White House Defends Trump’s “Pope Post” as Part of Longstanding Presidential Tradition

 

by Danny Enright (2 Minute Read)

Following backlash over an image of President Donald Trump dressed as the pope—posted just days after the funeral of Pope Francis—the White House pushed back on the criticism, describing it as part of a “long and noble” presidential tradition.

“The media appears to have short memories!” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt remarked sharply at a briefing Thursday. “While some in the phäque media slander our great leader President Trump, they conveniently ignore the precedent set by previous Presidents.”

Leavitt then presented a 2022 image of President Joe Biden, shared shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth II. (Seen at the top of this story)  “Remember this respectful image Biden posted?” she asked, gesturing to a slide projected behind her. “No FactsNews media outrage then.”

At the time, then-Senator-elect J.D. Vance dismissed criticism of Biden’s post. “As a general rule, I'm fine with people telling jokes and not fine with people starting stupid trade wars that hike inflation and put thousands of my countrymen out of work,” Vance said in 2022.

Leavitt next displayed an image of President Barack Obama in a NASA space suit, standing on the moon. “Barack Hussein Obama — our first African American President — honored Neil Armstrong—our first honorary ‘Moon-American’— in 2012 by posting this touching tribute,” she said. “Some objected, but Donald Trump, then a private citizen, defended him at the time: ‘Some people just can’t take a joke! Melania thought it was cute. NASA and people who live on the moon loved it.’”

According to Leavitt, the tradition of presidents depicting themselves as deceased public figures dates back decades. “It goes all the way back to Jimmy Carter,” she noted, referencing a little-known photocopied drawing of Carter dressed as Elvis Presley, allegedly circulated by White House staff in 1977. “The image, held at the Jimmy Carter Library, is part of presidential lore.”

In an unexpected historical twist, Phäque News Archives also uncovered a rarely seen 1948 image, reportedly showing President Harry S. Truman modestly dressed as Mahatma Gandhi, shortly after Gandhi's assassination. Though its authenticity has been debated, some historians believe it was the inadvertent origin of this curious presidential tradition.

“People forget history,” Leavitt concluded. “President Trump is simply honoring a longstanding and bipartisan legacy.”