Donald Trump gets to see a picture of very important person each time he picks up his iPhone: himself.
Trump has been getting raked online after a fresh photo revealed he continued to use a photograph of himself as the lock screen image on his device.
The president was photographed holding the phone again on Friday, and close-ups showed he was still using an image of himself from July 2019.
Trump wasn’t concealing the screen. In fact, he brandished it as he got off Air Force One following a trip to Pittsburgh.
Also visible was a text message from Roger Stone, a longtime informal Trump advisor who got a presidential pardon in his first term.
The photo image dates to his first term, and shows Trump pointing straight ahead. Internet sleuths tracked down the image in 2020 after it was spotted in photos.
Photographer Chip Somodevilla of Getty Images captured the image Trump continues to use when Trump was departing the White House en route to a fundraiser at his golf club in Bedminister, New Jersey – a location that continues to find itself on Trump’s regular travel schedule.
Trump critics seized on the decision online.
‘Trump’s lock screen was spotted on his phone last night—and it was a photo of himself. Is that not one of the most narcissistic, self-absorbed things you’ve ever seen??? Not his family, not his kids, but himself,’ wrote X user Harry Sisson, whose bio describes him as a Democrat. ‘Wtf…’ he added.
An image by Saul Loeb of AFP captured Trump’s iPhone as he got off Air Force One. It revealed Trump continues to use a picture of himself as his lock screen. It also showed a text from longtime political operative Roger Stone
Here President Donald Trump holds a mobile phone with his image on it, after his return from Pennsylvania
Trump has five children and 11 grandkids. (His latest, Alexander, was born last month to daughter Tiffany and son-in-law Michael Boulos).
It wasn’t just critics that latched onto the image. Conservative influencer Benny Johnson posted simply: ‘President Trump’s lock screen’ with a fire emoji.
‘Based!’ replied one user. ‘Even his lock screen has aura,’ wrote another.
A photographer captured the image days before the White House revealed a new official presidential photo portrait.
It showed Trump, looking straight ahead, with a closeup of his face over a dark background. It replaced an earlier official portrait that drew comparisons to his infamous mug shot.
Trump’s lock screen has been visible in social media shots
Trump’s message from Stone wasn’t too illuminating. It appeared to simply be a link to a story.
‘Housing market chief Pulte sends blunt message on Fed interest rate cuts’ with a link to thestreet.com. Pulte is Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), who recently alleged that New York AG Letitia James falsified banking documents.
