President Donald Trump is hosting a Columbus Day celebration at the White House on Friday, underscoring his administration’s effort to honor Christopher Columbus as a hero and elevate the holiday ahead of Monday’s observance. Trump’s Columbus Day proclamation declares Oct. 12 as Columbus Day and praises the Italian explorer’s “valor, adventure, and ingenuity.” The president wrote that Columbus’ 1492 voyage “set in motion the forces that would culminate in the miracle of July 4, 1776.” The celebration comes months after a replica of a Christopher Columbus statue was placed on the grounds of the White House, near the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The mostly marble statue was made from remnants of another Columbus monument that was destroyed and thrown into Baltimore’s harbor during the 2020 unrest following George Floyd’s death. “We are delighted the statue has found a place where it can peacefully shine and be protected,” John Pica, a Maryland lobbyist and president of Itali...