As they were assembling the stage for the UFC event in front of the White House, we all watched as the left lost its collective hive mind. They claimed that it was disrespectful, gaudy, and represented everything wrong with the Republican Party under the control of "MAGA."
Of course, they were the same ones who thought this was just the greatest thing that ever graced such a sacred place.
People screaming Trump desecrated the White House lawn for #UFCWhiteHouse!!1! While magically forgetting the LGBT Pride circus during the Biden years, flying the gay flag on the WH.
— Dylan McKay (@LGDylanMcKay) June 12, 2026
Update: the trans showing his silicone boobs has since been arrested for sexual assault. pic.twitter.com/ZTebH74dxU
Some were claiming that if a Democrat had done anything like what Trump did with his UFC event, Republicans would never get over it.
I disagree. If Obama had done something similar and dedicated the event to celebrating America as it was, not what the left wanted it to be, the Republicans would've likely been on board by and large. The issue isn't who does what; it's the reason a thing is done. It's the intent behind it. That seems to be something the left can't wrap its head around. If Trump himself cured cancer, the left would suddenly find itself on the side of mesothelioma.
But I digress.
My colleague Nick Arama wrote a piece that showed how the left responded to the White House UFC event, and it really got me thinking about where both sides are mentally.
Read: Liberal Counterprogramming Against the White House UFC Event Does Not Go Well
As you can imagine, they weren't taking Donald Trump and those who support him having fun well. It looked too much like winning, and as you know, if Trump is winning, then evil is triumphing.
So they decided to get together and have their own counter-event, which featured speakers who legitimately hate America, because nothing says "I love America" like putting Jane Fonda on stage at your event:
Liberals did some counterprogramming, having an event in New York City, "Rise Up, Sing Out: A Concert for the First Amendment." It featured performances or appearances by people like Bette Midler, Joy Reid, and Jane Fonda. Fonda’s advocacy group, Committee for the First Amendment, was behind the event.
It also featured performances by Bette Midler and what I assume was a crowd of drunk people who mistook it for a karaoke stage.
In case you are wondering what the Dems are doing.
— America First Insight (@AF_Insight) June 15, 2026
Their counter-program to the UFC, is like 40 people singing terribly, to a terrible song. pic.twitter.com/AdYyZ8rpJI
The event was supposed to be about upholding and protecting the First Amendment, which, as Nick notes, is an odd thing to make it about:
"Plus, if Trump is such a fascist and his administration is censoring or attacking the First Amendment, how are you all able to hold this event and sing...badly?" she wrote.
It's absolutely possible to abuse your First Amendment right, and the left managed to do it with a microphone and melodramatic lyrics.
But watch both events and focus more on the vibe of each.
The White House UFC event was flashy, loud, and bombastic, sure, but it was fun.
This was a happy event put on to celebrate a country that ancient peoples would've considered a realm of the gods. It was a chest-thumping moment of pride, not in ourselves, but in everything that makes the nation what it is. This wasn't about Trump's ego, as the left likes to claim; it was an open display of America's awesomeness through a really good time that featured cool stuff to see.
It was America, completely unashamed of itself, and what better way to show that than by featuring a masculine sport on the front lawn of the most powerful building in the world?
But the left did not have that vibe. Its vibe was a mixture of angry and sad. For all the complaints that the UFC show was about one man's ego, the left's response really was about that very man and displays of their "resistance" to him.
While cheers and celebrations were going on at the White House, you had what was effectively a giant sneer at the people having a good time. It was an anti-celebration meant to make it seem like the country that gave us all so much, including the people on the counter-event stage, was something evil and intentionally malicious.
But it's not true. Everyone at that counter-event was lying to themselves about what's really going on just so they could continue displaying a prejudice that gets them backpats from their peers.
Imagine having to make yourself miserable to feel justified in hating someone... and you have the left.
