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CNN Live Event/Special
The Fourth In America: Celebrating 250. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired July 04, 2026 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:00]
DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: All right, now, I'm looking at storms to our west. They have lightning. I don't know what the exact lightning protocol is but of course people we can't have lightning bolts anywhere around this area for these many people out in the open. So we'll see. Stand by. Hopefully this weather doesn't cancel everything. Severe weather temporarily -- they're closing the event. OK. This is happening in real time.
Hey, we can still get excited, but come back.
DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: Wait. Luckily we have you, our meteorologist down --
VAN DAM: We'll come back tomorrow.
BASH: Down on the mall to not only have an incredible amount of fun, but to tell us what's going on not just there, but also with the weather. In the meantime, let's head west to the iconic Venetian in Las Vegas for a performance from the multi-platinum and four-time Grammy nominated band, the Goo Goo Dolls.
(MUSICAL PERFORMANCE BY THE GOO GOO DOLLS)
JOHN RZEZNIK, LEAD SINGER AND FRONTMAN, THE GOO GOO DOLLS: Come on, light it up.
[19:05:00]
(MUSICAL PERFORMANCE BY THE GOO GOO DOLLS)
BASH: Incredible performance by the Goo Goo Dolls. Wow. They are just timeless. Most recently, their diamond certified hit "Iris" surpassed six billion streams. That's actually kind of amazing.
[19:10:07]
You see, we are in D.C.. There is a bit of a delay in the program behind us because of storms that are coming, but it's all going to take place we know very soon.
Look at that picture, Boris. Look at that --
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Incredible.
BASH: That shot, I should say, the New York skyline. Honestly, it doesn't even look real. But it is. It is folks.
SANCHEZ: Doesn't it make you want to climb the spire all the way to the top?
BASH: No, it doesn't. Not even in the least. The effects and the fireworks are going to dazzle those skies you're looking at over the East River and the Hudson River, plus the hilarious Craig Ferguson is going to be with us just after the break. Stay with us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAM WATERSTON, ACTOR: I'd say that hands down the most important and inspiring moment in American history is the first one. The moment Thomas Jefferson sat down and wrote, "All men are created equal," and declared that we all, every one of us in the planet, have God given rights that cannot be taken from us. And then the 55 other members of the continental Congress signed on to it with them. We had us a new country to live in, a reason for being a place to go, and a North Star to navigate by. And you can't beat that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:15:32]
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Welcome back to CNN's Fourth of July special. You're looking live at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., where there is currently a big weather delay. We're hoping that the storms pass, but the skies are dark and we can bring you the nation's capital's massive fireworks display later on tonight. Right now, though, a delay in place because the weather not looking great.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, the heat and there's a potential for thunderstorms. We see the crowds are still there.
Let's check it out with CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam, who is there in those crowds in D.C..
Derek, what's happening there?
VAN DAM: So, Sara and Victor, we just saw lightning in the background behind us. We just knew that this was always going to be a threat with the temperatures and the humidity that were so high here. It just doesn't take much for thunderstorms to bubble up. And, you know, I pulled up the CNN Weather app. It's got the ability to track storms right within the app. That has been just to our north. It's been to our south.
But there is another cluster of storms to our west, and that's what we don't want to see because that's approaching this massive outdoor event where thousands of people have gathered, where there's virtually no shelter. So if you listen closely, you can actually hear the PA announcement saying, take shelter in your vehicle or a sturdy home or structure. And evacuate the premises immediately. Go to your nearest exit because the Great American Fair and the Freedom 250 event is temporarily suspended because of the approaching severe weather.
I want to show you the graphics. We have been talking about this for several days now, but the National Weather Service had actually increased the threat right here across the mid-Atlantic. Some of the nation's epicenter for outdoor events, including this incredible Great American Fair that we are currently located on. So here is the forecast radar. We're looking into the future now, OK. And you can see the thunderstorms that are approaching from the west.
We are hoping that those stay out. But remember, it doesn't take a thunderstorm directly overhead to strike a lightning bolt. You can be 10 to 15 miles away from a thunderstorm, and a lightning bolt can strike Boston had an evacuation earlier this evening from severe weather, but they're now allowing people back onto the lawn because of -- the weather has cleared in Boston.
I'm going to show you this, Sara, because this is happening in real time. Air Force One right now, taking in this incredible, incredible moment. The Capitol building, thank you for pointing that out, buddy, and POTUS right flying directly overhead. Wow.
