On the South Lawn of the White House this past weekend, a 92-foot-high fenced arena hosted a series of mixed martial arts fights called “UFC Freedom 250” – an event to celebrate both the forthcoming 250th anniversary of American independence and, far more resonant, the 80th birthday of Donald Trump. A crowd of 4,000 attended, while millions paid to watch on cable TV. Trump sat at ringside, revelling in the military fly-pasts, the patriotic fervour and the crowd chanting “USA, USA”.
For those who repudiate UFC as a legitimate sport, the spectacle was symbolic of how low the cultural virtues of the United States have sunk. In 1996, the Republican senator John McCain likened UFC to “human cockfighting” and called it “barbaric”. The sport was banned in 36 states; it was only in 2016 that New York legalised it. Now, a decade later, fighters were invited to punch, kick, knee and elbow opponents on the White House lawn. “Great nations are judged not only by their military might or fiscal muscle,” wrote Simon Kelner in the i Paper. “They are also defined by their cultural aspirations, what they seek to put on a pedestal.”
“Trump’s White House hosted UFC cage fights for his 80th birthday amid fears he will declare election fraud to stay in power.”
The birthday party unfolded against a backdrop of political crisis. Trump’s megalomania worsens by the day, the New Statesman noted. On 11 June, he reversed a declared intention to attack Iran with “almost comically specious claims” that a peace deal was about to be signed – clearing the way, it seemed, for his buddy Elon Musk’s SpaceX IPO the following day. The country is quasi-mired in a half-war, prices are increasing, the housing market is effectively frozen. Yet the media is full of news about Trump calling the loss of a Maga candidate in the Los Angeles mayoral runoffs a hoax. He has ordered the Justice Department to intensify its investigation of the 2020 election, which he still insists was stolen from him.
After Tulsi Gabbard resigned as director of national intelligence, Trump appointed an unqualified lackey as acting director, then announced he would nominate Jay Clayton – a qualified lackey who has supported Trump’s contorted claims of widespread election fraud. The fear now is that as the nation’s chief spy, Clayton will mobilise America’s spy agencies to persecute Trump’s perceived enemies on a much larger scale.
If the Republicans lose their majority in November by a small handful of seats – the most likely scenario – you can bet Trump will declare a national crisis of election fraud to hold on to power. The hapless and clueless Democrats must be asking themselves: what do we do?