Is Trump’s Great American State Fair *That* Bad?

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Isabel Brown Show

Episode: Is Trump’s Great American State Fair That Bad?
Date: July 3, 2026
Host: Isabel Brown
Produced by: The Daily Wire

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Episode Overview

In this engaging episode, Isabel Brown shares a firsthand experience from the Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.—an event billed as a modern “World’s Fair” with individual booths for all 50 states. Amidst the July heat, Isabel provides an on-the-ground, personal tour of the fair, offers candid thoughts on its controversial reputation, evaluates booths representing states she’s lived in, and discusses both the cultural and political context of the fair—particularly its connections to American patriotism and divisive reactions.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What Is the Great American State Fair? [00:56–01:35]

• Isabel likens the fair to a “resurrection of the World’s Fair from the 1800s.”
• Each state has a booth or setup on the National Mall, letting visitors experience unique facets of all 50 states.
• Despite a spate of negative media coverage (notably, sparse early-morning crowds being exaggerated), Isabel reports “this place is packed... people seem to be having a really exciting, incredible time.” [01:14]

2. State Booth Highlights: Isabel’s Personal Tour

Isabel tours booths from states she’s lived in, sharing vivid descriptions and family memories.

Idaho [02:10–03:10]

• Nostalgia for her birthplace and childhood:
  • "If people ask, Idaho's full. We don't want anybody else moving there. Chris Pratt, you're fine. You're fine to come to the lake." [03:11]
• Classic Idaho touches: potato sacks, cow-milking demos, whitewater rafting.

Arizona [04:40–05:02]

• Reminisces about “meeting my husband, Brock” while living and working there.
• Highlights a dark room simulating Arizona’s famous night skies and observatories.

Florida [05:03–07:44]

• Describes moving to Miami as “not the most Miami-coated person” but praises “the free state of Florida, the policies were fantastic, the people were so nice.”
• Notes Florida is both the flattest state and the only one with native alligators and crocodiles.
• Lively, immersive booth: simulated Everglades, manatees, fruit trees, and, of course, golf.
• “They pulled out no stops for this. All the stops. I don't even know what the phrase is. This is amazing.” [06:37]
• Humorous lament about humid D.C. summers vs. “beautiful southern women who... just glisten... Could not be me, will never be me...” [07:53]

Commentary on Absentee States [08:29]

• Criticizes certain states for skipping the fair: “the most petty, pathetic lack of patriotism of all time... leftism, it's a virus, let me tell you.” [08:44]
• Names the 250th anniversary the “semi quincentennial,” calls for renewed national pride.

Rodeo Feature [09:10]

• Enthusiasm for “seeing a rodeo set up with the Washington Monument over there and the U.S. Capitol building behind you... the weirdest but coolest American culture feeling of all time.” [09:28]
• Jokes about being a rodeo clown, and affection for craft beer vs. Budweiser: “if you can't do better than Budweiser, could you at least spring for Coors Banquet?” [10:13]

Fair Food & Lisa's Drumstick Escapade [11:00]

• Observations about standard and missing fair foods (“don’t see funnel cakes or fried oreos—only had those once, at Cheyenne Frontier Days, which is the best fair you could possibly go to”).

Trump's Victory Arch Replica [12:02]

• Describes the much-publicized arch as “pretty cool”—“Virtually every major city in Europe has a triumphant arch... so it's kind of weird we don't.” [12:35]
• Laughs at the idea of “an arch commemorating the Meme Wars... with Pepe the Frog and the lady in the construction vest screaming ‘No’ after the 2016 election.” [13:00]

Monumental Moments [13:28]

• Amused critique of the Washington Monument: “do you think George Washington ever thought that his cool thing in Washington was just gonna be a giant stick?” [13:30]

“Young Washington” Movie Plug [14:00]

• Recommends the new Angel Studios film:
  • “It blew all of my expectations out of the water. We're kind of on a we love George Washington kick right now…” [14:23]
  • Suggests joining Angel Studios’ Guild for discounted tickets.

Colorado [16:23]

• Deep nostalgia and pride:
  • “Colorado has always been home. I am a CSU grad. Go Rams. I am Colorado through and through.” [16:37]
  • Describes the ambiance and interactive features (“It’s like an interactive canoe situation”) and family stories (sister’s first word was “elk”). [17:21]

Wyoming & Alaska [18:00]

• Wyoming called her “dream place to live for a long time,” though Alaska might now usurp it after recent visits.
• “Did you know we bought the entire Alaska territory for like $3 million? I think we won. That was a good, good purchase.” [18:43]
• Enjoys the Alaska-Hawaii side-by-side booths, mentions a desire to see the Iditarod.

