The photo, which went viral on social media on Saturday, was originally posted through an unverified account purporting to belong to a White House photographer named William Moon. Later AP, AFP and several other agencies published analogous photos of the US President.
@realDonaldTrump returns to the White House from Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo by William Moon at the South Lawn of the White House on February 7, 2020 pic.twitter.com/n1a1Z93LrJ
— White House Photos (@photowhitehouse) February 7, 2020
The photo in question, however, seems to be slightly altered, adding more orange to Trump’s face while making the skin around his hair paler. Trump, in return, published the white-and-black version of the photo, saying that the Fake News had photoshopped the original.
More Fake News. This was photoshopped, obviously, but the wind was strong and the hair looks good? Anything to demean! https://t.co/t8ptYMCYHf
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2020
White House spokesperson Stephanie Grisham told CNBC that she had “nothing beyond the president’s tweet” to add, noting that Moon is not an official White House photographer. The Twitter account on which the photo was first posted links to an Instagram account featuring other photos of Trump and the White House and includes a caption that reads “White House Correspondent, Journalist, Photographer, Poet and Pesco Vegetarian.”
Netizens were astonished by the photo, making all kinds of jokes about Trump’s face. While some compared Trump and his “make-up line” to other characters, others started to theorize where the US President could have slept to get such colour.
I'm not feeling the Mrs. Doubtfire remake pic.twitter.com/GEBoxgK7d9
— Spencer Althouse (@SpencerAlthouse) February 8, 2020
Who wore it better? #Wilson #Trump pic.twitter.com/Ms1sWrABYD
— Lenny Jacobson (@Lennyjacobson) February 8, 2020
— Johnny McNulty (@JohnnyMcNulty) February 8, 2020
Maybe he's born with it... pic.twitter.com/1fROhVe2Jl
— egkidwell (@egkidwell) February 8, 2020
Didnt Justin Trudeau get in trouble for that?
— Lisa (It's the corruption stupid!) (@MamaBear64) February 8, 2020
Trump was most recently mocked for his tan by former New York City Mayor and Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg, who said Trump “lies about everything: his fake hair, his obesity, and his spray-on tan.”
Several media outlets have speculated on the nature of Trump’s make-up throughout his presidency: the Washington Post has previously reported that Trump keeps liquid face make-up in at least one of his homes, while Vanity Fair wrote that Trump does all his own make-up.
