‘He’s a Scum’: White House Uses Trump and JD Vance Photo As a Major Flex— Later the Clip of the Move Blows Up in Their Faces
Many Americans are beyond feeling shocked by the antics and behavior of Trump administration officials, including President Donald Trump himself, watching incident after incident of standard norms and protocols blown out of the water just over a year into his second term in office.
From threatening allies and foes alike, attacking foreign countries without approval from Congress, calling reporters names, blowing up boats in the Atlantic and Pacific without offering any proof of criminal behavior, calling for the arrest of former U.S. presidents, weaponizing the Justice Department to go after his perceived political enemies, killing two Americans during brutal immigration crackdowns, the list goes on and on.
But a picture of Trump and his Vice President JD Vance at what should have been a solemn, dignified transfer ceremony for six of the seven fallen service members killed in Trump’s war on Iran is going viral for all the wrong reasons, showing the pair ignoring common protocols and upsetting both the families of those killed and veterans alike.
The White House released a black and white photo of six members of the Trump administration, including Defense Chief Peter Hegseth, and a soldier at the back of a cargo plane waiting for the transport of the coffins from the aircraft. All are standing with their heads bowed, except Trump and Vance.
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If the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words is true, opponents say the message Trump and Vance sent is beyond shameful and disrespectful, not only to all Americans but also to the office of the president and vice president.
Trump broke protocols ever further, showing up at the service Saturday wearing a baseball cap from his own merchandise line paired with a bright blue suit rather than the traditional black. He wore the cap throughout the ceremony but quickly took it off afterward, causing onlookers to marvel over the blatant disrespect.
Even Fox News, which critics contend is now a propaganda arm of the Trump White House, was too embarrassed to show Trump and Vance’s bad behavior and instead aired a previous dignified transfer ceremony with a properly solemn Trump saluting the coffin.
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During the broadcast, the network showed the correct dateline of “Saturday” and location “Dover,” leading viewers to think they were watching the real ceremony unfolding in Delaware, but they weren’t.
On Sunday, March 8, the network apologized to those who were killed, their families, and others for showing a taped version of a different transfer ceremony and misinforming the public about what they were seeing.
Social media went into meltdown mode reacting to Trump and Vance’s behavior.
“He’s a scum,” Threads user On The Dock Grill proclaimed.
Another agreed, “A f-kkin ball cap. What a low life.”
This poster chimed in, “Trump shows no respect wearing that silly MAGA hat, and Vance is just a hillbilly that doesn’t even know how to show respect.”
Seven soldiers have died since Trump launched airstrikes on Iran on Saturday, Feb. 28, and Iran retaliated by shooting off missiles and drones at neighboring countries, including Kuwait, where the fallen service members were killed in an attack on a port.
In just over a week, the war that Trump and Israel started with the Islamic Republic has rippled across the Middle East, killing hundreds of people, including children, drawing in U.S. allies, and causing oil prices to spike some 14 percent.