I grit my teeth at the prospect of Donald Trump sullying Mount Rushmore with his presence again and begging to have his face carved into the mountain. So may be Toby Doeden, who for all his love and apery of Trump must surely ache at the prospect of his runoff opponent Governor Larry Rhoden basking once again in the lukewarm orange glow:
“It is my honor to welcome President Trump to the great state of South Dakota – the freest state in a nation founded on the principles of freedom,” wrote Governor Larry Rhoden. “Together, we will throw the biggest birthday party ever for our nation and celebrate America’s legacy of freedom, liberty, and justice for all!”
The historic fireworks celebration will be held on July 3, 2026, in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and the National Park Service. Governor Rhoden and DOI Secretary Doug Burgum previously signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to move forward with planning for the fireworks celebration [Governor’s Office, press release, 2026.06.25].
Yes, Governor Rhoden will be the runoff candidate on the Ellsworth tarmac welcoming Trump to South Dakota. Governor Rhoden will be the man sitting right next to Trump at Rushmore as the bombs burst or the drones bleep. Governor Rhoden will be the grinning cowboy next to the doddering billionaire eagerly collecting and tweeting photos of himself next to Trump in the moments when the President isn’t nodding off.
Toby Doeden, who apparently somehow snagged a ticket in the lottery that chose 4,000 winners out of 100,000 applicants, gamely cheers Trump’s attendance and insists there is no partisan angle to Trump sitting with Rhoden on the Mount Rushmore stage:
Doeden will be going to the show and empathizes with those who could not get tickets to the event, but hopes they still tune. He believes this event will be an economic boom for the state and a chance for unity.
“We share a planet, we share a country, we share our amazing state. We have to put all of the nonsense aside, we have to unify,” Doeden said.
“He’s coming here to celebrate our country, not to bring in partisan politics, and I expect that his remarks are going to be very positive, very uplifting, very forward-thinking, and I can’t wait to take part in it,” Doeden said [Quinn Gienapp, “SD Politicians React to July 3 Trump Visit,” KELO-TV, 2026.06.25].
Get real, Toby: Trump never speaks positively, upliftingly, or forward-thinkingly. He didn’t the last time he ranted at Rushmore, and he won’t this time.
But his presence next to the Governor on the Mount Rushmore stage and in all the press and photos and tweets will certainly uplift Larry Rhoden’s gubernatorial campaign. Larry Rhoden got Trump to Mount Rushmore, and you can bet Rhoden will do everything he can make sure Toby Doeden comes nowhere near that campaign-boosting camera frame.
p.s.: The July 3 ticket lottery was originally advertised as offering approximately 4,800 seats at Rushmore July 3. But the April drawing doled tickets out to only around 4,000 people. The 2020 July 3 Rushmore event allowed in 7,500 ticketholders.