Daniel Hampton
July 1, 2026
RAW STORY
A supporter wearing a Make America Great Again cap attends a rally kicking off the Great American State Fair, marking the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 24, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Small towns across America wanted to throw a party for the nation's 250th birthday, but a new report found President Donald Trump's cost-cutters took away the money and funneled it toward his own beautification projects in Washington.
NOTUS reported that when DOGE axed federal funding for state humanities councils last year, local libraries and historical societies were forced to abandon plans for the semiquincentennial. The councils, created by Congress around the 1976 bicentennial to fund small-scale history and civics projects, operate in nearly every state and territory.
In Trumbull County, Ohio, even a modest "passport" project encouraging visits to history sites had to be kept small because the historical society could not afford to print more booklets. Councils in West Virginia, Alabama and Washington state were hit too.
“There’s certainly things that we could have done for America 250 if the funding was available. That just didn’t work out how we thought it could have,” Meghan Reed, the executive director of the Trumbull County Historical Society, told NOTUS.
"There's not really a lot of cultural infrastructure in West Virginia. Where most of the cultural work is done is in regional centers, community centers, small museums, county historical associations. So the people who really got hurt were those small organizations across the state," said Eric Waggoner, head of the West Virginia Humanities Council, who added of his 250th plans: "I'm sad to say we had to scrap it."
NOTUS reported that Congress funded the councils at normal levels for fiscal 2026, but the administration has disbursed less than half and told them not to expect the rest. The Federation of State Humanities Councils has asked a federal judge in Oregon to rule that Trump is violating separation-of-powers rules.
Meanwhile, Trump's Great American State Fair and his planned triumphal arch push ahead.
A supporter wearing a Make America Great Again cap attends a rally kicking off the Great American State Fair, marking the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 24, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Small towns across America wanted to throw a party for the nation's 250th birthday, but a new report found President Donald Trump's cost-cutters took away the money and funneled it toward his own beautification projects in Washington.
NOTUS reported that when DOGE axed federal funding for state humanities councils last year, local libraries and historical societies were forced to abandon plans for the semiquincentennial. The councils, created by Congress around the 1976 bicentennial to fund small-scale history and civics projects, operate in nearly every state and territory.
In Trumbull County, Ohio, even a modest "passport" project encouraging visits to history sites had to be kept small because the historical society could not afford to print more booklets. Councils in West Virginia, Alabama and Washington state were hit too.
“There’s certainly things that we could have done for America 250 if the funding was available. That just didn’t work out how we thought it could have,” Meghan Reed, the executive director of the Trumbull County Historical Society, told NOTUS.
"There's not really a lot of cultural infrastructure in West Virginia. Where most of the cultural work is done is in regional centers, community centers, small museums, county historical associations. So the people who really got hurt were those small organizations across the state," said Eric Waggoner, head of the West Virginia Humanities Council, who added of his 250th plans: "I'm sad to say we had to scrap it."
NOTUS reported that Congress funded the councils at normal levels for fiscal 2026, but the administration has disbursed less than half and told them not to expect the rest. The Federation of State Humanities Councils has asked a federal judge in Oregon to rule that Trump is violating separation-of-powers rules.
Meanwhile, Trump's Great American State Fair and his planned triumphal arch push ahead.
'Fox & Friends' ditch Trump’s fair after days of 'bare lawns and thin crowds'
NEW YORK - MAY 22: (L-R) Brian Kilmeade, Steve Doocy and Elisabeth Hasselbeck at Fox and Friends' All-American Summer Concert Series at Fox Studios on May 22, 2015 in New York City. (REUTERS)
One of President Donald Trump’s favorite shows, “Fox & Friends,” is pulling up stakes after just days of promoting his Great American State Fair, a 16-day event to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday.
According to The Daily Beast, the conservative morning TV show “is back in the studio” after two days, which “it spent talking up over live shots of empty grass.”
One of President Donald Trump’s favorite shows, “Fox & Friends,” is pulling up stakes after just days of promoting his Great American State Fair, a 16-day event to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday.
According to The Daily Beast, the conservative morning TV show “is back in the studio” after two days, which “it spent talking up over live shots of empty grass.”
Wednesday morning, the “Fox & Friends” studio was packed with “an audience of first responders, veterans, and their families” as the hosts returned to the indoor set, The Daily Beast noted.
“We’ve been away for 48 hours. They’ve been waiting for us to return. We appreciate it,” co-host Brian Kilmeade declared.
Trump had claimed that 45,000 people turned out for his kickoff speech, but Fox News’ cameras “blew apart the president’s boasts.”
