President Trump claimed a "fantastic" turnout at the kickoff rally for the Great American State Fair on the National Mall Wednesday night, a figure that sharply diverges from independent estimates of the crowd size.
A widely shared video clip shows a steady stream of people walking away from the stage area during the president's speech, and multiple news outlets reported that turnout was a disappointing start to the 16-day fair marking the nation's 250th anniversary.
"The Crowd was incredible last night, packed to the brim — At least 45,000 people were there, with a huge Television and online audience," Trump posted Thursday afternoon on Truth Social. "I wish we were able to have an even larger area, which we will be able to do on July 4th when I’ll be speaking again. The airplane flyovers and music were fantastic."
"Everybody stayed right until the end of my Speech because they loved hearing about a truly successful America," he added. "See you again on July 4th!"
NBC News estimated attendance at “more than 1,000,” while the Washington Post reported that “the crowd thinly covered an area about the length of the National Museum of American History, smaller than some summer outdoor movie screenings.”
The kickoff event also drew attention after several musical acts withdrew ahead of the rally, citing concerns about the event's political nature. Trump's remarks on Wednesday touted improvements to Washington, D.C., infrastructure and likened his political movement to the American Revolution, declaring that "America is back."
The discrepancy between Trump's stated attendance and on-the-ground media estimates echoes previous disputes between the president and press outlets over crowd sizes at his public events.