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Cabinet Member Brushes Off Freedom 250 Concert Chaos After Trump Meltdown
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Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum tried to claim an upcoming festival celebrating the U.S.’ 250th birthday was a completely apolitical affair, not even a day after President Donald Trump flipped out at “third rate” musical acts fleeing the bill. During a Sunday morning appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” the former governor of North Dakota said he didn’t want to weigh in on any of the performers’ personal politics after nearly half of the scheduled headliners pulled out of the Great American State Fair, a 16-day celebration taking over the National Mall in late June. “Some musicians want to play music for everybody, and some musicians seem to have segmented their audiences the same way... you know, politicians have,” Burgum told anchor Dana Bash, adding that he’d encourage Americans of all stripes to celebrate the semiquincentennial in their own communities. Four out of nine of the main musical acts have dropped out since the top of the lineup for the festival, which is being organized by the group Freedom 250, was announced on Wednesday. Country artist Martina McBride, funk and soul legends The Commodores, retro rapper Young MC and Poison frontman Bret Michaels have all bowed out, claiming they were misled when they were pitched a nonpartisan celebration. As of now, rapper Flo Rida, ’90s dance floor fixtures C+C Music Factory and disgraced Grammy-winners Milli Vanilli are still committed to playing. BURGUM: The celebration of the 250 is a nonpartisan eventBASH: But Trump called it a 'Make America Great Again rally,' which is the name of his political organizationBURGUM: Well, it is, but that's something I think we all can certainly understand pic.twitter.com/Q6WfbhHKEn One-hit-wonder Vanilla Ice is the only artist to give the Great American State Fair a ringing endorsement, promising the festival would just be “some fun, dancing and great memories” in an Instagram video posted Thursday. The “Ice Ice Baby” rapper said he didn’t want to get “dragged into” the discourse when asked what he thought about the event becoming such a political lightning rod during a Friday interview with TMZ. “I don’t take anything too serious,” he explained, adding he’d accept an invite from President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, or even to “play in Iran” if the fans wanted him to. Asked about Trump’s threatening to cancel the event and hold his own Make America Great Again-branded rally following the cancellations, Burgum said he hadn’t been clued in on those plans, but it was important for Trump to ring in the 250th in whatever form it may take. When Bash pushed him for an answer on the political angle, he pivoted to another one of Trump’s pet projects ahead of the 250th celebration: the renovation of the top monuments in Washington, D.C. Claiming the administration inherited a capital in “decay,” Burgum said, “Americans shouldn’t be conditioned to live in squalor.” Early Saturday evening, Trump reacted to news of the exits with his typical bluster, taking to Truth Social to float the idea of his own “AMERICA IS BACK Rally” to replace the previously planned festival. Calling himself “Number One Attraction anywhere in the World,” he wrote, “I only want to be surrounded by Happy People, Smart People, Successful People, and People that know how to WIN.” “It will be a Wild and Beautiful Celebration of America!” By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.