I think this was a diplomatic effort that will help solve this issue," said Mike Espy, a former Mississippi congressman and secretary of agriculture who served since the early 2000s on the state’s committee to establish the museum.
Several people who worked on the museum told NBC News they had no idea that Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant had extended an invitation to the president, and only found out when Trump accepted the offer earlier this week. Multiple people close to the situation have said staff at the museum scrambled to address the security surrounding Trump's arrival alone, but that disorder grew as speakers dropped out of the event