As did photographs from Reuters, The Daily Beast reported, with them “showing nowhere near the numbers the president had touted.”
“The network’s live shots from the Mall repeatedly framed wide stretches of empty grass behind its anchors, The Daily Beast added. “On other mornings, the walkways and booths behind the set sat all but empty. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, turned up on the show Monday to gush about the fair with a bare lawn.”
On Tuesday, USA Today opinion columnist Rex Huppke wrote, “I love President Donald Trump’s Great American State Fair. I love its emptiness. It’s expensive food. Its ability to confound Trump-friendly media outlets that keep pretending it’s going great.”
“I love seeing Fox News broadcasting from the fair, its hosts claiming the place is filled with excited patriots while the scenes behind them show a vast expanse of untrod-upon grass with an occasional few humans milling along the fringes.”
Huppke said it was “like watching your high school bully host a party that no one attends. It’s a daily humiliation for a wildly unpopular president who coopted what should be a unifying national celebration and turned it into repellent schlock.”
NEW YORK - MAY 22: (L-R) Brian Kilmeade, Steve Doocy and Elisabeth Hasselbeck at Fox and Friends' All-American Summer Concert Series at Fox Studios on May 22, 2015 in New York City. (REUTERS)
July 01, 2026
ALTERNET
One of President Donald Trump’s favorite shows, “Fox & Friends,” is pulling up stakes after just days of promoting his Great American State Fair, a 16-day event to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday.
According to The Daily Beast, the conservative morning TV show “is back in the studio” after two days, which “it spent talking up over live shots of empty grass.”
One of President Donald Trump’s favorite shows, “Fox & Friends,” is pulling up stakes after just days of promoting his Great American State Fair, a 16-day event to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday.
According to The Daily Beast, the conservative morning TV show “is back in the studio” after two days, which “it spent talking up over live shots of empty grass.”
Wednesday morning, the “Fox & Friends” studio was packed with “an audience of first responders, veterans, and their families” as the hosts returned to the indoor set, The Daily Beast noted.
“We’ve been away for 48 hours. They’ve been waiting for us to return. We appreciate it,” co-host Brian Kilmeade declared.
Trump had claimed that 45,000 people turned out for his kickoff speech, but Fox News’ cameras “blew apart the president’s boasts.”
As did photographs from Reuters, The Daily Beast reported, with them “showing nowhere near the numbers the president had touted.”
“The network’s live shots from the Mall repeatedly framed wide stretches of empty grass behind its anchors, The Daily Beast added. “On other mornings, the walkways and booths behind the set sat all but empty. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, turned up on the show Monday to gush about the fair with a bare lawn.”
On Tuesday, USA Today opinion columnist Rex Huppke wrote, “I love President Donald Trump’s Great American State Fair. I love its emptiness. It’s expensive food. Its ability to confound Trump-friendly media outlets that keep pretending it’s going great.”
“I love seeing Fox News broadcasting from the fair, its hosts claiming the place is filled with excited patriots while the scenes behind them show a vast expanse of untrod-upon grass with an occasional few humans milling along the fringes.”
Huppke said it was “like watching your high school bully host a party that no one attends. It’s a daily humiliation for a wildly unpopular president who coopted what should be a unifying national celebration and turned it into repellent schlock.”
Trump flies into a rage over minuscule crowds at his 'State Fair': insiders
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he departs the White House for Florida, in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 20, 2026. REUTERS Nathan Howard
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he departs the White House for Florida, in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 20, 2026. REUTERS Nathan Howard
July 01, 2026
ALTERNET
President Donald Trump is furious that his supporters aren't showing up to attend his "state fair" in the District of Columbia.
Since the start last week, the response has been minuscule. Independent journalist Amanda Moore has been on the scene every day to narrate what she's seeing and provide videos of the crowd sizes at the great stage.
The Daily Beast reported on Wednesday that Trump "freaked out" seeing the small crowds at his fair.
One of the more successful turnouts was Trump's rally opening night. Compared to Trump's rallies in the past, however, it was painfully tiny. While the Freedom 250 spokesperson claimed that there have ben over 150,000 who "flocked" from around the world, CNN revealed things aren't going the way Trump planned. Insiders told CNN that Trump was “livid” at the low turnout for his opening remarks.
All the events lead up to Trump's big event on Saturday. The Washingtonian noted that Trump's record-breaking fireworks display will be so gigantic that the low-lying Washington D.C. "bowl" and predicted cloud cover could turn it into more of a "smoke show" and block the fireworks entirely. As the Capital Weather Gang said, the smoke could "just ... hang."
