Fireworks, heat, hot dogs and politics: America celebrates its 250th birthday

WASHINGTON (AP) — The 250th anniversary of American independence is colliding with a country gripped by political polarization and a heat wave bearing down on millions of people across multiple states as celebrations got underway Saturday throughout the United States. President Donald Trump plans to speak on the National Mall before what is being billed as a historically enormous fireworks show that will rain down over the nation's capital. New York hosted a ball drop at midnight to usher in the holiday with the same fanfare as New Year's Eve and saw tall ships parade pass the Statue of Liberty, recalling the fanfare around America's 200th anniversary in 1976. Anticipation for the milestone holiday has been building for much of the year, serving as an opportunity for Americans to reflect on their complicated history as onetime colonists of an empire who became a superpower of their own. Celebrations months in the making had to adjust or cancel activities entirely as much of the East Coast sweltered under heat that approached and in many cases surpassed triple digits. Undeterred, a U.S. Marine from Guinea became a newly minted citizen at George Washington's Mount Vernon in Virginia, wearing a crisp dress uniform and a small smile, while a 7-year-old raced onto a parade route in Brattleboro, Vermont, to snatch a Tootsie Roll. In Washington, a rodeo and the city's main Independence Day parade scheduled for Saturday were canceled. An extreme heat warning was issued for the District of Columbia, where heat index values could approach 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 C). Organizers for events later Saturday on the National Mall said they were monitoring the weather.