solitary confinement.

“I was interrogated twice daily, morning and afternoon, for eight hours with my eyes blindfolded,” Ghadimi said.

In the final days of his detention, he was transferred to a shared cell, where he encountered detainees from across Iranian society.

“I encountered students, workers, technical specialists and others who had been arrested during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement,” he said.

According to Ghadimi, detainees accused of supporting the Pahlavi dynasty were beaten more severely.

“Because their slogans and symbols supported the Pahlavi dynasty, they were beaten far more than the others,” he said.

Based on his experience, he warned that current detainees are likely to face even harsher treatment.

“I can only imagine that this time all detainees will face similarly brutal treatment,” Ghadimi said, adding that Iran’s judiciary chief has publicly signaled a hard line.

Ghadimi, who fled the country in 2024, also cited figures circulating among activists claiming well over the 2,600 reported, likely dwarfing that number. He said the number of detainees is likely far higher than the 10,000 reported.

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“On the other side of those bars is hell”

Shabnam Madadzadeh, who was imprisoned during the 2009 uprising, said watching the current protests has revived memories of extreme brutality and raised fears of mass executions.

“What immediately comes to my mind is the regime’s sheer brutality in torture and killing,” Madadzadeh said.

She said detention facilities were already overflowing during the 2009 protests.

“There was no space left for detainees. Even the solitary cells were overflowing with people,” she said.

Madadzadeh recalled interrogators accusing nearly everyone arrested of links to the Mujahedin-e Khalq and described torture and beatings “to the point of killing.”

One threat made to her during interrogation still haunts her.

“He told me: ‘If we are going to be overthrown, we will kill all of you. We will leave no one alive,’” she said.

She warned that the current internet blackout has heightened the danger for detainees.

“We truly do not know what level of brutality is currently taking place inside the prisons,” Madadzadeh said, adding that information reaching her suggests the regime is seeking to carry out executions quickly.

Citing Iran’s past, she warned of the risk of mass killings similar to the 1988 executions of political prisoners.

“Today, at a moment when the regime is on the brink of collapse, there is a real danger that such a massacre could be repeated,” she said.

Madadzadeh said young detainees are likely facing forced confessions, mock executions and threats of sexual violence.

“Whatever I do to you, no one will hear your voice,” an interrogator once told her, she recalled.

She also emphasized the suffering of families searching for loved ones.

“Families are moving between detention centers, prisons, morgues and cemeteries,” she said. “This uncertainty itself is the greatest form of torture.”

As the protests continue, all three former prisoners said the outside world must not look away.

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“The first thing I expect the free world to understand is the true voice of the people inside Iran,” Shariatmadari said. “The people of Iran are united in their demand for regime change and want to restore Iran to its former dignity, a dignity in which human rights and human worth were respected.”

Ghadimi echoed that warning.

“Without a doubt, when the regime displays such open violence in the streets, even worse atrocities occur behind prison walls,” he said. “I can only imagine that this time all detainees will face similarly brutal treatment.”

For Madadzadeh, the danger is immediate.

“The world must respond decisively to this brutality,” she said. “Every minute of delay costs lives.”

She called for concrete international action.

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“Force the regime to allow independent visits to prisons and to the secret detention centers run by the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence,” Madadzadeh said. “Lives depend on it.”

Together, their testimonies paint a stark picture of Iran’s prisons as the hidden front line of repression and a warning that what remains unseen may be even more deadly than what is already visible in the streets.

Union pushes ‘economic blackout’ against federal agents after activist’s death

An email obtained by Fox News Digital from the Inter Faculty Organization (IFO), the union representing faculty at the seven Minnesota State universities, is urging members to participate in an economic “blackout” to protest the federal immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis this month.

“The recent escalation of federal immigration enforcement presence under ‘Operation Metro Surge’ and the tragic killing of Minneapolis resident Renee Good have created an environment of fear and instability that impacts us all, but you and your colleagues can come together to demand an end to ICE presence in our state,” the email from the IFO reads.  

ICE has faced heightened criticism since the shooting of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis last week.

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Good was a Minneapolis-based immigration activist serving as a member of “ICE Watch.”

“A broad coalition of Minnesota faith leaders, labor unions, and community organizations has called for a statewide Day of Truth and Freedom on Friday, January 23, 2026,” it adds. 