Virginia, Alabama, Tennessee [19:36]

• Skips Virginia due to “trying to tax everything and put evil people like me in the Gulag.”
• Alabama and Tennessee: Quick mentions, with a humorous nod to university rivalries and booth being closed.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On media criticism:
  “I think it was maybe the Washingtonian magazine... when there were indeed five people here. This place is packed... people seem to be having a really exciting, incredible time.” [01:14]
• On state patriotism:
  “...most petty, pathetic lack of patriotism of all time... leftism, it's a virus, let me tell you.” [08:44]
• On the rodeo at the National Mall:
  “...the weirdest but coolest American culture feeling of all time.” [09:28]
• On Trump’s arch controversy:
  “Virtually every major city in Europe has a triumphant arch... so it's kind of weird that we don't, frankly, because most of our architecture here in D.C. is European.” [12:35]
• On D.C. humidity and herself:
  “I sweat like a swamp rat in the summertime here. And there's all these beautiful women who are from the South that just glisten... Could not be me, will never be me, but I will be a mountain kid.” [07:53]
• On Colorado pride:
  “Colorado has always been home. I am a CSU grad. Go Rams. I am Colorado through and through.” [16:37]

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Key Timestamps

• 00:56 — Introduction to the fair, Washingtonian critique, crowd size reality
• 02:10 — Idaho booth memories, cow-milking demo
• 04:40 — Arizona booth, meeting her husband, stars & observatories
• 05:03 — Entry to Florida: immersive Everglades, alligators, agriculture, golf
• 08:29 — Commentary: states skipping the fair, semi quincentennial patriotism
• 09:10 — Rodeo at the Mall, beer critique
• 12:02 — Discussion of Trump’s Victory Arch, European parallels
• 13:28 — Humorous thoughts on D.C. monuments
• 14:00 — Angel Studios “Young Washington” movie
• 16:23 — Colorado booth, CSU pride, family anecdotes
• 18:00 — Wyoming aspirations, Alaska admiration
• 19:36 — Skips Virginia; Alabama & Tennessee mentions
• 20:30 — Conclusion, best booths (“Florida had the best interactive experience. Colorado had the best ambiance. We love. Happy 4th of July.”)

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Conclusion

This episode is a lively, opinionated, and personal look at the 2026 Great American State Fair with honest appraisals of state pride, American patriotism, and pop culture controversies. Isabel mixes nostalgia, humor, and sharp commentary—speaking directly to listeners who value unabashed celebration of the U.S., while offering a firsthand view that challenges the fair’s negative press. Florida gets her award for “most interactive experience,” Colorado for best soul, and she leaves listeners ready to celebrate the Fourth—preferably with ice cream and a state passport full of stamps.

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For those who missed the episode: Isabel’s vivid storytelling, playful self-deprecation, and clear affection for her home states—and for American tradition—make this fair coverage both entertaining and insightful. Whether you’re a state-fair veteran or a first-timer, you’ll come away with a colorful picture of the event—and why it matters in today’s divided climate.

Transcript

[A]

So good, so good, so good.

[B]

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[A]

It is a sweltering 100 degrees in Washington, D.C. but I am psyched to be back from our trip to Alaska because we are here on the National Mall for the Great American State Fair. It's basically a resurrection of the World's Fair back From like the 1800s, where all 50 states have a setup of their state here on the National Mall to share what it's like to be from Colorado or Tennessee or West Virginia or wherever you happen to call home for the whole country to get to experience that. And it's pretty controversial. You guys may have seen there has been some really negative reporting about the Great American State Fair. I think it was maybe the Washingtonian magazine that sent a few people to vlog the experience at like 7 in the morning the other day when there were indeed five people here. This place is packed. There are certain states with lines to get into their state booth. Looking at you, Florida, and people seem to be having a really exciting, incredible time. I don't think we're going to have time today to go in all 50 booths. Isla will just never be able to handle that, frankly. But we can kick things off with all of the states that I have personally lived in as a fun little trip around Isabelle Memory lane. Let's go. It will be an absolute miracle if I don't grace you all with gigantic pit stains in this vlog. So just bear with me, okay? I never said I was the queen of glamour, okay? I'm not exactly a beauty queen. The scale of this is like so much bigger than I Thought it was going to be. Actually. It's really cool. The stage is awesome. Okay. We don't possibly, in this heat, have enough time to do every single state. I wish that I did. But I think we should do all the states that I've lived in, starting with my birthplace. I D A H O. Idaho. Idaho. Go, go, go. You wanna go see? I wish we were in Idaho. It'd be way colder. We could go jump in the lake. But no. What are these? You know what these are? Idaho Potat potatoes. There's nothing like Idaho potatoes, baby. This is awesome. The potato sack dress.

