Congress comes back to Philly for special session at Independence Hall

Source: USA Today

Updated July 2, 2026, 9:09 p.m. ET


PHILADELPHIA — On July 2, a select group of congressional representatives came back to the place where it all happened, 250 years ago to the day. A special congressional session was held at Independence National Park's Congress Hall in Philadelphia, where the Continental Congress officially declared freedom on July 2, 1776.

On that day they approved a resolution by Virginia's Richard Henry Lee that asserted "these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved."

Billed as a bipartisan event and organized by Brendan Boyle, a Philadelphia Democrat whose district includes the area around Independence Hall, the ceremonial session drew about three dozen members of Congress.Among them were Democrats Sen. Andy Kim and Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Robert Menendez Jr. and Donald Norcross of New Jersey; Republican Rep. Randy Fine of Florida, GOP Rep. Robert Aderholt of Alabama and Boyle's fellow Pennsylvanians, Republican Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick and Glenn "GT" Thompson.

On a sweltering, record 103-degree day, Thompson called the session to order promptly at 3 p.m. Eastern in a Congress Hall room used by Congress from 1790 to 1800, when Philadelphia was the nation’s capital.


Members of Congress file into Congress Hall at Independence National Park in Philadelphia, for a special session to mark America's 250th birthday. Phaedra Trethan

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/usa250/2026/07/02/congress-philadelphia-independence-250-special/90777473007/