Trump had a similar problem on the night of his first inauguration, when heavy cloud cover not only trapped the smoke but also blocked views of the fireworks, videos confirmed There are a lot of things working against his crowd-size plans: predicted triple-digit temperatures that have already resulted in an "extreme heat watch," stifling humidity and potential severe storms, local WJAR reported Wednesday. They called it a "quadruple threat" because of the risk of power outages from energy use.
"This could be one of the hottest Fourth of Julys the D.C. area has seen in decades, as emergency officials ramp up coordination ahead of the holiday," the report said.
According to CNN, the White House is "already bracing for an underwhelming showing" on Saturday, in large part because the event is significantly later than previous years. In the past, the big concert in the U.S. ended around 9 p.m. EST, with the National Symphony Orchestra playing the "1812 Overture" while fireworks and cannons went off. This year it will end hours later.
“I do not understand why we are doing this so late,” one White House official said about the late hour. “I’m really not sure who thought this was a good idea.”
The Independence Day fireworks are normally a family-friendly event and children don't usually stay up so late. At the same time, public transportation for those more than 20 miles outside of D.C. will be restricted because the last MARC train out of Union Station leaves at 10:25 p.m. Luckily, those within about a 20-mile radius around Washington will still be able to access the metro until 2 a.m.
One local D.C. limousine company wrote, "Every transportation option has a real failure mode on this day."
"OK, this is quickly becoming proof that you can just say “great American state fair” and get a million views. Almost nobody replying to it follows me or has any idea what I cover," said independent Amanda Moore online about the state fair.
She wasn't the only one to point out that social media doesn't reflect "real life."
Stand Together vice president Daniel Bassali called it "Just another example of what’s online isn’t reality."
TMZ has been posting photos of the fair. In one case, actor Dean Cain and Dr. Mehmet Oz cheered the crowd before the stage. TMZ panned around to look at the crowd, seeing a few dozen people.
Trump proclaimed over the weekend that his event was “packed with happy people," but rain scared off key performer and one-hit-wonder Vanilla Ice from performing.
Fox News has provided a lot of comedy relief for those watching clips of the anchors claiming huge crowds, only to look behind them and see they're anemic at best. One pro-Trump fan live-streamed their attendance at the fair, also claiming thousands of people, only to find far fewer.
At one point, the network was ridiculed for showing a medium-sized crowd sitting on the grass watching a big screen. The Fox chyron read, "State Fair Surprise: Karoline Leavitt enjoys fair with her family." The photo was of World Cup fans at the FIFA Fan Zone in Washington instead. FIFA set up large screens in cities around the U.S. for fans who want to watch the games with a group of other fans. The fan zone is also on the National Mall.
Two sources told CNN that Trump "flipped" when he saw the low turnout at the state fair, and staff were even told to delete the photos from social media in hopes he wouldn't see them.
“The mistake here was not driving attendance,” said one person close to the White House. “It was an ‘if you build it, they will come’ mentality that failed.”
Dozens of people walked out of Trump's speech at the fair's opening.
As CNN wrote, "The episode has further heightened the stakes for Trump’s Independence Day address, which represents just the latest element of the U.S.’ semiquincentennial celebration that he’s sought to effectively make an extension of his all-consuming presidency."
President Donald Trump is furious that his supporters aren't showing up to attend his "state fair" in the District of Columbia.
Since the start last week, the response has been minuscule. Independent journalist Amanda Moore has been on the scene every day to narrate what she's seeing and provide videos of the crowd sizes at the great stage.
The Daily Beast reported on Wednesday that Trump "freaked out" seeing the small crowds at his fair.
One of the more successful turnouts was Trump's rally opening night. Compared to Trump's rallies in the past, however, it was painfully tiny. While the Freedom 250 spokesperson claimed that there have ben over 150,000 who "flocked" from around the world, CNN revealed things aren't going the way Trump planned. Insiders told CNN that Trump was “livid” at the low turnout for his opening remarks.
All the events lead up to Trump's big event on Saturday. The Washingtonian noted that Trump's record-breaking fireworks display will be so gigantic that the low-lying Washington D.C. "bowl" and predicted cloud cover could turn it into more of a "smoke show" and block the fireworks entirely. As the Capital Weather Gang said, the smoke could "just ... hang."
