The Trump administration is attempting to capitalize on the release ofSupermanin a baffling and controversial post, seeking to conflate Donald Trump with the Man of Steel. The Trump administration is no stranger to trying to cash in on a popular piece of pop culture. For May the Fourth, the White House released anAI-generated piece of Donald Trump wielding a red lightsaber, inadvertently saying the President of the United States was a Sith Lord, one of the most villainous groups in theStar Warsfranchise.
Now, forSuperman, the White House has released a photoshop of Donald Trump’s head on the Superman poster. The post, which you may see below, reads “THE SYMBOL OF HOPE / TRUTH. JUSTICE. THE AMERICAN WAY / SUPERMAN TRUMP.” This is in reference to Superman’s former mantra, “Truth, Justice, and the American Way,” which was changed in October 2021 to"Truth, Justice, and a Better Tomorrow"to better reflect Superman’s status as a hero and a citizen of the world.
Forget the Woke Controversy, Superman Has Always Been an Immigrant Story
The right-wing backlash against ‘Superman’ isn’t just stupid, it’s objectively wrong and ignores the character’s origins.
Donald Trump Has More In Common With Lex Luthor Than Superman
Following James Gunn’s comments aboutSupermanbeing an immigrant story, the movie has become the target of right-wing-based criticism. FormerLois & Clarkstar andTrump supporter Dean Cain criticized Gunn’s words, saying they made Superman “woke”, despite the immigration parallel having always been part of the Superman story since the very beginning in 1938. It was partly Trump supporters who created the series of events that led to James Gunn directingSuperman.After making a fake outrage campaign around some old social media posts, Gunn was fired fromGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.Shortly after he was fired (and later rehired), Gunn got the gig directingThe Suicide Squad, which eventually led to him being handed the keys to the DCU.
Many have criticized the White House for the apparent attempt to frame Donald Trump as Superman when, in actuality, the hero’s status as an illegal alien immigrant would make him a target of the Trump administration. The Trump administration has increased efforts to detain and deport various immigrants in the United States, sometimes racially profiling and detaining American citizens. Donald Trump has pushed forraising the federal spending on ICEwhile cutting assistance programs to American citizens, like SNAP benefits and Medicaid. Whereas Superman is a figure of hope who wants to help others and was created as a champion of the oppressed, Donald Trump is as far from Superman as one can be.
The idea of equating Trump and Superman is especially ironic, considering how much Donald Trump has in common with Superman’s archenemy, Lex Luthor. In the post-Crisis onInfinite Earthsrelaunch of Superman in the 1980s, Lex Luthor was changed from a mad scientist to an evil CEO, often working in real estate. Writer John Byrne has even admitted that Donald Trump was a big inspiration behind this reimaging of Lex Luthor. This version is the one James Gunn draws on heavily for his version of Lex Luthor. In 2000,Lex Luthor was elected president in the DC Universe. The idea of a businessman with multiple alleged crimes against them that the general public knew about still managing to become President of the United States used to be the stuff of comic book fantasy before becoming a case of life imitating art.
Source:The White House (X)
