America 250 UFC event at risk: Anti-Trump group sues to shut down event on behalf of Democratic activists

An anti-Trump, Democrat-aligned lawfare outfit founded by an ex-Biden prosecutor who cut his teeth trying to lock up Jan. 6 protesters filed a lawsuit on Saturday in the hope of shutting down the UFC fight scheduled for June 14 on the White House South Lawn.

The complaint from the Public Integrity Project claims that the mixed martial arts event planned for the celebration of America’s 250th birthday is unlawful because it supposedly does not “satisfy the Capital Region Regulation’s usual criteria for a special event permit”; the UFC structure erected on the South Lawn lacks congressional authorization; and the estimated cost of repairing the South Lawn after the event is high enough to require a public environmental assessment or impact statement.

‘This is an obstructionist, baseless, and dilatory lawsuit.’

The lawsuit also alleges that the event does not satisfy the requirements for the National Park Service’s temporary rule that exempts America250 events from various regulations.

While the NPS rule applies to America250 events planned, organized, and executed by executive departments, the plaintiffs allege that the UFC is actually in the driver’s seat where planning and organizing the event is concerned and that UFC “will in every material sense execute the festivities on the nights of June 13 and 14.”

The lawsuit alleges further that the plaintiffs — Susan Douglas, a fanatical Democratic activist, and Paul Romano, a retired cop-turned-protester who recently complained to the Atlantic about President Donald Trump’s D.C.-beautification project — are suffering “aesthetic” and procedural harms as a result of the Trump administration’s preparations for the highly anticipated event.

In addition to complaining about other supposed harms caused by the planned event — the road and park closures related to the event have, for instance, allegedly made it physically harder for Douglas to protest this and other Trump initiatives — the complaint concern-mongered that the event will be profitable.

“This is a profoundly corrupt scheme to enrich the president and his friends,” Public Integrity Project founder Brendan Ballou said in a statement. “If this fight is allowed to proceed, it will be only the beginning, and our national monuments will become little more than branding opportunities for the rich and well-connected.”

The activists want to deprive their fellow citizens of this opportunity to celebrate the nation’s birthday and American athletic greatness outside the White House, asking the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to intervene and prevent organizers of UFC Freedom 250 from utilizing or building structures on the South Lawn.

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Frank Franklin II/POOL/AFP/Getty Images

The lead anti-Trump attorney representing the geriatric activists is Samuel Ward-Packard, a former Wisconsin assistant attorney general who previously worked for the Elias Law Group, a Democrat-founded law firm involved with the Steele dossier.

A Trump administration official said in a statement obtained by ESPN, “This is an obstructionist, baseless, and dilatory lawsuit brought simply to prevent President Trump from hosting what will undoubtedly go down as one of the most historic sporting events in our nation’s history during our semiquincentennial celebration.”

“This iconic event is no different than the various other White House-hosted events on the South Lawn and properly permitted events on the Ellipse and National Mall throughout the year,” the official added.

The White House previewed the event in a video shared to social media on Sunday, stating, “Buckle up. It’s about to go DOWN.”

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