Trump had a similar problem on the night of his first inauguration, when heavy cloud cover not only trapped the smoke but also blocked views of the fireworks, videos confirmed There are a lot of things working against his crowd-size plans: predicted triple-digit temperatures that have already resulted in an "extreme heat watch," stifling humidity and potential severe storms, local WJAR reported Wednesday. They called it a "quadruple threat" because of the risk of power outages from energy use.
"This could be one of the hottest Fourth of Julys the D.C. area has seen in decades, as emergency officials ramp up coordination ahead of the holiday," the report said.
According to CNN, the White House is "already bracing for an underwhelming showing" on Saturday, in large part because the event is significantly later than previous years. In the past, the big concert in the U.S. ended around 9 p.m. EST, with the National Symphony Orchestra playing the "1812 Overture" while fireworks and cannons went off. This year it will end hours later.
“I do not understand why we are doing this so late,” one White House official said about the late hour. “I’m really not sure who thought this was a good idea.”
The Independence Day fireworks are normally a family-friendly event and children don't usually stay up so late. At the same time, public transportation for those more than 20 miles outside of D.C. will be restricted because the last MARC train out of Union Station leaves at 10:25 p.m. Luckily, those within about a 20-mile radius around Washington will still be able to access the metro until 2 a.m.
One local D.C. limousine company wrote, "Every transportation option has a real failure mode on this day."
"OK, this is quickly becoming proof that you can just say “great American state fair” and get a million views. Almost nobody replying to it follows me or has any idea what I cover," said independent Amanda Moore online about the state fair.
She wasn't the only one to point out that social media doesn't reflect "real life."
Stand Together vice president Daniel Bassali called it "Just another example of what’s online isn’t reality."
TMZ has been posting photos of the fair. In one case, actor Dean Cain and Dr. Mehmet Oz cheered the crowd before the stage. TMZ panned around to look at the crowd, seeing a few dozen people.
Trump proclaimed over the weekend that his event was “packed with happy people," but rain scared off key performer and one-hit-wonder Vanilla Ice from performing.
Fox News has provided a lot of comedy relief for those watching clips of the anchors claiming huge crowds, only to look behind them and see they're anemic at best. One pro-Trump fan live-streamed their attendance at the fair, also claiming thousands of people, only to find far fewer.
At one point, the network was ridiculed for showing a medium-sized crowd sitting on the grass watching a big screen. The Fox chyron read, "State Fair Surprise: Karoline Leavitt enjoys fair with her family." The photo was of World Cup fans at the FIFA Fan Zone in Washington instead. FIFA set up large screens in cities around the U.S. for fans who want to watch the games with a group of other fans. The fan zone is also on the National Mall.
Two sources told CNN that Trump "flipped" when he saw the low turnout at the state fair, and staff were even told to delete the photos from social media in hopes he wouldn't see them.
“The mistake here was not driving attendance,” said one person close to the White House. “It was an ‘if you build it, they will come’ mentality that failed.”
Dozens of people walked out of Trump's speech at the fair's opening.
As CNN wrote, "The episode has further heightened the stakes for Trump’s Independence Day address, which represents just the latest element of the U.S.’ semiquincentennial celebration that he’s sought to effectively make an extension of his all-consuming presidency."
'Big ol' dud': Writer finds no upside when visiting Trump's Great American State Fair
Daniel Hampton
July 1, 2026
Daniel Hampton
July 1, 2026
RAW STORY
Visitors stand in the rain to watch “The Commandant's Own” U.S. Marine Drum and Bugle Corps perform during The Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 28, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
President Donald Trump's Great American State Fair on the National Mall has turned into a Washington punchline, and a firsthand account in Slate found the 16-day celebration earned the ribbing.
Slate writer Molly Olmstead visited expecting to find an overlooked upside but reported the opposite, calling the fair a flop marked by thin crowds and flimsy, temporary-looking construction. She wrote that "MAHA Monday," a nod to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement, relied on lectures rather than entertainment. One session featured Dr. Mehmet Oz interviewed by Dean Cain, the actor who played Superman in the 1990s, before an audience Olmstead put at roughly 50 people in 87-degree heat.
"Journalists love to find surprises and unconventional angles, so I aimed to go down to the fair and find something unexpected. It seemed possible those photos were a matter of off hours or poor angles or selective omission. But no, we can confidently report that the Great American State Fair is a big ol’ dud. And nothing made that clearer than the anemic display from its 'MAHA Monday,'" wrote Olmstead.
Federal agency booths pushed a partisan message, she wrote, including an Agriculture Department display topped by a poster of Trump declaring "America is back." Several musical acts, among them Martina McBride and Young MC, had pulled out before opening day over the event's political tone.
