Our Founding Fathers are still with us. The story of America that they started in 1776 is only just beginning—and they will be with us all the way.

That’s because their legacy lives on not just in our laws, our Constitution and their fundamental proposition that all men are created equal with the same unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness—rights that are God-given, not government-given.

Their legacy also lives on in the spirit with which they wrote and signed the Declaration of Independence 250 years ago. That spirit animated our Founders’ bold vision of the future; their drive to take decisive action to make that vision happen; and their willingness to risk it all, including "their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor," to accomplish their goal. It didn’t die with the revolutionary generation.

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It lives on in what we can call founders’ fire. That same combination of bold vision, relentless drive and the willingness to see risk as opportunity is baked into our American culture. It’s the core of what is called American exceptionalism.

Because no other country or society has embraced that founders’ fire to the same extent or made it part of the original creation of a nation and a people.

In fact, it predates our founding. It grew up with the very first settlers on this continent, with their "errand into the wilderness" to create a new church under God, a new society and a new life for themselves, by taking on the risks and challenges of an unknown land in order to build what John Winthrop and then Ronald Reagan called a shining city upon a hill.

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That founders’ spirit grew and thrived along the American frontier, turning a vast continent into a land of opportunity for all, an "empire of liberty" in Thomas Jefferson’s phrase.

It was fundamental to how the Founding Fathers in 1776 were able to seize the moment to create a new nation. It also lives on with the two great gifts the original Founders left for the nation they created—and for the founders of American businesses, enterprises and institutions that followed.

The first is embedded in the Constitution itself, in Article 1, Section 8: the right to own intellectual property and to acquire government-licensed patents to protect that right. Since George Washington signed the Patent Act in 1790, and for more than 200 years, that right has unleashed what Abraham Lincoln — who was himself a patent holder — called the "fire of genius" to grow and sustain the freest and richest economy on earth, from Samuel Morse’s telegraph and Edison’s light bulb to Henry Ford’s automobile and Steve Jobs’ personal computer, right down to today’s AI companies and the builders of tomorrow’s quantum computers.

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The second gift is contained in the Declaration’s commitment to upholding "the pursuit of happiness" as every person’s unalienable right. Unlike property or life, or even liberty, it’s a right that’s entirely subjective: It’s left to the individual to decide what path is best for him or her, not government or some megacorporation, not even our family or neighbors.

We — and no one else — decide as individuals what path to take and where it leads in order to achieve a happy life in the United States.

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That’s why tens of millions of immigrants, both legal and illegal, have come to these shores for more than two centuries. The best of them understand that, while happiness is not guaranteed, they are freer to pursue the path that’s best for them than in any other society on earth.

And when that pursuit is suffused with the founders’ fire—including with immigrant founders like Andrew Carnegie, Elon Musk and NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang—the result is the fountainhead of creative possibilities and invention that characterizes American life. A fountainhead that empowers and expands the pursuit of happiness for other Americans, and ultimately for the entire world.

That’s why the American story has just begun. Because it still carries within it that founders’ spirit, which will always inspire someone to commit, regardless of the risks, their body and soul to the enterprise of making our country stronger, safer and more prosperous, both to our benefit today and to future generations.

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Top Democratic governors, including Minnesota's Tim Walz, California's Gavin Newsom and Illinois's J.B. Pritzker are urging Congress to reject legislation that would shield oil and gas companies from climate-related lawsuits, arguing taxpayers should not bear the costs of pollution.

"Communities all across our nation, in red states and blue states, have suffered and face staggering costs from fires, floods, storms, and heat waves that, according to scientists, are becoming more destructive as a result of the burning of fossil fuels," reads a letter penned by 10 Democrat governors.

The top state leaders, along with Democrat attorneys general, are pushing Congress to reject the Stop Climate Shakedowns Act of 2026, arguing it would protect oil and gas industries by granting immunity from lawsuits at the expense of taxpayers. Republicans argue the bill protects American energy from lawsuits that could bankrupt the industry, lead to job loss and drive up the cost of electricity and gasoline.

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"Such a guide is sorely needed as litigation involving climate science only grows in prevalence and urgency in our courts. Furthermore, the chapter’s removal does not change the scientific reality of climate change," wrote more than 20 attorneys general in their letter to Congress.

Jason Isaac, American Energy Institute CEO, told Fox News Digital that this is a "coordinated legal campaign to bankrupt lawful American energy producers through junk litigation."

"These companies legally produced the energy that heats and cools homes, powers hospitals, and fuels the American economy — and now a coalition of activist attorneys general and climate advocacy groups want to make them pay retroactively for doing exactly that," said Isaac.