Sara, there's a lot of excitement here. People are not clearing out like they should be. The thunderstorms are near. The event is postponed until further notice.
SIDNER: Look, I was going to say anybody who has been in the south in particular, but in a scenario like that, you can see the weather coming. But those lightning strikes can hit you from a long way away.
BLACKWELL: And these storms come very quickly, which is what we saw in Boston. And they don't stay long as we see that they're allowing people to come back. But there didn't seem to be a lot of urgency behind Derek there. But hopefully the concerts and the celebrations will continue.
SIDNER: Yes, definitely lightning strikes. People should listen to authorities because it usually is quick and you can come back, but you don't want to put yourself in danger.
We should mention where we are because right now we have the best weather right now. It is gorgeous. We are on the 86th floor, the observatory of the Empire State Building. And there is our drone showing us -- I'm just waving. We're having a good time up here. We are getting such incredible views from here. And the public, of course, can come up here at some time. But now as the night falls --
BLACKWELL: And they've been here all day.
SIDNER: They've been here all day. As night falls, it closes and we get to stay and see fireworks like we've never seen before.
BLACKWELL: It is beautiful up here and we can't wait to see the show. Let's bring in, though, our next guest. He's the host of the CNN Original Series "AMERICAN ON PURPOSE."
[19:20:01] Comedian Craig Ferguson, who became an American citizen more than 18 years ago.
Craig, happy Fourth to you. Looks like you've got a great setting around you there. How are you feeling?
CRAIG FERGUSON, HOST, "AMERICAN ON PURPOSE": Yes. Yes, this is fantastic here. I'm an A.I.. I'm an A.I. right now and the weather is fantastic. I'm actually in Kennebunkport, Maine, at the Arundel Wharf, which is, for my money, the best restaurant in, I think the best restaurant here. Right? OK. This is Haley. We're going to talk to her in a minute. But first I just want to -- this is something that we should. This is my family, and we're here all celebrating the Fourth.
This is my wife. And, you know, other assorted members. But the thing is, and what's exciting for us, that not only is it the Fourth, but were all on parole at the same time. Isn't that beautiful? Now, what we're going to do is, because I became a citizen, I got the things. I got the -- I became a citizen, I had to pass a test. Right? And there are questions in the test. And Haley here.
Haley, say hi to everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, everyone.
FERGUSON: Say, happy Fourth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Happy Fourth of July.
FERGUSON: Happy Fourth of July. Haley is -- transferred here during the summer. But when the school year is on, Haley is a?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Teacher.
FERGUSON: Exactly. So that means she knows stuff. So let's see if you would pass the test to be an American citizen. All right? You're ready. OK.
So, Haley, how many amendments does the U.S. Constitution have?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Twenty-seven?
FERGUSON: Is correct. All right. Oh, yes. 27.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Twenty-seven.
FERGUSON: Yes. All right. OK. How many voting Americans are in the House of Representatives?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 435.
FERGUSON: Oh, you're on your way. Do you like gum?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FERGUSON: Correct. All right. What is the purpose of the 10th Amendment?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know.
FERGUSON: Neither do I. They haven't put the answer in. They haven't put the answer in. I don't know. Oh, wait, it does. It states that the powers not given to the federal government belong to the states or to the people. Is that right? Does anybody know the answer to this? Is there an American in the house? Name the powers not given to the federal government or states --
SIDNER: You're an American, Greg.
FERGUSON: Yes. No, this is great. This is like, this is fantastic. Everyone is going to become an American. All right, you ready? The war of 1812. Mexican-American -- I just gave you the answer. Hold on. Name one war fought in the United States in the 1800s.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The war of 1812?
FERGUSON: Is the correct answer. Yes, you're on your way. You're on your way. Right. Now this is a very CNN specific question, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FERGUSON: The CNN weather guy, Derek Van Dam.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FERGUSON: Can you name another Van Dam?
BLACKWELL: Jean-Claude.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jean-Claude Van Dam?
FERGUSON: Jean-Claude Van Damme? Yes, the proper Van Damme, that's not in the -- not that there's anything wrong with Derek Van Dam. I'm sure he's doing a great job.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Great job.
FERGUSON: It's a tough night tonight for Derek Van Dam. All right. Benjamin Franklin is famous for many things. Name one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Signing the U.S. Constitution, signing the Declaration of Independence.