[B]

Love.

[A]

We love Ido. You see the cow? Oh, look. You can learn how to milk a cow. That's sweet. Important. We love you. Want to go try? You want to help me? Should we check it out? Look how this works. Do you see? Gotta pull down pretty hard. Yeah, like this. Oh, you see? I know. Look. There you go. That's cool, right? It's a big cow. That's an important skill. Whitewater rafting. That is like one of my all time fave things to do. Our hometown. We love. Okay, that was cool. Idaho. Check. It's a million bajillion degrees out here right now, so I'm dying. I'm sure I look so attractive in this video. So good. But I also understand that you can get like a passport thing and bring it to each of the states and get a stamp the way they brought us in. We did not get a passport at the check in. But I may need to go find one because that's cool. Okay. I was born in Idaho. I grew up in Idaho for several years in Coeur d'. Alene. If you know, you know the best. Sadly, the secret's been getting out about how great Idaho is. So if people ask, Idaho's full. We don't want anybody else moving there. Chris Pratt. You're fine. You're fine to come to the lake. For a couple years after college, I lived in Arizona. And it was while I was living in Arizona, working for Charlie that I met my husband, Brock. So I think we should pop in there too, too.

[B]

Hi.

[A]

Welcome to Arizona. Thank you. Oh, this is cool. Start our tour right here. Awesome. I haven't been here in forever. That's perfect. Oh, this is good. I like Arizona. Amen. John.

[C]

Oo.

[A]

This is cool. They have, like, a dark room to simulate the stars. And Arizona does have really good stars. Oh, that's cool. Those kinds of Arizona have a lot of observatories in the park. Very fun. Love makes me want to go camping to the Grand Canyon. Look at they got fun stickers for everybody. That's so cute. Love. Okay, Across Florida doesn't have a line, so let's beeline After. I lived in Arizona once, Brock and I got engaged. We got in the car and we drove for 30 hours. Not even a joke. Across the country. To move to Miami because of his job down there. At the time, I would not say I am the most Miami coated person on the planet, but Florida was a great place to live. Obviously. It was great to live in the free state of Florida. The policies were fantastic. The people were so nice. I'm just a mountain girly. It was too flat. Did you know Florida is the flattest state in the country? Flatter than Ohio. People don't realize that Ohio is actually quite hilly. It's Florida. And rumor has it Florida has it going on at the Great American State Fair. People love their booth. I have no idea why, but I guess we're going to go find out. Oh, it's like a haunted house. You have to, like, go in it. Certainly. Okay. They pulled out no stops for this. All the stops. I don't even know what the phrase is. This is amazing. Wow. H. The greatest Floridian of all time. Perhaps Jimmy Buffett. This is really cool. Look, you see the manatee? Look at the manatee. You want to see?

[C]

Look.

[A]

Yeah. And there's a bird. Maybe you'll see an alligator. That is cool. This is very cool. Super immersive. I've only done the Everglades once, but it is like, astounding how many alligators you see everywhere. Everywhere. It's like deer in Colorado. I think you are correct, Jess. Only state that has alligators and crocodiles natively to the population. We got fruit trees. This is all about Florida agriculture. Stop and smell the oranges. That's so cute. Oh, we got all kinds of good stuff. Watermelon, corn, tomatoes, peppers, berries. And then we got ourselves a beach situation. Oh, Isla, they have something for you. It looks like. And golf. Because how can you have Florida without golf?

[C]

Like a gator.

[A]