The union is asking participants of the “Day of Truth and Freedom” to take a personal day and not go to work and not go to school. 

If rescheduling or canceling school is not an option, it asks members to instead host a “teach-in.” “We encourage faculty to facilitate discussions on relevant topics such as civil liberties, the history of labor movements, immigration policy, the US Constitution, or community safety,” the email reads.

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The union is also urging members to refrain from shopping on Jan. 23 as part of the economic blackout.

“Regardless of whether you can attend in person, we ask all members to observe the economic blackout by refraining from making purchases on Friday, Jan 23,” the email reads. 

The email tells members that participating in the blackout will put them on the right side of history.

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“You have the power to show that Minnesota’s faculty stand on the side of truth, justice, and community safety. When our neighbors are under attack, labor stands up,” the email reads. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the IFO and ICE for comment. 

City council ousts convicted killer from police oversight after public outrage

After weeks of mounting backlash and public outrage, the Salem City Council voted to remove Kyle Hedquist — a man convicted of murdering a teenager — from boards advising the Oregon city’s police and fire departments, undoing a controversial reappointment approved just weeks earlier.

The council voted 6 to 2 during a special meeting to revoke Hedquist’s appointments to the Community Police Review Board and the Civil Service Commission, according to the Salem Statesman Journal.

The decision overturned a narrow 5 to 4 vote on Dec. 8 that reappointed Hedquist to multiple public safety-related boards despite a recommendation from the Boards and Commissions Appointments Committee to leave the police review board position vacant.

Hedquist was convicted in 1995 of murdering 19-year-old Nikki Thrasher. He later said he feared Thrasher would report him to police for hiding stolen property at her home. Hedquist served nearly 28 years in prison before then-Gov. Kate Brown commuted his sentence, citing rehabilitation and good behavior.

BACKLASH ERUPTS AFTER CITY COUNCIL APPOINTS POLICE REVIEW BOARD MEMBER WITH MURDER CONVICTION

Since his release, Hedquist became a policy associate for the Oregon Justice Resource Center and advocated for criminal justice reform at the Oregon Legislature. He told the Statesman Journal he joined Salem’s advisory boards to continue serving his community.

His role on the police review board came under renewed scrutiny after city staff acknowledged background checks had not been conducted on board and commission members — meaning the council was not explicitly informed of Hedquist’s criminal history or given clear standards for how such history should factor into appointment decisions.

Meeting records show council members were not provided guidance on which types of criminal convictions could disqualify applicants, how much time must pass following a conviction, or whether additional vetting was required for sensitive public safety oversight roles.

The controversy escalated after the Dec. 8 vote, prompting outrage from the Salem Police Employees Union and Salem Professional Fire Fighters Local 314. The unions accused city leaders of creating a “credibility crisis” by appointing and reappointing a convicted murderer to boards advising police and fire leadership and launched a public pressure campaign urging residents to contact councilors.

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During the Jan. 7 meeting, emotions ran high as hundreds of written testimonies were submitted and residents addressed the council during public comment. Councilor Deanna Gwyn said she never would have supported Hedquist’s appointment had she known about his murder conviction. She held up a photo of Thrasher and read a note from the victim’s high school best friend.

Hedquist addressed the council through tears, describing the lasting weight of his crime and his efforts at rehabilitation.

“For 11,364 days, I have carried the weight of the worst decision of my life,” he said. “The death of Nikki Thrasher is the gravity that pulls at everything I do.”

His wife told councilors their family had received death threats after the controversy went national. Other speakers both condemned and defended Hedquist, highlighting deep divisions within the community over rehabilitation, accountability and public safety.

Councilor Vanessa Nordyke, who is running for mayor against Mayor Julie Hoy, initially voted to reappoint Hedquist in December but later called for the council to revisit the decision after hearing from police and fire unions and members of the public. She later acknowledged she was wrong, telling the Statesman Journal she wished she had heard public testimony before the Dec. 8 vote.

The Jan. 7 meeting also resulted in sweeping changes to the city’s rules governing boards and commissions.

Under the newly adopted standards, applicants to the Community Police Review Board and the Civil Service Commission must now complete criminal background checks. Anyone convicted of a violent felony is automatically disqualified from serving on those boards.

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The council also voted to reserve at least one seat on the Community Police Review Board for someone with personal experience as a victim of a felony crime, a move supporters said would help ensure victim perspectives are represented in police oversight.