"Trump’s Great American State Fair made no attempt to emulate the most charming elements of fairs. It instead tried, limply, to spread a Trump rally across a 1.5-mile-long fairground, with some MAHA PowerPoints thrown in. As a result, it committed one of the worst crimes possible, in the eyes of President Trump: It made MAGA look boring," Olmstead concluded.
Trump opened the fair boasting: "As you know very well, a short time ago we were a dead country. We were dead. Now we're the hottest country anywhere in the world. We're respected by everybody. Nobody's laughing at us anymore."
But the brag comes as fans were filmed walking out of his kickoff speech.
After photos showed sparse turnout and breakdowns including power outages and a buckling replica arch, he pushed back on the crowd criticism on Truth Social:
"Do you think people appreciate what a fantastic job we did in building and operating the Great American State Fair at the National Mall, packed with happy people, and everybody loving it? Ask yourself this simple question, 'DO YOU THINK THAT OBUMA OR SLEEPY JOE BIDEN COULD HAVE DONE IT?' THE ANSWER IS NO!"
Freedom 250 says more than 150,000 people have attended. The fair runs through July 10.
Visitors stand in the rain to watch “The Commandant's Own” U.S. Marine Drum and Bugle Corps perform during The Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 28, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
President Donald Trump's Great American State Fair on the National Mall has turned into a Washington punchline, and a firsthand account in Slate found the 16-day celebration earned the ribbing.
Slate writer Molly Olmstead visited expecting to find an overlooked upside but reported the opposite, calling the fair a flop marked by thin crowds and flimsy, temporary-looking construction. She wrote that "MAHA Monday," a nod to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement, relied on lectures rather than entertainment. One session featured Dr. Mehmet Oz interviewed by Dean Cain, the actor who played Superman in the 1990s, before an audience Olmstead put at roughly 50 people in 87-degree heat.
"Journalists love to find surprises and unconventional angles, so I aimed to go down to the fair and find something unexpected. It seemed possible those photos were a matter of off hours or poor angles or selective omission. But no, we can confidently report that the Great American State Fair is a big ol’ dud. And nothing made that clearer than the anemic display from its 'MAHA Monday,'" wrote Olmstead.
Federal agency booths pushed a partisan message, she wrote, including an Agriculture Department display topped by a poster of Trump declaring "America is back." Several musical acts, among them Martina McBride and Young MC, had pulled out before opening day over the event's political tone.
"Trump’s Great American State Fair made no attempt to emulate the most charming elements of fairs. It instead tried, limply, to spread a Trump rally across a 1.5-mile-long fairground, with some MAHA PowerPoints thrown in. As a result, it committed one of the worst crimes possible, in the eyes of President Trump: It made MAGA look boring," Olmstead concluded.
Trump opened the fair boasting: "As you know very well, a short time ago we were a dead country. We were dead. Now we're the hottest country anywhere in the world. We're respected by everybody. Nobody's laughing at us anymore."
But the brag comes as fans were filmed walking out of his kickoff speech.
After photos showed sparse turnout and breakdowns including power outages and a buckling replica arch, he pushed back on the crowd criticism on Truth Social:
"Do you think people appreciate what a fantastic job we did in building and operating the Great American State Fair at the National Mall, packed with happy people, and everybody loving it? Ask yourself this simple question, 'DO YOU THINK THAT OBUMA OR SLEEPY JOE BIDEN COULD HAVE DONE IT?' THE ANSWER IS NO!"
Freedom 250 says more than 150,000 people have attended. The fair runs through July 10.
Supercut lays bare Fox News denying the obvious truth about Trump's State Fair
An axe throwing competition takes place at The Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 29, 2026. REUTERS/Cheney Orr TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
An axe throwing competition takes place at The Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 29, 2026. REUTERS/Cheney Orr TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
June 30, 2026
ALTERNET
MS NOW anchor Katy Tur finished off her “Moment with Katy Tur” Tuesday segment with a hearty laugh at Fox News and other Republican propaganda outlets struggling to sell the success of President Donald Trump’s 250th celebration with its empty grass lawns and unpopulated stalls.
“One more thing before we go, [these are] moments that ask who are you going to believe me or your lying eyes?” Tur said, before unleashing a devastating supercut of the propaganda outlets lying to their viewers’ faces.
“We are celebrating already at the great American State Fair! Man, we've got thousands of people celebrating this birthday with us, Tommy” said one Fox on-the-ground anchor describing “thousands” of audience members who appeared nowhere in sight.
