President Donald Trump’s “Great American State Fair” to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States has been hit by several states declining to take part.
Each of the 50 states and territories will be represented by their own pavilion at the giant fairgrounds being erected on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as part of the semiquincentennial festivities, with each one offering an experience relevant to the culture and traditions of that state.
However, according to CNN, Oregon, Washington and North Carolina have all declined the Trump administration’s invitation to take part, with Pennsylvania still weighing up its decision on the matter.
The states concerned are all led by Democratic governors and all said their decision not to participate was a cost consideration, given that they need to stage their own events at home to mark the same anniversary.
That said, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek also pointed to what she considers to be the partisan nature of the event under Trump, CNN said.
Those states will still be represented among the neo-classical pavilions, even if they do not provide input themselves, according to the Freedom 250 non-profit tasked with organizing the World’s Fair-style event, which will be open to the public from June 25 to July 10.
The fairground will also feature a mini version of the president’s forthcoming “Triumphal Arch,” a 110-foot Ferris wheel and movie screenings, musical performances and military flyovers, according to the organizers.
A Freedom 250 spokesperson told the network: “What we can say is that every state’s story will be told in a way that’s authentic to its people, history, and culture.
“Whether represented by a governor’s office, a tourism board, or a beloved state company or organization, every community will be celebrated.”
Concept designs for the pavilions released by Freedom 250 reveal a miniature golf course for South Carolina, a replica of the Alamo occupying the Texas tent and an interactive fossil digging station for Montana.
Visitors will get to try a mechanical milking cow at Michigan’s stand and take part in a virtual reality rodeo at the Wyoming pavilion.
Preparations for the semiquincentennial celebrations have not run entirely smoothly for the administration, with numerous artists dropping out of a major concert planned as its centrepiece, many of whom claimed they had been misled about its likely political overtones.
Morris Day and The Time, Young MC, country singer Martina McBride and former Poison frontman Bret Michaels all backed out of planned appearances, leaving only the likes of Vanilla Ice and Flo Rida on the bill, drawing an angry reaction from Trump.
The president was reportedly furious about the exodus and pledged to headline himself instead, declaring that he is “the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World” and “the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime, and he does so without a guitar.”
He has also derided the acts who dropped out as “third rate,” “boring” and overpaid.
Trump’s planned UFC cage fight on the White House lawn promises to be the most eye-opening spectacle of the festivities, with the president having an enormous arena built to accommodate it and suggesting it could be left standing indefinitely if it proves popular, likening it to the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
The mixed martial arts extravaganza organized by UFC CEO Dana White, despite his admitted reservations about the logistics of staging such a complex event outdoors, will feature at least seven clashes involving Ilia Topuria, Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira, among others.
It will be observed by around 5,000 spectators in person, from VIPs to members of the military, with many more watching on from large screens especially installed for the purpose at Washington’s Ellipse Park nearby.
