Peek Into Trump’s Planning of America’s 250th Suggests Religious Focus

A closed-door White House cultural event last month began with the Tony-nominated Broadway star Laura Osnes singing “America the Beautiful.” A few minutes earlier, a painter named Johan Andersson had placed an enormous portrait of the first lady, Melania Trump, on an easel at the front of the room.

It might have seemed like another afternoon at the Trump White House. But it was also a window onto the ideas driving the administration’s approach to this year’s 250th anniversary of American independence — including a strong emphasis on the religious roots of the nation’s founding.