FERGUSON: I say, I'm afraid I only said one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FERGUSON: And you said two. So I'm afraid that I'm going to mark that as wrong. All right. Dwight Eisenhower is famous for many things. Name one. One, Haley.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was a little older than me. FERGUSON: He was older than you? You know, not his whole life he
wasn't. When he was younger, he was younger than you, Haley. And as time passed, Dwight got older. But it happens to us all. What's that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So I know he was the president of the United States.
FERGUSON: He was president of the United States. Yes. I guess that's something, isn't? That was something. It still is something. All right. I'm going to see if my family -- congratulations. You're a citizen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
FERGUSON: All right? Now, no, I'm going to see if you guys become citizens. All right. No, let me ask you, Ariel. Ariel is not part of my family, but she kind of is, in a way.
Ariel, you are from?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Alaska.
FERGUSON: And you are?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Native American.
FERGUSON: Oh, right. OK, so let's see if you're allowed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Also Norwegian. Also -- that's it.
FERGUSON: All right, so Native American and Norwegian. Let's see if you can become just regular old American.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is so scary. Oh, yes.
FERGUSON: All right. Let's see. I got my questions. Name one power that is only for the states.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One pearl?
FERGUSON: Power. Power.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Power.
FERGUSON: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's only for the states. I don't even know what that means. One power that is only for the states?
FERGUSON: Correct.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know. OK, in Alaska, it's illegal to push a moose out of a plane.
FERGUSON: This is still CNN. Back to you, Victor.
SIDNER: Breaking news.
FERGUSON: And by the way, it's illegal to push a moose out of a plane in Alaska, so watch out, you moose-pushing bastards.
(CROSSTALK)
SIDNER: You're not getting off the hook.
[19:25:05]
FERGUSON: You moose-pushing bastards at FOX News. I don't know what you guys are doing.
SIDNER: OK.
FERGUSON: You're throwing Mooses out of planes.
SIDNER: We would never. We would never, although you're not supposed to mess with the moose and I tried to pet one, which was not recommended, but don't go anywhere, Craig, because we have some questions for you. You are giving questions to everyone else. You have to pass the U.K. test.
FERGUSON: Are we clear? '
BLACKWELL: Since you're so smart, Craig Ferguson.
SIDNER: We need you to pass a U.K. test. You're not clear yet. You're not clear. Can you hear us?
FERGUSON: (INAUDIBLE) bastards.
SIDNER: Can you hear us, Craig?
BLACKWELL: Good job.
SIDNER: Craig, if you can still hear us, nod. Send a sign, a signal. OK, listen, one of the questions. And we just have to, because we realize. OK, now, full disclosure, my mother is British, so some of these are a little unfair because there are things that I know.
BLACKWELL: And I just read the answers, so.
SIDNER: So it was who built the tower of London.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
SIDNER: And the answer was?
BLACKWELL: William the Conqueror.
SIDNER: William the Conqueror. I don't know why I knew that, but we did take a tour and so I remember that. And anything just about the queen, like my mother, even though she is an American citizen, loved the queen. BLACKWELL: And I'm not 100 percent sure if Craig Ferguson could not
hear us. He just heard there were questions coming, but we'll let that pass.
SIDNER: And he dropped it off.
BLACKWELL: Hey, we're getting closer to tonight's sensational fireworks shows, including in St. Louis, which is going to be beautiful over the arch there. Just look at the gateway arch. There will be illuminated later tonight.
SIDNER: There it is.
BLACKWELL: Beautiful.
SIDNER: And we've got some great music ahead, of course. Coming up performances from Charlie Puth, EGOT winner Jennifer Hudson. You know, she's going to boil off the top off. And country super star Maren Morris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRITTNEY GRINER, WNBA CHAMPION, OLYMPIC MEDALIST: I just remember Fourth of July. My dad always going fireworks. I got older, I took it a step higher, I think, and I literally just put on like a fireworks show for the whole block. And it's probably about a good two or 3K worth of fireworks that I normally get. And, yes, everything is bigger in Texas, so it's a big celebration for the Fourth. Griner family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:31:39]
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back to the Fourth in America Celebrating 250, a CNN Special Event.
An amazing shot there in New Orleans on the mighty Mississippi. The temporary weather delay has passed here in Boston, thankfully. The crowds are coming back to hear The Boston Pops, to watch the fireworks.
I am here with Pamela Brown. It was a deluge of rain. It was quite something.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST AND CHIEF INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And you were smart. Anderson brought a change of clothes.
COOPER: I've got like five changes of clothes. I am ready. Yes, I am fine. I gave up wearing a shirt. I am just like, you know what, a t- shirt is probably safer.
