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President Donald Trump marks turning 80 on Sunday with a birthday celebration that once would have seemed unfathomable: a cage-fighting show on the storied South Lawn of the White House.

This week, the hard realities of the office have threatened to overshadow the ostentatious UFC mixed martial arts extravaganza, where combatants sealed inside a wire-mesh octagon try to punch, kick, chop, and pummel each other into submission.

Mr. Trump has found himself boxed into an unpopular and costly war he helped start in Iran. An agreement to end the conflict could be close, but the crucial details are still to be negotiated. Meanwhile, about a mile from Mr. Trump鈥檚 birthday bash, crews pried the president鈥檚 name off the Kennedy Center after a judge ruled naming it after Mr. Trump had gone too far.

Regardless, the president will walk out of the White House and be surrounded by Cabinet leaders, top administration officials, Republican lawmakers, and 4,000-plus spectators screaming themselves hoarse in a temporary arena under 鈥� The Claw,鈥� a spaceship-like metal arch fitted with lighting, sound equipment, and large screens. Thousands more will be watching on big screens from the nearby Ellipse.

鈥淭his event is a one of one event, incredible event. I love it,鈥� said UFC chief Dana White, a close friend of the president, during a Friday night hype session at the Lincoln Memorial where pairs of fighters shoved and scuffled for the cameras under the stoic gaze of Honest Abe鈥檚 marble likeness.

The president has sought to tie Sunday鈥檚 event 鈥� which features seven fights running past midnight 鈥� to larger, months-long celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

But it is much more geared toward feting himself, so much so that the G7 summit for leaders of industrialized nations pushed back their get-together so that the president could attend his cage-match party and then fly straight to France for the meetings.

The weather, though, could put a major damper on things. Strong thunderstorms and heavy lightning disrupted Friday鈥檚 Lincoln Memorial event, and the forecast for Sunday evening also looks threatening.

鈥淚鈥檓 sick and tired of hearing about the weather,鈥� Mr. White declared on Friday, before conceding that he鈥檒l prefer to hold future UFC events inside arenas only.

A dramatic departure from how the last president marked his 80th

When Mr. Trump鈥檚 predecessor, President Joe Biden, turned 80 in November 2022, he celebrated with a private family brunch at the White House, laying bare just how much and how quickly things have changed.

Asked about the contrast, White House spokesperson Allison Schuster said that the fight 鈥渨ill be one of the most entertaining nights in American history鈥� and said that the timing was appropriate. 鈥淗aving this spectacle take place at the people鈥檚 house on Flag Day during our nations鈥� semiquincentennial anniversary is a fitting tribute,鈥� Ms. Schuster said in a statement.

When he turned 80, Mr. Biden was the oldest president in U.S. history, and was months away from launching a reelection bid that he would ultimately abandon after a disastrous debate against Mr. Trump and mutiny among Democrats concerned he was too old to handle a second term.

Mr. Trump has now supplanted Mr. Biden as the oldest person to be elected U.S. president. He鈥檚 constitutionally barred from running again, yet constantly toys with the notion publicly. That鈥檚 despite polls showing rising public skepticism about Mr. Trump鈥檚 mental and physical health 鈥� recalling concerns Mr. Biden faced as he turned 80.

A Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted in April found that less than half of U.S. adults think Mr. Trump has the mental sharpness or physical health to serve effectively as president.

The White House countered with a lengthy statement from Mr. Trump鈥檚 former White House physician, Texas Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson, saying Mr. Trump鈥檚 鈥渟tamina, focus, and strength are exceptional and on display every day. Claims to the contrary are pure fiction.鈥� Mr. Jackson added that polling concerns were 鈥渂eing propagated by the same biased, liberal, Trump-hating press that completely ignored the absolute cognitive and physical disaster that was President Biden.鈥�

Mr. Trump has nonetheless undergone four publicly announced physical examinations this term alone, with White House physician Dr. Sean Barbabella recently declaring him in 鈥渆xcellent health.鈥�

鈥楤read and circuses鈥� 鈥� Trump-style

The UFC event is an apt metaphor for Mr. Trump鈥檚 pugilistic political style. He is as big a fan of cage-match-style politics as he is of cage-fighting itself.

But Mr. Trump has also long been a master of political misdirection, purposely presenting people with something other than his presidency to focus on when things aren鈥檛 going well.

With the war in Iran grinding on despite weeks of assurances from Mr. Trump that its end is nigh, gas prices staying high, renewed concerns about inflation, and plummeting job approval ratings for Mr. Trump聽鈥� a White House birthday party unlike anything America has ever seen is definitely a diversion.

鈥淭his is all distraction,鈥� said Mike Fontaine, a classics professor at Cornell University, who likened it to the gladiatorial games of Imperial Rome, when combatants brutalized each other for public entertainment meant to bolster rulers鈥� popularity and quell potential unrest.

鈥淭his is a classic strategy,鈥� Mr. Fontaine said. 鈥淚n ancient Rome, the phrase would be, 鈥榖read and circuses.鈥欌��

Mr. Trump says the UFC is paying for the event and while its full costs haven鈥檛 been divulged, the National Park Service said in a court filing that $60-plus million and tens of thousands of hours of labor have gone into it, while seven government agencies have 鈥渁llocated significant resources and manpower.鈥�

UFC also announced on Friday that it was adding as an official partner for the event World Liberty Financial to create a special $250,000 athlete bonus pool for Sunday night鈥檚 winners. The cryptocurrency company is co-owned by the Trump family, founded with the president鈥檚 special diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff and run by his son, Zach. The arrangement further blurs lines between the Trump family鈥檚 financial interests and the events and construction projects the president has prioritized and used government resources to pull off.

Still, Mr. Fontaine said that when it comes to a personal flair for pageantry, the president鈥檚 second-term tendency to lean into 鈥渉ardcore masculinity and brute fighting鈥� is marrying the UFC鈥檚 blood sport with Mr. Trump鈥檚 trademark humor and enduring sense of showmanship.

鈥淧resident Trump has a once-in-a-generation talent for this stuff,鈥� he said.