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The act was first introduced by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., in April. If passed, the act would clear over a dozen lawsuits filed against oil and gas industries brought by local and state governments.

"After many failed attempts to enact EU-style climate measures, activists have turned to suing energy companies in a thinly-veiled effort to impose a global carbon tax through the courts," Civitas Institute research director Michael Toth told Fox News Digital. 

"This climate lawfare threatens to hijack the federal government's authority over matters that bear directly on our national security."

California sued several major oil companies in 2023 as part of a broader Democratic effort to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for climate change. The lawsuit, which remains tied up in litigation, reflects Gov. Gavin Newsom's longstanding opposition to the fossil fuel industry despite California being one of the nation's largest oil-producing states.

"These companies knew about the catastrophic consequences of fossil fuels. They covered it up. Suppressed scientific data. Spent millions to cast doubts on climate science. Time for them to pay," Newsom wrote on X at the time.

The letters from Democratic members and attorneys general come as the Supreme Court will hear a case in their fall term on ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy brought on by officials in Boulder, Colorado.

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More than 70 House Republicans are urging the Supreme Court to reject the bid to hold major oil companies liable for climate change damages, calling the lawsuit a costly "war on American energy," Fox News Digital previously reported.

The case would decide whether federal law preempts localities from seeking relief for alleged climate damages in state courts. Boulder sued ExxonMobil and Suncor in 2018, alleging they contributed to climate change and misled the public about its risks.

Alliance for Consumers Executive Director O.H. Skinner told Fox News that elected officials need to "push back against climate lawfare, stopping left-wing activists from using their woke lawfare playbook to push unpopular political beliefs through the courts."

"These activists push a woke agenda that hurts consumers by driving up costs and limiting what is on store shelves for consumers. This is the Biden playbook all over again," said Skinner.

A legal immigrant from Trinidad who became a U.S. citizen after nearly a decade-long process told Fox News Digital that birth tourism and illegal immigration are a "slap in the face" to those who came to America the right way.

Kris Ramsingh, a Virginia business owner who immigrated in 2006 and became a citizen in 2015, said his own experience becoming an American shaped his support for President Donald Trump's immigration policies.

"When you see that people come across the border, whether it's [to] have a baby for an anchor, or come across to border and get free healthcare, [or] free school, it's really a slap in the face to the people who have worked really hard to come into this country the legal way," he told Fox News Digital in an interview Thursday.

Unlike those who enter the country illegally, Ramsingh said he was required to satisfy a series of federal immigration requirements before becoming a U.S. citizen.

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As part of the legal immigration process, federal authorities required Ramsingh to provide proof of certain vaccines, personal documentation, a criminal background check and proof of a bank account to demonstrate he would not become a ward of the state.

"America doesn't owe us anything," Ramsingh said of legal immigrants like himself. "Our government here doesn't owe us anything. We have the privilege of coming into this country where it’s a holiday visa or for school."

Ramsingh said the week of Independence Day also marks the anniversary of his and his wife's arrival in the U.S. in 2006 with just $300 and a few suitcases.

"I have lived in Roanoke all of those 20 years since," he said from his Dominion Custom Upholstery business not too far from the city’s famed Mill Mountain Star.

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As Americans prepare to celebrate Independence Day, Ramsingh said he feels a special sense of pride in the American flag.

He recounted living in his home country in 1990 when Muslim insurgents carried out a coup and shot Prime Minister ANR Robinson while taking officials hostage.

"When we saw the red, white, and blue [of American] soldiers coming into the country, we knew we were safe. We knew at that point that America had our back. And America has had a lot of countries’ back over the years," he said, commenting that — having experienced such a situation firsthand — he is troubled by other countries that demand America’s assistance but go back to resenting the U.S. after they’ve been helped.

Ramsingh said that experience shaped his appreciation for the United States and its role around the world.

After immigrating to the United States, Ramsingh founded Dominion Custom Upholstery 13 years ago and later launched another company focused on boatworks and interior repairs.

He also recently founded Dominion Project International, a missionary organization through which he travels to India, Africa and the Caribbean to share the Gospel while providing potable water and medical supplies to people in need.

"The American Dream is that you can try something — you can work hard and try and if it doesn't work out you can you can pick up and try again," he added.

"The flag represents peace [and] hope as we’re getting ready to celebrate Saturday, the Fourth of July, and it means so much to me — it means freedom."

Since becoming a U.S. citizen, Ramsingh said he feels a special sense of security and pride whenever he returns from missionary trips abroad.

"There’s a sense of ‘I’m back on U.S. soil; I’m home,’" he said, whether landing in Washington, D.C., Miami or New York.

