Trump’s Great American State Fair faces boycotts and artist pullouts

The Great American State Fair opened with military flyovers, marching bands and Donald Trump on the National Mall, but the first week also brought walkouts from performers, refusals from states and a late-night punchline. The 16-day event runs from June 25 through July 10 and is meant to showcase all 56 states and territories.

Trump headlined the June 24 kickoff in Washington, D.C., alongside remarks from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. The fair is a first-of-its-kind World’s Fair-style celebration of America’s 250th birthday, and the opening night mixed ceremony with nationalism, including military flyovers and performances by U.S. military bands.

The rollout has been shadowed by defections. Martina McBride, Young MC, The Commodores and Morris Day and The Time all backed out, saying the event felt political. Trump then used the kickoff as a victory lap and told the crowd, “America is back.”

State governments have also resisted the invitation. Oregon, Washington, Massachusetts, Illinois, North Carolina and Connecticut have declined official roles, citing financial and staffing limits as well as concerns about the fair’s partisan ties. Rhode Island said it would sit out for the same practical reasons, while its own semiquincentennial commemoration is set for Providence on July 4, a date that has already stretched state staffing and funding.

States that withdraw will still have some presence at the fair.

On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Fallon aimed at the fair’s most surreal imagery with the line, “There’s even a dunk tank with JD Vance and a drunk tank with Kash Patel.”