BROWN: We are fitting in with the crowd behind us, and I am really impressed by them. They've all been in such great spirits, even being evacuated. COOPER: I mean, Boston knows how to do this.
BROWN: They do.
COOPER: They got everybody out of here very safely, very orderly, 15,000 people.
BROWN: Yup!
COOPER: Suddenly, they all left. Now, they are pretty much all back and --
BROWN: Yup! And ready to roll --
COOPER: Yes, they are ready to roll.
BROWN: -- with the performances coming up.
COOPER: Yes, there is a lot going to be happening here. We are going to bring it all to you live. We've got a lot of great guests coming up.
We're going to be talking to historian, Ken Burns. Also ahead, we've got a lot of great musical acts right now.
I want to head back out West to the Bottle Rock Festival in Napa Valley, California. Here is brothers, Adam, Jack and Ryan Met of the band, AJR.
(PERFORMANCE BY AJR)
[19:37:27]
COOPER: That was AJR and we are back now in Boston, a packed schedule still ahead tonight.
We are going to be seeing Chance the Rapper who is going to be performing here as we wait for the sun to set and the fireworks to begin.
BROWN: That's right.
Also still to come, we are going to put some miles on it with a performance by country music star, Kane Brown.
MELISSA ETHERIDGE, SINGER-SONGWRITER: My favorite fourth of July memory is from 1976.
My father was taking us from Kansas, where I grew up. We were going on a vacation to Florida. There was a Caribbean band and they were playing steel drums and in their thick Caribbean accents, they were singing "Happy Birthday, America." And that stayed with me and still stays with me. That, to me, is exactly what America is and what America is all about.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [19:42:34]
COOPER: And welcome back to the Fourth in America Celebrating 250, a CNN Special Event.
I am here with Pam Brown.
You're taking a live look at the National Mall where there is weather delay that we are hoping quickly passes as D.C. is hoping to set a record tonight with the biggest fireworks show ever.
Here in Boston, we have overcome a storm. The crowd was evacuated. Everybody is back. We are counting down to what is going to be a remarkable fireworks show illuminating the skies over the Charles River.
And right now, I have the distinct pleasure to welcome one of the most iconic documentary filmmakers who has chronicled some of the most important chapters in American history, my friend, Ken Burns.
His latest film, "The American Revolution" is streaming now on PBS and it is extraordinary, if you haven't already seen it.
Ken, I know the Fourth of July is your favorite holiday. You are with your family.
You are such a fan of the Declaration of Independence. You read it with your family every July 4th. Can you just talk about that? What is it about it that that is so important and that you love so much?
KEN BURNS, HISTORIAN AND FILMMAKER, "THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION": Well, I love my country so much, Anderson. I love the words, 1, 337 words. They are some of the most important words ever written in the English language, certainly, the second sentence.
And every Fourth of July before we eat, or between the meal and dessert, I read it to my four daughters and lately to my sons-in-laws and now grandchildren.
So we've just finished it here on the porch at our Lake Cottage and we are very excited to be celebrating.
Happy fourth to you, Anderson.
COOPER: Thank you.
And I should just let our people in our audience know they are firing cannons off in the distance, so that is the sound you are hearing.
I know there are certain parts of the Declaration that particularly stand out to you, and I just want to ask you about some of them.
For you, what is the best sentence in the Declaration?
BURNS: Well, I think the best sentence in the Declaration is the second sentence, which is the -- you know, I think the second best sentence in the English language. And that's after "I love you."
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
COOPER: And we are showing that also on the screen for our viewers. What's the worst sentence you believe in the Declaration?
[19:45:07]
BURNS: Oh, you know, most of the Declaration is a complaint. Most of the Declaration is a complaint and there are 18 injuries and usurpations and the last one is the worst.
"He has excited domestic insurrections among us," meaning the king, "... and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions." -- not kind of one you want to remember.
COOPER: Right. And what's the best edit?
BURNS: The best edit is so great. So Jefferson writes the first draft and he says, "We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable," that we have a spiritual connection, that were making an argument. But Franklin edits it and says, "We hold these truths to be self-evident." This is a new rationalism.
We are not based on a particular religion, but we are based on something much bigger than this, the natural rights.
And so, it is also sort of the lawyer's dodge, as someone once told me, meaning you tell people that it is self-evident, even though these are the least self-evident truths that have been there, because these are brand new ideas.
Jefferson is distilling a century of Enlightenment thinking, it is a pretty good edit.
COOPER: What do you think is the most misunderstood part?