“As you've seen yourself, there is a big energy here on the National Mall,” said another Fox News reporter, describing “big energy” that clearly wasn’t. “The crowd sizes were smaller in the morning but it has picked up quite a bit.”
It hadn’t, according to footage directly behind the reporter.
“The State Fair is generating a lot of headlines and we have seen more people come to see it for themselves, including right to the Ferris wheel. You will zoom in here and see the crowds that are lined up for a chance to see Washington unlike any other way,” he insisted, gesturing to “crowds” positioned too far away from the camera to immediately discern as paltry.
“Well, it’s a great day, Larry. Good afternoon. Perhaps now the closing bell is here we're going to get more people coming out here now that work is done,” said another reporter, likely hoping beyond reason for a crowd surge unlikely to happen on the clean, empty grass field.
“Such a fabulous setting and on such a grand occasion it really is great,” said another anchor, discussing the setting — which was true: It was a great setting, just with no people in it.
“It really is great. People are having a great time here,” said his the co-host, referring to nobody in particular, according to footage on the screen.
“As you've seen here, people are there, they are showing up, they are here,” said Tur, mockingly. “They're just wearing their invisibility cloaks.”
The Great American State Fair kicked off on Wednesday night, June 24 with a speech by President Donald Trump on the National Mall in Washington, DC. However, attendance at the event has been sizably low.
MS NOW anchor Katy Tur finished off her “Moment with Katy Tur” Tuesday segment with a hearty laugh at Fox News and other Republican propaganda outlets struggling to sell the success of President Donald Trump’s 250th celebration with its empty grass lawns and unpopulated stalls.
“One more thing before we go, [these are] moments that ask who are you going to believe me or your lying eyes?” Tur said, before unleashing a devastating supercut of the propaganda outlets lying to their viewers’ faces.
“We are celebrating already at the great American State Fair! Man, we've got thousands of people celebrating this birthday with us, Tommy” said one Fox on-the-ground anchor describing “thousands” of audience members who appeared nowhere in sight.
“As you've seen yourself, there is a big energy here on the National Mall,” said another Fox News reporter, describing “big energy” that clearly wasn’t. “The crowd sizes were smaller in the morning but it has picked up quite a bit.”
It hadn’t, according to footage directly behind the reporter.
“The State Fair is generating a lot of headlines and we have seen more people come to see it for themselves, including right to the Ferris wheel. You will zoom in here and see the crowds that are lined up for a chance to see Washington unlike any other way,” he insisted, gesturing to “crowds” positioned too far away from the camera to immediately discern as paltry.
“Well, it’s a great day, Larry. Good afternoon. Perhaps now the closing bell is here we're going to get more people coming out here now that work is done,” said another reporter, likely hoping beyond reason for a crowd surge unlikely to happen on the clean, empty grass field.
“Such a fabulous setting and on such a grand occasion it really is great,” said another anchor, discussing the setting — which was true: It was a great setting, just with no people in it.
“It really is great. People are having a great time here,” said his the co-host, referring to nobody in particular, according to footage on the screen.
“As you've seen here, people are there, they are showing up, they are here,” said Tur, mockingly. “They're just wearing their invisibility cloaks.”
The Great American State Fair kicked off on Wednesday night, June 24 with a speech by President Donald Trump on the National Mall in Washington, DC. However, attendance at the event has been sizably low.
Trump Plans to Make 250th US Birthday ‘All About Himself’ With Long Speech, Late Fireworks
One journalist said that “this is like the epitome of personalist rule—turning this into an imperial, dictatorial display of self-glorification.”
US President Donald Trump dances on stage as he tours the Al-Udeid Air Base on May 15, 2025, in Doha, Qatar.
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Brett Wilkins
Jun 30, 2026
COMMON DREAMS
As the desolate debacle of President Donald Trump’s “Great American State Fair” continues against a backdrop of an empty National Mall and Shrek-green Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, criticism of the president’s plans for his “most spectacular Trump rally” and record-seeking fireworks show mounted this week as new details of his self-aggrandizing extravaganza emerged.
“Our luck has it that America’s 250 was when Trump is president, and we know that a big thrust of these 250 commemorations are in a lot of ways a celebration of Trump and Trumpism, and if it’s not direct, it’s the vision that Trump and the MAGA movement has of America,” Center on Conscience & War executive director Mike Prysner told BreakThrough News on Tuesday.
