Trump leads the IndyCar prerace in the Beast before cars zoom through Washington’s streets

WASHINGTON (AP) — For once, things will be moving quickly in the nation’s capital as Washington hosts an IndyCar race through its streets.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump made the short drive Sunday afternoon to the course of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix, where cars will whip through the city’s downtown, including a stretch along Pennsylvania Avenue not too far from the White House.

“Their beautiful cars are going to make freedom roar. This will be a freedom that’s roaring like never before,” Trump said at the White House earlier this month as he promoted the event.

Before the race, Trump and his wife led a traditional prerace kickoff in his presidential limo. They could be seen waving through the windows, with a Marine Corps band playing “Stars and Stripes Forever” as the vehicles in the motorcade started rolling.

Air Force One, escorted by four fighter jets, flew overhead at the same time.

“I’m going to make a little circle in a nice, secure car, slightly slower than the ones we’re going to witness, but we’re going to have fun,” Trump said in an interview on Fox shortly before the ride.

The open-wheel race, with cars whizzing past Washington’s monuments at speeds approaching 200 mph, is the latest of Trump’s celebrations this year to mark America’s 250th birthday.

Trump’s other events to mark the semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence’s signing have included a UFC fight on the White House lawn, military aircraft flyovers, a massive July Fourth fireworks show on the National Mall and a Great American State Fair that the president headlined after scores of ’90s-era musical acts dropped out. The events have all had a Trumpian flair, featuring appearances from his friends and the aim of showcasing spectacle, Americana and power.

In this latest case, it will be horsepower.

In addition to the main event, there was also a prerace show with flyovers of military aircraft, which swooped and boomed over the city during the July Fourth celebrations.

The IndyCar race comes as Trump has been struggling to resolve the war he started nearly six months ago with Iran, a conflict that has driven up gasoline prices and exacerbated worries from officials in his Republican Party that voters in this November’s midterm elections see the president as distracted and not focused enough on cost-of-living concerns.

Trump in his second term has increasingly seemed to focus on relishing the presidency’s ceremonial aspects. That’s included a healthy dose of visits to sporting events — including an appearance last month at the World Cup final, where he presented the trophy to winner Spain and lingered onstage with the team as its members jumped in a hail of confetti.

An executive order Trump signed earlier this year calling for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix declared that the “cars and drivers inspire awe and respect in all who watch this quintessentially American sport,” and the event will “showcase the majesty of our great city as drivers navigate a track around our iconic national monuments in celebration of America’s 250th birthday.”

IndyCar series owner Roger Penske, a longtime friend of Trump’s who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from him in 2019, helped lead the effort to bring the race to Washington.

Trump told Fox on Sunday that Penske told him that he had been trying to bring the race to Washington for 20 years.

“When he came to see Trump it got done in about 15 minutes and it’s turned out to be much bigger than we ever even thought possible,” the president said, referring to himself in the third person.

Bud Denker, president of Penske Corporation and the race’s chair, said that Penske is paying for the “vast majority” of the race, including building the track and road improvements, while the District of Columbia handled some repaving.

Both Penske and Denker met Trump when he arrived at the course. Trump and the first lady then met and chatted with some race drivers.

Among the changes needed on the city’s streets was the welding of more than 200 maintenance hole covers to ensure the race cars don’t suck them up off the road.

Sunday’s festivities are also the latest opportunity for Trump to revel in the way he’s putting his mark on the nation’s capital, including large banners showing his face on government buildings, the construction of a massive White House ballroom, a gold-adorned Oval Office and botched repairs at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.