Yes, please. Thank you. Look, Isla, poor daddy's stuck at work in his office right now and we're playing golf. Unusual situation. We love to see it. I'm basically Tiger woods, but, you know, look at you. My goodness. Sticky guys. I forgot how horrible summer in D.C. is until I left and went to Alaska for a few days. This is awful. It's the growing up without humidity thing. But, like, I sweat like a swamp rat in the summertime here. And there's all these beautiful women who are from the south that just glisten and they don't smell bad and their hair looks perfect and smooth. Could not be me, will never be me, but I will be a mountain kid. That's okay. I read online that there are several states who refused to send a delegation to the state fair, which, frankly, I think is the most petty, pathetic lack of patriotism of all time. But especially for our semi quincentennial, which, by the way, is the official name for the 250th anniversary of your country. The way our parents used to talk about the bicentennial, it was like a huge deal. People had massive parades all over the country. Everybody wanted to celebrate our country. Now half the countries just refusing to acknowledge that America even exists because, you know, leftism, it's a virus, Let me tell you, okay? In my opinion, coolest thing that they're doing at the Great American State Fair is a rodeo component. If you are from the west, you grew up going to the rodeo all the time. It is one of my favorite things to do growing up. We used to ride horses. I loved barrel racing. If you were a kid in the west, of course you did mutton busting growing up. And Isla will be a champion mutton buster when all is said and done. So they're doing like a rodeo component almost every single day here on the mall. And to see a rodeo set up with the Washington Monument over there and the U.S. capitol building behind you is the weirdest but coolest American culture feeling of all time. You think I could be the rodeo clown? I don't know if I'm funny enough to be honest. This is important. Beer out the wazoo. But it's Budweiser. No. Maybe I'm just a snob. And it's the Coloradan and Fort Collins graduate in me. Craft beer all the way. We could do so much better than Budweiser. But if you can't do better than Budweiser, could you at least spring for Coors banquet? I'm just saying. I'm just saying. Guys, I'm officially disgusting. And we're finding out my daughter is her daddy's daughter because she just immediately turns red when she overheats. So ice cream. It is ice cream for lunch. So Maha. I don't care how. Maha, ice cream. Be calm. In my life, you'll never pry the drumsticks out of my cold, dead pans. Ideally, the caramel flavor. They're pretty good. I think Riley Gaines is having a meet and Greet right now. And of course, she's gonna look perfect because she's from the South. But I do not envy standing out there for a while. I love meeting you guys, but not like this. If we have a meet and greet, you gotta bring me ice cream. I think that's a fair, fair rule for summer in D.C. don't get me wrong. I love the Washington Monument, but do you think George Washington ever thought that, like, his cool thing in Washington was just gonn giant stick? I mean, like, have you been. Have you been to the Lincoln? Have you been to the Jefferson? But George Washington was really freaking cool. He deserves a cooler thing than that, if you ask me. And speaking of George Washington, just a couple days ago, my husband and I got to go to an advanced screening of Angel Studios new Young Washington movie. And it was so good. It is officially hitting theaters this Saturday on July 4th. And if you guys haven't had a chance to get your tickets yet, you need to, because it blew all of my expectations out of the water. We're kind of on, like, a we love George Washington kick right now because we just took Isla to Mount Vernon for the second, and we learned so much that I never knew about George Washington. We got to visit his grave for the first time. It was closed the last time we were there. And with this particular new movie that just came out from Angel Studios, it's a whole chapter of history that I very, very, very barely remember learning about growing up in school, focusing on his entrance into the military and the French and Indian War specifically. Instead of wasting your money and your time dealing with the box office at the movie theater, there's a much better way to get to see the Young Washington movie when it comes out on Saturday, 4th of July. And that's to sign up to be a member of Angel Studios Guild, which is their, like, collection of members that helps them choose which movies they end up making in the first place and whether they make it out to the box office. Right now, a premium angel Guild membership is only 15 per month. That's 25 off for the rest of the year. And that rate is locked in for the rest of the year. And with that membership, you get two free tickets to Young Washington, which is a steal going to the movies these days. You guys can go to angel.combrown to take advantage of the special offer. Okay, it looks like they have, like, classic fair food. Hot dogs, nachos, pretzels. They have a hibachi express station, fancy for the fair, if you ask me. Ice cream, which is probably all over my face right now because I just devoured a drumstick with my daughter. Pizzas, snacks, every soda, lemonade, all that known to man. Pretty good fair food. Although I don't see fried fair foods like funnel cakes, fried Oreos. I've only had those once. It was at Cheyenne Frontier Days, which is the best. The best fair you could possibly go to. And I hear in Texas they have fried sticks and butter, so that's a thing. World's Largest Engine. Interesting. Yeah. Isla, I want you to be able to ride that thing, but there's just no way. I'm sorry, squirt. Funny enough, this is probably the thing that the people are the most upset about in the