Pro-Democracy Coalition Plans Mass Mobilization to Counter Trump-Centered 250th Birthday
Media Matters for America senior fellow Matt Gertz told Greg Sargent, who hosts The New Republic’s The Daily Blast podcast, that “the fact that we are not going to be able to have a real celebration of America’s 250th birthday—one that respects how far we have traveled, how far we have to go... it’s a real shame that this is what we’re going to get instead: a would-be authoritarian ruler trying to make it all about himself.”
On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration made a late announcement that it would be shutting down air traffic at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport for three hours on July 3 and 12 hours on the Fourth of July “to help ensure the safe and efficient movement of air traffic during celebrations of America’s 250th birthday, including the iconic flyovers and fireworks.”
During a rally planned for July 4, Trump is expected to speak for at least 45 minutes starting at 9:00 pm. While attendees are advised to arrive very early, they’re reportedly not allowed to bring coolers, lawn chairs, bags, or more than one bottle of water on a day when temperatures are forecast to soar to triple-digits.
Trump said earlier this month that a military flyover featuring a 17-aircraft formation will include the $400 million Boeing 747-8 “flying palace” gifted to Trump by the repressive Qatari monarchy.s
US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told Fox News on Sunday that the Trump administration is then planning the “greatest and biggest celebration of fireworks ever.”
The Washington Post reported Tuesday that 850,000 fireworks will be detonated in a 40-minute show scheduled to start unusually late—after 10:30 and possibly even 11:00 pm. That’s 50 times as many explosions over twice the length of a typical Fourth of July fireworks show, which even in a typical year can spark severe anxiety in dogs and other pets and post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans.
If Trump’s so-called “Great American State Fair” is any indication, there should be plenty of lawn space available on the National Mall for the July 4 events.
While the president posted a self-congratulatory message to his Truth Social Network on Monday, praising the “fantastic job” his administration has done during the first week of the event and claiming the National Mall was “packed with happy people,” attendees and journalists reported “light crowds, short lines, and plenty of open space.”
This, despite a nationwide ad blitz on Fox and other networks and websites viewed by scores of millions of people.
Some called it the “Great American Fail.”
Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois said in a video posted Monday on Bluesky that “10 years ago I voted to create ‘America 250.’ But here’s the truth: Trump started ‘Freedom 250’ to replace it, and made it about himself. Trump’s newest stunt? Trying to convince us there’s a big crowd for Freedom 250. But our eyes don’t lie.”
María José Gutierrez Chavez, trending news writer at the business magazine Fast Company, described “the unbearable emptiness of the Great American State Fair,” writing that the purported celebration “looks more like a liminal space.”
Gutierrez cited one TikTok user who commented, “I’ve seen graveyards with more people,” and another who said that “there were more people in line for the Trader Joe’s summer tote bags.”
Meanwhile, the iconic Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a focal point of the semiquincentennial festivities, remains what Common Dreams columnist Abby Zimet described Tuesday as a “fetid debacle” as cleaning up the algae-choked centerpiece proves more difficult than anticipated.
Instead of blaming the no-bid contracted company owned by a Trump donor for the emerald embarrassment, detractors say the president has humiliated himself even further by attempting to pin the blame for his administration’s failure on elusive vandals and former President Barack Obama.
Even some Trump supporters have had enough.
“This sucks,” Fox News columnist David Marcus said earlier this month following an event featuring daredevil dirtbike jumps and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) cage matches on the White House lawn that critics said looked like they were inspired by the classic Mike Judge dystopian satire Idiocracy.
“This pisses me off,” Marcus said after one of the UFC fighters called former First Lady Michelle Obama a man. “You wanna throw out this nonsense at a rally? Fine. Not at an official Freedom 250 event. Disgraceful.”
Some are calling on people to eschew the July 4 event in favor of local celebrations.
“This is like the epitome of personalist rule—turning this into an imperial, dictatorial display of self-glorification,” Sargent said. “It’s important that Americans reject this and not show up to this.”
Gertz concurred, replying, “I think what we have here is a president who does not respect any sort of separation between himself and the country at large.”
“He views the idea of celebrating the nation’s birthday as one and the same with celebrating himself,” he added.
One journalist said that “this is like the epitome of personalist rule—turning this into an imperial, dictatorial display of self-glorification.”
US President Donald Trump dances on stage as he tours the Al-Udeid Air Base on May 15, 2025, in Doha, Qatar.
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Brett Wilkins
Jun 30, 2026
COMMON DREAMS
As the desolate debacle of President Donald Trump’s “Great American State Fair” continues against a backdrop of an empty National Mall and Shrek-green Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, criticism of the president’s plans for his “most spectacular Trump rally” and record-seeking fireworks show mounted this week as new details of his self-aggrandizing extravaganza emerged.
