Donald Trump says he may scrap the upcoming Freedom 250 concert series altogether, following a wave of artist withdrawals, and replace it with a political rally of his own.
In a post shared on Truth Social over the weekend, Trump suggested that the celebration marking America's 250th anniversary might be better served by a large-scale "Make America Great Again" event rather than a concert lineup that has steadily lost performers in recent weeks.
"We should have a giant MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN RALLY, for 250, instead of having overpriced singers, who nobody wants to hear," Trump wrote. “Cancel it, just like I canceled my involvement with the failing and unsafe to be in Kennedy Center, because a Highly Conflicted, Crooked Federal Judge, said that I should not be allowed to spend my time and money in order to MAKE THE CENTER GREAT AGAIN, actually, far greater than it ever was before! It would have also been nice to see a Republican/Democrat union bring it back to life.”
The remarks come as the Freedom 250 concerts, scheduled to take place from June 25 through July 10 on Washington, D.C.'s National Mall, continue to face mounting challenges.
Several performers have already pulled out of the event, including Poison frontman Bret Michaels, country singer Martina McBride, The Commodores, Young MC, and Morris Day. Many of the artists who withdrew said they were either unaware of the event's political associations when they initially signed on or no longer felt comfortable participating.
Young MC publicly stated that he had not been informed about any political involvement connected to the celebration, while McBride later said she believed she had agreed to perform at a nonpartisan event. Michaels similarly argued that what was initially presented as a patriotic celebration had evolved into something more divisive.
The Freedom 250 organization has repeatedly denied accusations that the event is partisan, describing itself as a nonprofit focused on celebrating America's semiquincentennial and bringing Americans together around the country's 250th birthday.
Trump, however, appears increasingly frustrated with the direction of the event and floated the possibility of replacing the concerts with a speech and rally featuring himself.
The president also used the Truth Social post to boast about his popularity, claiming he draws larger crowds than legendary entertainers and suggesting that he would be a bigger attraction than the remaining musical acts.
Despite the departures, several artists remain attached to the event, including Vanilla Ice, Flo Rida, Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli, and C+C Music Factory's Freedom Williams.