"That feeling is so great and it really bothers me to see Americans and foreigners coming into this country and saying that they hate America," he said.

"I think if you hated that much, you should just leave — there is no need for you to be here."

Asked about critics’ claims that Trump is anti-immigrant, Ramsingh rejected that characterization.

"He’s not anti-immigrant. Republicans are not anti-immigrant — we just want them to go through the process of doing it legally; coming in legally."

"During the Biden administration. When he opened that border — we're anti-invasion, we are not anti-immigrant. That was an invasion."

Ramsingh acknowledged that some of the personal stories surrounding deportations are difficult to watch, but said those situations stem from years of lax enforcement of U.S. immigration laws.

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"I came from a third-world country. My missions are in third-world countries. I see how these people live. I understand why they want to come to America. I understand the ‘why’," he said.

"I would say Trump is not against immigration. He just wants to see it done right. And again, Donald Trump and our government doesn't owe immigrants anything. We have the privilege of being here. It's a privilege. It's not a right."

Fox News Digital's Hannah Brennan and Kiera McDonald contributed to this report.

Can Americans come together over the next week to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary? With the country seemingly split into irreconcilable, and increasingly violent, camps, storm clouds darken the summer commemorations. Those worrying that the Semiquincentennial will be a giant bust should look no further than the Bicentennial. Plagued by similar fears, the Bicentennial turned into the biggest party the country had ever seen. Today, Americans should take heart and party like it’s 1976.

America’s two-hundredth anniversary came either at the worst possible moment or just in time. The previous 13 years had been among the most violent and disruptive since the Great Depression, possibly even the Civil War. The upheavals of the Civil Rights Movement had been punctuated by the tragic assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. America’s postwar consensus had spectacularly disintegrated barely two decades after the resounding victory in World War II.

To many, America had fundamentally changed. After the assassinations and riots, and the lies of Vietnam and Watergate, the country had become more cynical and distrusting of government, the elites, and big business. As a Boston Globe columnist wrote, the great issue in the 1976 presidential campaign would be "to restore confidence of the American people in their government and themselves," short of which he feared the country would remain "purposeless, rudderless, powerless."

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In a country at once exhausted and divided, it could well be questioned whether Americans would celebrate or jeer the Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence. Overwhelmingly, they celebrated.

As the jubilee approached, Bicentennial fever swept the country. A torrent of words on the Declaration and the Revolution poured off the presses, most with praise, many also arguing that America still struggled to live up to the promises of her founding document.

Over 12,566 towns and cities participated in the Bicentennial Communities project, renovating parks and historic buildings or building new community centers. Over seven million Americans visited the Freedom Train, which left Wilmington, Del., on April 1, 1975, and crisscrossed the country before ending its run on Dec. 31, 1976. As many as 10 million tourists toured Independence Hall and saw the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. Queen Elizabeth II made a triumphal state visit, landing first in Philadelphia.

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Against all expectations, the Bicentennial turned into both the greatest patriotic celebration and the greatest sales event in American history. Decades before e-commerce made buying with a click ubiquitous, Bicentennial hats, shirts, flags, medallions, coins, mini–Liberty Bells, commemorative booklets, posters, pillow covers, bed linens and pewter engravings sold by the millions through mail-order or catalogs.

Not surprisingly, Washington, D.C., was the center of the celebrations. Over 1.2 million people viewed the Declaration and Constitution at the National Archives over the course of 1976, while on July 2, the Archives opened its doors for a marathon seventy-six-hour "vigil," during which over 10,000 visitors stood in lines more than three hours long to gaze up at the priceless parchment.

Two days later, a street party took over Constitution Avenue in front of the National Archives, as 8,000 people gathered for a reading of the Declaration, heard patriotic songs and then joined in the cutting of a six-foot-tall, multilayered birthday cake.

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On the morning of July 4, famed composer Leonard Bernstein read the Declaration before a crowd in Manhattan’s Battery Park. At 2 p.m. Eastern Time, bells rang out across the nation for two minutes, from church steeples, town halls and firehouses. Parades large and small snaked through Main Streets across the nation as people celebrated with barbecues, sports activities and bands. That evening over a million people packed the National Mall and lined the Potomac to witness a gigantic pyrotechnics display depicting eras in America’s past.

The Bicentennial celebrations did not magically solve all of America’s problems or create eternal fellowship. There were protests and condemnations of the country. However, the vast majority of Americans showed both pride and some badly needed perspective on their history. As an opinion poll taken by the Gallup Organization in June 1976 revealed, 77% of respondents felt that "we had succeeded over these 200 years in achieving the ideals for which this country was founded."