“Our luck has it that America’s 250 was when Trump is president, and we know that a big thrust of these 250 commemorations are in a lot of ways a celebration of Trump and Trumpism, and if it’s not direct, it’s the vision that Trump and the MAGA movement has of America,” Center on Conscience & War executive director Mike Prysner told BreakThrough News on Tuesday.
Pro-Democracy Coalition Plans Mass Mobilization to Counter Trump-Centered 250th Birthday
Media Matters for America senior fellow Matt Gertz told Greg Sargent, who hosts The New Republic’s The Daily Blast podcast, that “the fact that we are not going to be able to have a real celebration of America’s 250th birthday—one that respects how far we have traveled, how far we have to go... it’s a real shame that this is what we’re going to get instead: a would-be authoritarian ruler trying to make it all about himself.”
On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration made a late announcement that it would be shutting down air traffic at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport for three hours on July 3 and 12 hours on the Fourth of July “to help ensure the safe and efficient movement of air traffic during celebrations of America’s 250th birthday, including the iconic flyovers and fireworks.”
During a rally planned for July 4, Trump is expected to speak for at least 45 minutes starting at 9:00 pm. While attendees are advised to arrive very early, they’re reportedly not allowed to bring coolers, lawn chairs, bags, or more than one bottle of water on a day when temperatures are forecast to soar to triple-digits.
Trump said earlier this month that a military flyover featuring a 17-aircraft formation will include the $400 million Boeing 747-8 “flying palace” gifted to Trump by the repressive Qatari monarchy.s
US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told Fox News on Sunday that the Trump administration is then planning the “greatest and biggest celebration of fireworks ever.”
The Washington Post reported Tuesday that 850,000 fireworks will be detonated in a 40-minute show scheduled to start unusually late—after 10:30 and possibly even 11:00 pm. That’s 50 times as many explosions over twice the length of a typical Fourth of July fireworks show, which even in a typical year can spark severe anxiety in dogs and other pets and post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans.
If Trump’s so-called “Great American State Fair” is any indication, there should be plenty of lawn space available on the National Mall for the July 4 events.
While the president posted a self-congratulatory message to his Truth Social Network on Monday, praising the “fantastic job” his administration has done during the first week of the event and claiming the National Mall was “packed with happy people,” attendees and journalists reported “light crowds, short lines, and plenty of open space.”
This, despite a nationwide ad blitz on Fox and other networks and websites viewed by scores of millions of people.
Some called it the “Great American Fail.”
Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois said in a video posted Monday on Bluesky that “10 years ago I voted to create ‘America 250.’ But here’s the truth: Trump started ‘Freedom 250’ to replace it, and made it about himself. Trump’s newest stunt? Trying to convince us there’s a big crowd for Freedom 250. But our eyes don’t lie.”
María José Gutierrez Chavez, trending news writer at the business magazine Fast Company, described “the unbearable emptiness of the Great American State Fair,” writing that the purported celebration “looks more like a liminal space.”
Gutierrez cited one TikTok user who commented, “I’ve seen graveyards with more people,” and another who said that “there were more people in line for the Trader Joe’s summer tote bags.”
Meanwhile, the iconic Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a focal point of the semiquincentennial festivities, remains what Common Dreams columnist Abby Zimet described Tuesday as a “fetid debacle” as cleaning up the algae-choked centerpiece proves more difficult than anticipated.
Instead of blaming the no-bid contracted company owned by a Trump donor for the emerald embarrassment, detractors say the president has humiliated himself even further by attempting to pin the blame for his administration’s failure on elusive vandals and former President Barack Obama.
Even some Trump supporters have had enough.
“This sucks,” Fox News columnist David Marcus said earlier this month following an event featuring daredevil dirtbike jumps and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) cage matches on the White House lawn that critics said looked like they were inspired by the classic Mike Judge dystopian satire Idiocracy.
“This pisses me off,” Marcus said after one of the UFC fighters called former First Lady Michelle Obama a man. “You wanna throw out this nonsense at a rally? Fine. Not at an official Freedom 250 event. Disgraceful.”
Some are calling on people to eschew the July 4 event in favor of local celebrations.
“This is like the epitome of personalist rule—turning this into an imperial, dictatorial display of self-glorification,” Sargent said. “It’s important that Americans reject this and not show up to this.”
Gertz concurred, replying, “I think what we have here is a president who does not respect any sort of separation between himself and the country at large.”
“He views the idea of celebrating the nation’s birthday as one and the same with celebrating himself,” he added.
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