BURNS: I think pursuit of happiness is the most misunderstood. I think a lot of people assume it is a license to collect objects in a marketplace of things.
What the founders were worried about is that there was too much ambition, too much avarice, as John Adams says, too much lust for profit. That pursuit of happiness to the founders meant lifelong learning and the key word isn't even happiness. It is pursuit that we would become more virtuous to earn this new mantle of citizenship.
Remember, everyone up to this point has been a subject and now we have this new great responsibility to govern ourselves, which is going to require this kind of vigilance and eternal self-improvement.
COOPER: So that's what it is. It is self-improvement, lifelong learning, not just happiness per se.
BURNS: Yes. Well, I think happiness comes from that. I think we all agree and you and I have talked about this that happiness comes from a kind of sense of knowing yourself in a Socratic sense of being able to overcome the -- you know, all of the things that life throws at you, to be able to deal, as you and I have talked about with grief.
And I think also, to improve ourselves in ourselves and among our community. And that's the essence, I think, that the founders understood as what that capital H -- Happiness meant.
COOPER: Well, what do you think is the most interesting passage?
BURNS: Well, the one I like is, is a few phrases after the pursuit of happiness and he says -- Jefferson says, "All experience has shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."
It sounds difficult, but it is really not. He just means that heretofore everybody has been a subject under the boot of an authoritarian, and we are inventing this new thing, citizens, which means it is going to require an extra effort to not just always put up with the stuff that authoritarians always impose on their subjects.
We are not that, we are citizens. We are responsible for our own government.
COOPER: You also say that the American Revolution is the most important event since the Birth of Christ. Can you explain why you believe that?
BURNS: Well, you know what, in our film, we say it is the most consequential revolution in history and it is and I stand by that.
As I was out on the road for the last year-and-a-half talking about the series, promoting it in anticipation of the broadcast and then trying to manage the extraordinary response to it, billions and billions of minutes watched in streaming and traditional broadcast, I suddenly blurted out last summer that I thought it was the most important event since the Birth of Christ, just because it has galvanized so much that has been good in the history of the world, and that it represents the liberation of human beings, the releasing of democratic energy into the world.
And of course, our Revolution would sponsor more than two centuries of revolution. You know, when Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnamese independence on September 2nd, 1945, while the Japanese are surrendering, he is in Hanoi, in Baden Square, with hundreds of thousands of people, he quotes the second sentence of Thomas Jefferson.
That sentence is so incandescent, so powerful. And as I said, only "I love" you means more, I think to human beings in the grand scheme of things. And so I tried to put it into a historical context, not so much to say it is absolutely true, but to get people thinking, not arguing and I have had the best conversations over the last year talking about where we stand in the whole scheme in the course of human events as Jefferson says.
[19:50:20]
COOPER: Ken Burns, I love talking about it. Ken was on my podcast, "All There Is." It is a beautiful conversation. I hope you listen to it.
Also, Ken, I got this book last week, "The American Revolution." It is an incredible book that you put together, an intimate history. Obviously, the documentary is on PBS, but this book is incredible. Congratulations on that.
And thank you for joining us from your family vacation, reading the Declaration of Independence.
Ken Burns, appreciate it.
We've got some big surprises coming up in store. We count down to our first fireworks show of the night.
Going to go to New York City in moments where a very special guest is standing by to light up the Empire State Building.
BROWN: Plus, country music darling, Lainey Wilson, who will perform with The Boston Pops, singer-songwriter, Charlie Puth is here to grab your attention.
And you don't want to miss when a giant of country music and southern rock takes the stage, Chris Stapleton is coming up. Stay with us. Lots of excitement ahead.
BRYAN CRANSTON, ACTOR: Two hundred and fifty years ago, a group of men, some who were extraordinary, some who were ordinary, drafted a set of ideals that, if followed, could create a country like no other and the American experiment worked.
Our country is an incredible success story, built on hope and decency and respect for others and so, on this Fourth of July, I hope that we all remember how fortunate we are and privileged we are to honor our country as patriotic citizens.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:56:15]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to a spectacular night here on CNN.
You are looking live over Music City, Nashville, Tennessee. The crowds are gathering for tonight's big show.
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And now, fresh off the 10th anniversary of her debut album, "Hero," Maren Morris who is performing at the Majestic Theatre in Dallas, but before then -- BLACKWELL: Yes.
SIDNER: You might be wondering what this is. We are going to let you know after the break.
(PERFORMANCE BY MAREN MORRIS)
[20:00:00]