In addition, the council expanded background check requirements to all city boards and commissions, mandating that members undergo the same vetting process required of other city volunteers and employees.

As part of the action taken that night, the council formally withdrew Hedquist’s reappointment, leaving open positions on both the Community Police Review Board and the Civil Service Commission.

Hoy, who voted against Hedquist’s reappointment in December and supported revoking it in January, said in a Facebook post that her position throughout the controversy was rooted in governance and public trust rather than politics.

“Wednesday night’s meeting reflected the level of concern many in our community feel about this issue,” Hoy wrote. “My vote was based on process, governance, and public trust, not ideology or personalities.”

Hoy said the committee tasked with reviewing the appointment considered the information available at the time and made a recommendation to the full council, adding that respecting that process is essential to maintaining public confidence and supporting city staff.

“We serve in a political environment, but city council does its best work when decisions are grounded in good governance, not politics,” she wrote.

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Councilor Brad Brown criticized the death threats received by councilors and a website created to target those who voted in favor of the appointment, calling the episode a low point for civic discourse.

“I thought we were better than this,” Brown said.

Trump’s former GOP rival heaps praise on his ‘historic leadership’ amid Iran protests

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush credited his former political foe President Donald Trump‘s “historic leadership” on pushing for a denuclearized and democratized Iran, saying that his current organization — United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) – stands ready to help Trump and the people of Iran against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

With Trump’s emergence into presidential politics in 2015, he found his top rival in the former Florida governor, notably dubbing him “Low Energy Jeb” — as the Republican scion hit back that the mogul could not “insult his way to the presidency.”

This week, détente appeared to emerge between the two as Bush heaped praise on Trump’s position after the president urged Iranian “patriots [to] keep protesting.”

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“Take over your institutions. Save the names of the killers and abusers. They will pay a big price,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday.

“President Trump continues to demonstrate historic leadership on Iran, with unprecedented support for the Iranian people as they face bullets for freedom. We at UANI join him in standing with the brave people of Iran.”

Bush leads UANI alongside former Ambassador Mark Wallace, the ex-husband of MS-NOW host Nicolle Wallace and a key diplomat in Bush’s brother’s White House.

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“UANI applauds President Trump’s unprecedented support of the people of Iran as they fight to reclaim their country,” Bush and Wallace said in a statement.

“For far too long, the United States and the West have equivocated in expressing support for the people of Iran in the face of the Ayatollah’s violence and repression.”

“President Trump’s post made clear that no longer will the United States and the West lack the moral clarity to support the people of Iran as they face bullets for freedom. That change is historic.”

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Trump has been praised for taking a harder line than recent presidents against Iran, cancelling talks with Tehran leaders after reports surfaced that they were shooting and killing protesters in the streets.

“UANI joins with President Trump and stands with the brave people of Iran in their struggle against the Ayatollah,” Bush and Wallace added.

Their group is a nonprofit, nonpartisan one, formed to combat threats posed by Iran.

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The tenor between the two Republican stalwarts is a marked change from the turbulent 2016 sweeps.

At the time, Trump often mocked Bush for his family’s involvement in the race, reportedly saying, “Your mom can’t help you with ISIS” after former first lady Barbara Bush cut a campaign ad for her son.

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“Donald is great at the one-liners,” Bush quipped during a 2015 debate. “But he’s a chaos candidate.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on the two leaders’ new common ground.

On Iran, a senior administration official said the administration supports the people of Iran against the regime’s continued human rights abuses and authoritarian repression, and that the regime is one of the world’s worst violators of human rights; oppressing its people to maintain its grip on power.

New Orleans street work uncovers burned secrets buried beneath the French Quarter

Construction crews working on a $9 million water main replacement project in the heart of New Orleans recently uncovered centuries-old remnants of fires that once devastated the historic city.

The artifacts, which were uncovered in the French Quarter, were found in early November on St. Peter Street between Chartres and Royal streets, NOLA.com reported last month.

The finds were disclosed in a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) document shared with city and state agencies.

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Though the artifacts were uncovered in November, FEMA did not share the results with state agencies until Dec. 23.

The discovery consisted of about 1,000 objects and a layer of burnt clay.

Excavators also found a pewter button belonging to a British soldier in the late 1700s — as well as nails, brass pins, a copper coin, brick fragments, pieces of glass and bronze buckles.

