US President Donald Trump has found a replacement act for the several musicians who dropped out of America’s 250th Independence Day celebration on July 4: himself.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Trump spoke with his advisors and named himself the headliner for the bash after he arrived at his private golf club in Sterling, Virginia, on Saturday.
“I am thinking about bringing the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World, the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime, and he does so without a guitar,” the president wrote on social media, referring to himself.
Trump said he would give a major speech at the event, to which he said “Only Great Patriots” would be invited.
The event, billed as the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, will run for more than two weeks starting in late June. Earlier this week, organisers announced the fair would feature a 110-foot Ferris wheel and performances by several musical stars, including country singer Martina McBride and rocker Bret Michaels.
Within days of the announcement, McBride, Michaels, and many of the other performers withdrew, saying they didn’t know it was a political event.
“Unfortunately, what was presented to us as a celebration of our country has evolved into something more divisive. Concerns have also been raised regarding the safety of my fans, band, crew, family and myself,” Michaels said on social media.
Trump, in his Truth Social post Saturday, called the performers who dropped out “highly paid, Third Rate ‘Artists’” and said his speech would rally “the Country forward like I have done ever since being President!”
What is the ‘Great American State Fair’?
According to the White House, the idea was born on the campaign trail when Donald Trump imagined an event to highlight all 50 states and territories. The main draw: individual pavilions to provide a unique flavour of each state in the union.
The ‘Great American State Fair’ is being planned by the Trump-aligned group Freedom 250. Critics say it caters to MAGA fans. Freedom 250 claims the events are nonpartisan, an assertion many dispute.
Another group, America250, was established by Congress as a bipartisan initiative and is hosting its own events, including a New Year’s Eve-like ball drop in New York’s Times Square.
Trump is now the headliner of the fair, Freedom 250 said in a statement.
In addition to the American State Fair, the Trump administration has already arranged for a Freedom 250 Grand Prix IndyCar race on the streets of downtown Washington, D.C., and a UFC fight on the White House South Lawn.
The musical setback has registered in the West Wing, and some officials said there could be a personnel shake-up over the snafu.
In response to questions about the event, a White House spokesman referred to a Freedom 250 social-media post earlier on Saturday that said the fair would celebrate “the people, traditions, innovations, and spirit that make America the greatest nation on Earth.”
