Facing a week of scandals and disasters, Trump tried to flip the narrative by staging a publicity stunt - which promptly backfired for a pretty hilarious reason.
Reporters captured the moment where Trump “spontaneously” dropped in on a White House tour of school children to say hi. The moment’s candidness was diminished somewhat by the fact that the situation had been clearly staged, photographers and camera crews crowded around the carefully selected group of elementary school children. The cheers, loud in the small room, rang hollow.
However the most baffling thing about the whole publicity stunt was where Trump chose to do it. Turning a corner and greeting the kids, Trump stood directly under - wait for it - a giant portrait of Hillary Clinton meant to honor her contributions to the White House as First Lady and then Secretary of State. It was an unintentional but powerful reminder of the contrasts between the 2016 opponents. One - graceful, experienced, and qualified - gazing down on the other who is, by all accounts, winging it.
Pres Trump surprises WH visitors as public tours of WH resume. Portrait of @HillaryClinton on the wall. pic.twitter.com/FaJSnPe13P
— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) March 7, 2017
Is Trump the first president to greet visitors at the White House? Of course not. But he’s the first one to take every weekend off to play golf at a resort in Florida and the first one to have unfavorability numbers this low this early. One might think that with those things in mind, along with the fact that just yesterday marked one of his worst days in office, he would be holed up in the Oval Office attempting to actually learn how to become president.
Instead this is what America gets: A reality tv star who is obsessed with the publicity but not the actual accomplishments.
You never know what surprises may await you on a @WhiteHouse tour! pic.twitter.com/VNLpoXRZs4
— Cliff Sims (@CSims45) March 7, 2017
Featured image via Twitter