media right now. It is a replica to scale, I believe, of President Trump's new victory arch that he's putting across the bridge from the Lincoln Memorial heading into Northern Virginia. I think it's pretty cool. Pretty much every major city in Europe has a triumphant arch of some kind. If you've been to Rome, you've seen the Arch of Constantine. If you've been to Paris, you've seen the Arc de Triomphe. I mean, like, virtually every Barcelona has. Virtually every major city in Europe has a triumphant arch. So it's kind of weird that we don't, frankly, because most of our architecture here in D.C. is European. The entire city was designed by a Frenchman, Pierre l'. Enfant. But I like it. I don't know, maybe that's just me. Good story. When they announced that this was happening, I told them that they should make it an arch commemorating the Meme Wars. Could you imagine etched in stone, Pepe the Frog and the lady in the construction vest screaming no. After the 2016 election, that would be funny. That's the way to troll the haters. Donald J. Trump is now President of the United States. President Obama. The highlight of the whole fair is the Ferris wheel, where apparently you have the most insanely cool view of the National Mall. Just a few days ago, my producer Jess and I got to do a tour of Washington monuments with Secretary Doug Burgum, the Secretary of the Interior. And we were right over there with our heads peeking out the little windows at the top of the Washington Monument. But this is so cool, because you get a chance to see the monument, see the entire Mall, see the Capitol building behind you, and just take in how beautiful Washington, D.C. actually really is. I know there's a lot of haters on the swamp, and it's pretty swampy, and there's a lot of swamp creatures here, but it's also incredibly beautiful. And I think people really undervalue and underappreciate the architecture, the history, the cultural symbolism and significance of our capital city. Way in the distance, they got a little preview sign for the Indy car race happening in August. I'm psyched about that. I'm not usually a race car girly. I will be there. I will be cheering on. I'm embracing my inner Talladega nights for this event. Virginia is over yonder, and technically I do live in Virginia right now. But I'm mad at Virginia right now because they're trying to tax everything and put evil people like me in the Gulag. So I think we'll skip it now. Isla, we married into the Alabama people. We are not Alabama people, but my husband grew up in Birmingham. He would not be happy to see that they made it University of Alabama colors and not auburn colors. I've never technically lived there, but I do spend a lot of time in Tennessee now, thanks to Daily Wire. So I think we should try to pop in. Oh, are we closed for a minute? Bummer. That's okay. Just kidding. Tennessee closed. Snooze, you lose. I guess. Tennessee. As you guys know, Colorado is what I call my home state. I was not born in Colorado, so technically I'm not a native, I guess. But I moved there when I was six months old. Colorado has always been home. I'm a CSU grad. Go Rams. I am Colorado through and through. My parents are still there. My sister is still there. I'm so excited to pop in, and I'm sure it's gonna feel just like home, like the second we go inside. Let's go over there in that corner. Oh, we'll go check it out for sure. Awesome. O. I'm colder already. This is so good. Red rocks and canoeing. All the good stuff. Makes me miss ski season so bad. No wonder it smells good in here. There's like a herd of 300 elk that live in my parents backyard. And my sister Amelia's first word was elk, which is a really random first word to have, actually. Oh. I didn't even notice this. It's a campfire. That's the cutest thing. It's like an interactive canoe situation. Should we try it? Okay. We gotta put on our equipment. Gotta put his wetsuit on. And his helmet, his life jacket and his chuckles. Oh, my gosh. Whoa. I don't know which way's which. It seems backwards. It's not intuitive. You can tell that it's an aspen tree because of the way it is, if you know, you know. That's pretty neat. Colorado is home. But I have always said if I could move anywhere, if money was no object, if logistics were no object, and I didn't constantly have to be on airplanes, where I would move is the great state of Wyoming. We love Wyoming. The world needs more cowboys. Let's go see if we can find some in their booth. I found a passport. Thank you, Wyoming. These are so cute. You can get stamped in all the states and it has every state capitol, every state motto and flower. That's adorable. Bring back the old Minnesota flag. Just saying. Yeah. Looks like bison fur. Oh, it's so soft. You want to touch it?

[C]

Isla.

[A]

Nice. And sheep. Sheep wool.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Wyoming has been at the top of my list as like the dream place to live for a long time. But honestly, now that I've taken to the visits, it might be Alaska. Alaska might usurp Wyoming as my end. All, be all, dream future destination. Did you know we bought the entire Alaska territory for like $3 million? I think we won. That was a good, good purchase. Oh, fun. Look, they got Hawaii and Alaska together. Because Hawaii was number 50, Alaska was 49. Someday I really want to go see this. The Iditarod. Yeah. It's so cool. The last. I love that they have them together. So fun. I'm about to faint. That was awesome. So fun. If you are coming through D.C. for any of the 4th of July festivities, 100% worth coming based on my experience. Come at like 8am at the latest because it's a million degrees. Especially if you have kids. Bring Mr. Fans because I'm kicking myself. But I left mine at home and put on lots of sunscreen. But you're going to have a blast. It's so fun. Florida had the best interactive experience. Colorado had the best ambiance. We love happy 4th of July.