This year, away from the drama in Washington, social media anger and media sensationalism, it’s likely many Americans will feel the same way about their country’s 250th. There is a "Freedom Plane" currently touring the country, and exhibitions at the National Archives, Library of Congress and Smithsonian Institution, as well as at local museums and presidential libraries are drawing thousands of Americans to view artifacts from the country’s past. A new bevy of books on the founding, the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence all are being published, and documentaries are being streamed.

Despite the anger manifested online and in the streets, despite rising incivility and political cage-match rhetoric, and even despite assassination attempts by a handful of deranged individuals, the vast majority of the country goes about its daily life peacefully. Debate and even heated argument about the country’s past are part of our tradition, not signs of imminent civil war.

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Our economic problems are serious, our politicians often incompetent, and our schools failing, among other concerns. Yet we need to remember why millions still come to these shores, why opportunity here is still open for the taking, and why very few Americans would trade life here for political systems in China, Russia or even most of Europe.

As America reaches 250, we remain a great nation, even as we strive to fix our ills and create a more perfect Union. If that task remains forever unfinished, it does not delegitimize the country’s existence or our achievements, but calls us to recommit to the principles of the Declaration. Most of us, I am willing to bet, would agree deep down with the words of the Memphis Tri-State Defender, a Black newspaper, written in 1976: "this land is the only land that we have to live in, and most importantly, few Black Americans want to leave it for some other place."

So, don’t worry, be happy, and embrace the "Spirit of ’76."

Celebrations have begun for Team USA after defeating Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 to advance to the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

But it’s also bittersweet considering Folarin Balogun, who scored his third World Cup goal in the victory, won’t be available on Monday night in Seattle against Belgium after being shown a red card in the 64th minute in a massively controversial decision.

When head referee Raphael Claus of Brazil showed the red card to Balogun, the crowd at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium and the millions watching from home were stunned. Not only did the USMNT have to face Bosnia and Herzegovina for the remainder of the game down one man, but he would be missing the next match if they made it through.

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After the match, former USMNT star Alexi Lalas didn’t hold back his thoughts about how the game was officiated on the night.

"An absolute joke of a refereeing night," Lalas said during the FOX Sports broadcast.

Lalas also had an interesting post on X involving Argentina superstar Lionel Messi, which was invoked by many after seeing what happened to Balogun.

In Balogun’s case, it was determined that him stepping on the back of Tarik Muharemovic’s leg, which led to a rolled ankle, was enough to flash the red card after VAR review despite both players jostling for position to receive the ball coming their way.

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There was nothing done with intent on Balogun's end; rather, he was just trying to land with his right leg after being bumped himself, and his foot unfortunately came down on Muharemovic.

But Lalas immediately thought about Messi’s situation that occurred in Argentina’s World Cup opener against Algeria. Messi was trying to get a ball away from an Algerian player when he was seen digging his cleat into the back of the player’s calf.

Lalas posted the clip on X with the simple caption, "'Sup," making it pretty clear what he was referring to. Messi wasn’t reprimanded on the pitch, or after, for what appeared to be a more egregious action than Balogun considering he was looking down at his opponent’s leg from behind before the cleat hits the calf.

Balogun wasn’t even looking at the back right leg of Muharemovic, though it was clear it could’ve been an injury given the rolled ankle that was being stepped on.

Either way, the USMNT will have to think about who will take Balogun’s place against Belgium, as manager Mauricio Pochettino and his staff will deliberate over that key position against their next formidable opponent.

But this red card will be debated for the days leading up to the next match, which will be held at Seattle Stadium on July 6 at 8 p.m.

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WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert folded under pressure late Tuesday night by issuing a reactionary statement after Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas publicly shamed her for a lack of support.

It's a great reminder that behind every incompetent league is bad judgment.

Engelbert capitulated hours after Thomas, a lightning rod for controversy following her latest violent on-court altercation with Caitlin Clark, cast herself as the victim.

Thomas successfully deflected from the fact that she had just been suspended for striking the league's golden goose.

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Despite earning the suspension that fueled the backlash, Thomas still turned herself into the victim, blasted Engelbert and the commissioner predictably folded.

"The WNBA vehemently condemns any and all forms of hate," Engelbert said in the statement on Tuesday.

One has to wonder where fists to the throat rank on the commissioner's list of priorities.

The statement amounted to a complete submission to Thomas, who used her Tuesday media availability to blast Engelbert.

"The safety and well-being of everyone in our community is always the league's top priority. We are aware of Alyssa Thomas' comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community. The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players."

Rather than hold Thomas to her action, Engelbert bent a knee to the wrong player.

