"Greatest" Builder Ever

MAGA Self-Owns by Posting Proof of Trump’s State Fair Fiasco MAGA lawmakers accidentally posted the receipts for President Donald Trump’s underwhelming Great American State Fair. A string of Republican selfies, reels, and promotional posts from the National Mall show exactly what the White House-backed bash has been accused of becoming: a sparse, strangely empty celebration of America’s 250th birthday. Rep. Blake Moore of Utah posted an Instagram reel from the fairgrounds, urging visitors to check out his state’s booth. But the sales pitch came with the unfortunate visual aid of Moore standing in an almost empty park, with an empty Ferris wheel turning behind him. “Down here at the Great American State Fair—it’s gonna be open for two weeks. So if you’re here traveling in Washington, D.C. at all over the 4th, make sure to come check out the Utah booth,” Moore said. He then seemed to all but beg people to let his office help them get there. “Contact our office if there’s any help that you need to organize things or tours or get more information,” he added. “Please, please reach out. We’d love to help out in that way.” The fair, organized by Freedom 250 to mark America’s 250th birthday, has been advertised as a “world-class exposition and modern-day World’s Fair.” But on the ground, the fair has looked less like a World’s Fair than a political vanity project with attendance issues. Amid the sparse attendance , empty spaces, and just two rides at Donald Trump’s long-promised “Great American State Fair,” some attendees managed to make an interesting discovery. But it likely won’t please the president. While riding the Freedom 250 Ferris wheel, fairgoers spotted problems with the tacky plywood mock-up of Trump’s planned “triumphal arch.” The mini arch, which online critics have compared to the undersized Stonehenge in This Is Spinal Tap! , is installed at the event to remind the public of another expensive vanity project—currently estimated at $100 million—that the president hopes will mark his legacy. The actual arch, modeled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, would soar 250 feet if it is completed, making it nearly twice as high as the Lincoln Memorial and even taller than France’s iconic monument. As for the mock-up: it appeared to be coming apart, with spectators telling The New York Times that the vinyl covering stretched over its wooden frame had already begun to wrinkle and separate. Reports of the deteriorating arch come hard on the heels of the peeling paint and blooming algae in Trump’s $16 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which is currently fenced off and closed while the president attempts to undo the damage. The arch would be another massive project. Building it would require crews to work 20 hours a day for two to three years using several cranes up to 320 feet tall, according to planning documents released by the Department of the Interior. The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), led by Trump-appointed members, still has some concerns about the project . The commission received nearly 2,000 comments from the public about the monument, “ nearly all of them negative ,” according to ABC News. Critics have slammed the project as a massive, egocentric waste of money, while veterans groups have complained that its proximity to Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 400,000 veterans are buried, is sacrilegious. The huge monument would forever eradicate historic sightlines of iconic D.C landmarks and green space. Because it’s a Trump event, he disintegrating arch isn’t the only stumble in the flaw-plagued Great American State Fair. A MAGA supporter dressed as Uncle Sam, Gian Rachtelli, was charged with “lewd, indecent, or obscene acts” after three separate witnesses told police they observed what appeared to be a sexual act while watching a troupe of female circus performers. The acts allegedly took place in front of the Cirque Mechanics acrobatic show on the first day of the fair. One witness said they were standing behind the man who was vaping and filming the female performers before placing his hand inside his pants in what the witness believed was a sexual act. Another told police that Rachtelli “returned for the second show, and I saw him with his hand in his pants, likely doing what we all thought he was doing.” And a third witness said they were “approached by a female member of the acrobat team who had noticed an older white male that was making her and other female performers uncomfortable.” “They informed me that they noticed him making lewd gestures in his pants … while they were performing,” the witness said. Rachtelli, 54, has been identified online by supporters as the MAGA livestreamer known as “Manny,” who was broadcasting live from the event. The influencer’s most recent livestream from the day of the arrest cut off abruptly when police officers were shown approaching him, though there was no audio to capture what was being said. He has not posted since. The arrest is nonetheless the latest headache to plague Trump’s taxpayer-funded Great American State Fair, which has lurched from one controversy to another since it was announced as part of the administration’s America 250 celebrations. It was supposed to be a grand patriotic showcase. Instead, Republican lawmakers kept posting their own evidence that parts of it looked more like an iniquitous fairground waiting for the crowds to arrive.