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The artifacts are tied to two devastating fires in New Orleans history: the Fire of 1788 and the Fire of 1794.

“Assessment is still ongoing,” said the FEMA document.  “However, the interpretation thus far is that the burn layers represent the Fire of 1788 and the Fire of 1794.”

The artifacts will help experts glean more information about the “intensity of burn and level of destruction along the 600 block of St. Peter Street,” according to FEMA, as well as details about reconstruction efforts in the fires’ wake.

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The water mains that are being replaced date back more than 115 years. 

The recently uncovered layer was “heavily disturbed from previous utility work,” but there is clear strata showing that “two burn events are represented,” according to the report.

A FEMA spokesperson told Fox News Digital the artifacts have been removed to a laboratory, where archaeologists are preparing required analysis. 

No additional information is known at this time.

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The Fire of 1788 devastated the then-young city of New Orleans, destroying over 800 buildings that represented around 80% of the French Quarter’s structures, according to NOLA.com. The 1794 fire destroyed more than 200 buildings.

This isn’t the only time that the Big Easy has made headlines for archaeological discoveries in recent months.

In October, a New Orleans couple unearthed a mysterious Roman relic in their backyard, setting off an investigation into its origin.

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Preservation in Print editor Daniel Monteverde told Fox News Digital that New Orleans is “a news town with so much history and color that little is surprising… but the [Roman artifact story] is the most unique story I’ve come across.”

America’s 250th anniversary sparks travel rush as experts issue urgent booking warning

Families are already planning 2026 vacations this year as America turns 250, with plenty of historic destinations in the spotlight.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) is spotlighting a number of celebratory trips across the country, beginning with an event in Philadelphia.

“We recommend travelers identify which events they want to attend or site they want to visit and book early,” an AAA spokesperson told Fox News Digital this week.

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“Don’t wait until the last minute to buy flights or reserve hotels,” the spokesperson added. “Especially over Independence Day weekend — when we historically see record travel numbers.”

The Wawa Welcome America Festival, for example, is a 16-day celebration beginning June 19 and lasting through July 4.

“This once-in-a-generation experience will feature events that Philadelphians have come to know and love, just bigger and better, including concerts on Independence Mall, firework displays, block parties, Wawa Hoagie Day, a parade representing all states and territories,” the website notes. 

Also noted for Philadelphia is The Museum of the American Revolution (MAR). An exhibition traces how the Declaration of Independence inspired similar movements around the world.

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Just outside Augusta, Georgia, is Meadow Garden, home to George Walton. It’s been open to the public since 1901, making the property one of the oldest house museums in the U.S. It’s also featured on the America 250 list by AAA. 

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Walton was a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

There are “ongoing activities, like the ‘Write Like a Signer’ experience, where young visitors can try their hand at quill writing,” said AAA.

Meanwhile, Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston will showcase a historic opera from April 24 to May 3.

“The Daughter of the Regiment” tells the story of Deborah Sampson of Massachusetts, who disguised herself as a man to join the fight for independence.

Three events are spotlighted by AAA in the nation’s capital, starting with an AI display titled “The American Story” at the National Archives Museum, which will offer a journey through 250 years of history.

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While the National Mall has already kicked off the year with illuminations on the Washington Monument, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival will take place June 18 to July 12.

Near the mall, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History will feature various Declaration of Independence exhibits.

Outside Washington, D.C., Gadsby’s Tavern Museum in Alexandria, Virginia, will share the story of previous manager Hannah Griffith.

Griffith ran the coffeehouse from 1785 to the early 1800s, offering just one example of the roles women played during the Revolutionary War.

Also in Virginia is the First Baptist Church of Williamsburg, which was founded for enslaved and free African Americans.

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“Organized in 1776 — at a time when Black people faced severe restrictions on their right to gather — the congregation has been a cornerstone of resilience and faith,” AAA notes.

One of the largest celebrations to take place on the East and Gulf Coasts is Sail250.

International fleets of tall ships and navy vessels will dock in New Orleans, Norfolk, Virginia, Baltimore, New York and Boston bringing parades, tours, fireworks and more.

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Rosie Rios, chair of the America250 commission, previously told Fox News Digital, “It’s important for people to see themselves in this commemoration and important for them to feel inspired for our country’s future.”

Congress created The U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission in 2016 to plan and orchestrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Rios is a former treasurer of the U.S.