During a loose-ball scramble, Thomas struck Fever superstar Caitlin Clark in the throat with her fist.

While officials on the floor inexplicably missed it, the league office later upgraded the play to a Flagrant 2 and slapped Thomas with a retroactive one-game suspension for a "non-basketball act."

Fever coach Stephanie White called the initial no-call "absolutely unacceptable," and Clark ultimately exited the game with a back injury.

Instead of answering for endangering a fellow player, Thomas displayed an astonishing lack of accountability, claiming, "A lot of us, myself included, didn't even know the play took place until after the game."

She then complained that her team was being "painted as thugs," cited severe online harassment and attacked the WNBA for failing to properly notify her of the suspension.

"Honestly, I didn't even know I was being suspended until 10 minutes before it was put on social media," Thomas said, taking a direct shot at the commissioner. "As usual, she remains silent."

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Engelbert took the bait. The league office showed it was more interested in validating Thomas' grievances than protecting its biggest gate attraction.

Engelbert has consistently mismanaged the overt physical hostility directed at the league's biggest star.

Hard fouls are routinely minimized, and meaningful discipline often arrives only after public outrage forces the league's hand.

By validating the self-perceived victimhood of a player who had just been suspended for a "non-basketball act" against Clark, Engelbert's administration exposed its priorities.

The WNBA continues to coddle veteran players who resent Clark's spotlight instead of enforcing a consistent standard of player safety.

Engelbert made her choice. It wasn't Caitlin Clark.

Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela

July 4th is more than marking America’s independence with patriotic flags, parades and fireworks. It's about celebrating American ingenuity, our firm belief that our country can engineer solutions to achieve the impossible, from launching the modern age of aviation to landing a man on the moon.

Some of the most compelling evidence of American exceptionalism today is happening thousands of feet beneath the surface of the Gulf of America, where our offshore industry has spent more than a decade solving one of the hardest engineering problems in the history of energy.

More than 100 miles offshore from the Gulf Coast sits a geological layer of sandstone and shale rock deep beneath the seabed called the Paleogene that holds tens of billions of barrels of oil. For years, most of it was considered unattainable. The reservoir pressures – up to 20,000 pounds per square inch, equivalent to an elephant standing on a quarter – exceeded anything existing technology could handle. No equipment had ever been built to work under those conditions.

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The solution was engineered here, in American waters, by the people who know them best.

Transocean developed the first drillships in the world built to work in these high-pressure conditions. Their Deepwater Titan and Deepwater Atlas are currently operating in the Gulf of America. Trendsetter Engineering designed subsea systems and manifolds capable of operating reliably at pressures once considered beyond reach. Other offshore companies have developed similar equipment that has unlocked the Paleogene.

The results speak for themselves. Chevron's Anchor project came online in 2024, representing roughly $5.7 billion in development spending. Beacon Offshore's Shenandoah is also producing oil and natural gas. BP's development plan for its $5 billion Kaskida project has secured federal approval and is moving toward first production. Together, these projects mark the opening of a new chapter of American offshore capability.

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The people who did this work aren't household names. They're engineers and subsea specialists and vessel crews spread across the Gulf Coast, part of a remarkable expertise that shows up when an impossible problem needs solving.

And our people have proven this equipment is safe and reliable.

Safety and containment systems were purpose-built, independently verified, and rigorously tested under federal oversight before a single well was drilled. Offshore consortiums HWCG and Marine Well Containment Co. (MWCC) both maintain 20,000 psi containment systems that can be deployed rapidly in the event of an incident.

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Federal regulations require operators to demonstrate access to containment resources, submit detailed response plans, and conduct robust recurring training exercises before drilling begins. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement requires third-party certification on every major high-pressure component: blowout preventers, subsea trees, wellheads and completion equipment. Nothing goes offshore without it.

This achievement that’s producing more American energy is worth celebrating today, especially during a time when we take stock of what this country is built on. The Paleogene wasn't unlocked by a single mandate or a government program. It was unlocked by an ecosystem of companies, engineers, regulators, suppliers and workers who collectively decided a problem was worth solving and spent years doing it. That's a distinctly American model, and it works.

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The Gulf of America supplies roughly 15% of U.S. oil production. Offshore projects support shipyards, manufacturers, ports, marine operators and skilled trades across the country. There are jobs and investments in all 50 states.

The Paleogene represents the next chapter of that output, backed by existing infrastructure, an experienced workforce, and decades of hard-won operating knowledge. The economic and national security benefits don't happen without the long-term investment decisions and the long-term confidence that make them possible.

At 250, America is still a country that does seemingly impossible things. The Paleogene in the Gulf of America is proof.

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