The Politics of Images
Official White House photos from the Battle of Lafayette Square.
Rather obviously to regular readers, I have an interest in photography. As such, I was struck by the following images on the White House’s official Flickr page, all from what Robert Kagan aptly (and cheekily) called the “Battle of Lafeyette Square.”
I do not know how that page is curated, but I know that without a doubt someone is making specific choices about what is posted. Even in Trump’s relatively brief excursion into the square, it is likely that hundreds of shots were taken, and so choices were made about which ones to keep, process and then post to the account. Somebody, therefore, is making some kind of point with these choices.
And it should not be forgotten that there was a conscious choice to engage in this event and to have it photographed in the first place. Indeed, these images are a combination of the choices to stage the event, to have the event photographed, and to post specific images to the Flickr page.
I am not, by the way, saying with any certainty as to what the actual reasons for these choices were, but rather these are my interpretations.
Note that all of these are in the public domain, and I have linked directly from Flickr–so you can click through on each image to get a larger shot or to look at others that I did not include.
First, we have Trump leaving the White House, clearly to show him to be a Man of Action:
We then have several shots of the walk into the square. Trump is in the lead, with his subordinates a few paces behind.
The image of General Milley, the CJCS, in his BDUs is also jarring.
The shot that I used in my previous post is especially telling, as it has massively authoritarian vibes. This is not just law enforcement being respectful of POTUS, this is law enforcement in riot gear after they have used the power of the state to clear the park of peaceful protests so that Trump could take a stroll. And this image is clearly intended to project Trump’s authority and power. Further, these LEOs are all props for Trump’s ego–after all, the whole clearing of the park was not necessary and was done so Trump could get his photo taken.
Speaking of the photo that was taken, it is striking to me that these are the ones posted, as by definition it means they are the ones that were considered the best by whomever it is that curates the page. Trump looks dour and uncomfortable to me in these shots:
As the cliche goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, and it is always worth thinking about which thousand words the choices behind a given image may be trying to convey. This is especially true with official government images.
I think he looks better here.
For all of the staging of this as an event to create these artifacts, it’s telling that there isn’t a single black member of the Trump administration in any of those pictures as far as I can see.
With respect to Trump’s facial expression: He’s probably striving for a look of stern resolve. As usual, all he can muster up is juvenile petulance.
As the saying goes, you can’t polish a turd. But what do Evangelicals think about these photos? Weren’t they the reason Trump went through the trouble of picking up a Bible in the first place?
Graf 3 “And it should not be forgotten …”
The good news, as it were, is that Trump’s popularity with Catholics has plummeted 23 points in about two months. I have issues with the whole ‘pro-life’ framing, but I’ll give lay Catholics credit: many of them see his indifference to Covid deaths and have his number.
The bible tomfoolery, including infuriating the Archbishop of D.C. is likely not even reflected all that much in that poll, though it was in the field as unrest spread.
@Kit:
Yeah, but apparently he picked the wrong edition: Fundies adhere to the King James. Trump was waving around a revised version from 1989. Not that many of the culties noticed.
At the top of this link is a GIF of Trump with the Bible, apparently puzzled at what he should be doing with it, eventually just holds it up.
http://yastreblyansky.blogspot.com/2020/06/foundering.html
@Kit:
People like Franklin Graham and Robert Jeffress are cheering it as expression/confirmation of support for their issues. Of course, those guys are so publicly all-in on Trump they can’t back off now, locked in.
@charon:
It’s hard to figure out exactly what Trump’s intent was, other than to show himself in public and thereby prove he wasn’t hiding in the bunker. I suppose he figured he couldn’t just stand in the WH doorway, and there was a church nearby, so he grabbed a Bible from someone and, with his entourage of lickspittles, lumbered over to the church to…do what? Didn’t think that part through. So he just stood there looking surly and holding up the Bible.
He may have thought: Bible. Church. Me. Stand in front of church. Wave Bible. Look like good Christian. Make Cult45 happy.
Trump looks like the woman in “The Summer Of George” episode of Seinfeld who doesn’t move her arms when she walks.
He’s carrying two invisible suitcases.
It’s really unnatural.
@CSK: The Bible came out of Ivanka’s purse, but there seems to have been no other thought what to do at the church. The church was the pretext for the dominance display of the walk through Lafayette Park.
From one of the comments at my earlier linky:
@charon:
Spot on for “dominance display”
Performative Bible wielding.
Here is another comment excerpt from my link.
Note the odd way he walks: dementia symptoms.
@CSK: Or plain ol’ constipation.
@charon:
Trump may or may not have dementia but I think his walk, as well as the way he stands, can be explained more simply by a combination of two things.
First, Trump wears lifts. For those who don’t know, these are shoes that nominally look like normal mens dress shoes but are actually high heels, with a slightly more generous regular heel (men’s are normally about 1 inch, a thicker sole, and then another 1-2″ hidden inside the rear of the shoe. You can buy them off the shelf for small men’s shoe sizes but in Trump’s size they must be custom made. This is how 6′ tall Trump sometimes, but by no means always, has looked to be 6′ 3″. Just google “How tall is Trump” for interesting photos and comparisons.
Second, I’m pretty sure Trump is wearing a pretty brutal men’s corset. There doesn’t seem to be any other way to explain the dramatic shifts in waistline we see when he is garbed up in a suit and when he is photographed at a distance on his golf course. Essentially, a corset uses the spine as an anchor post to compress dozens of pounds of fat into a more flattering shape. He’s probably cranking 30-50 pounds of waist, stomach and chest blubber into some serious compression.
We are used to seeing men of all sizes and physique in normal dress shoes walking, and we mentally accommodate the different physics involved. But if the rhythm and stance doesn’t match what we are seeing, something appears off. Now, imagine Trump in high heels, with his middle cranked so tight he can hardly bend at the waist, and an unnatural distribution of his excess pounds. Doesn’t that make a lot of sense in how he stands and walks?
From how the St. John’s pics are staged, it is unclear he is in front of a church until the last one. He is standing in front of some stairs before.
He apparently shuffled over to get the St. John’s sign in the shot later. As did the photographer shuffle as both shots are head on.
This not gospel, but Trump is reportedly afraid of stairs.
Barr is now claiming he did not give the “tactical order” to clear Lafayette Square although WH Press Secretary said he had done so. “Tactical” seems a very specific denial.
It was a half hour before curfew and it a peaceful protest of people with signs.
@MarkedMan:
Golfing Trump is markedly more rotund.
Not definitive, but very strongly suggestive.
Actually, I really don’t care if he’s wearing a girdle or about his hair or the obvious tanning: he is a shitty person and a horrible President.
Thankfully, we have an election in November.
@MarkedMan: Back during the ’16 campaign, I came to a similar conclusion about his ‘lifts’. Watching him descend stairs for his airplane made it pretty obvious that he has to hold a bannister to avoid being pitched forward.
Maybe in more ways than you realize. I will give him the benefit of the doubt and surmise that he must be wearing a flak vest or something underneath because he looks very much like any morbidly obese cosplayer that I’d be likely to see at one of the divier taverns in my neighborhood or at Gator’s Guns–the gunsmith about a block away from my apartment. Striking resemblance. Almost eerie.
Of course…Catholics are more reasonable and sensible than evangelicals–God’s Chosen Hypocrites…
Charlatans…if it exists, a special place in hell will be reserved for them…
@Just nutha ignint cracker:
Mattis is reportedly very hostile and contemptuous of him, and that is one of the issues- Mattis thinks it’s undisciplined and unseemly.
@Just nutha ignint cracker: According to WIKI this is an ACU (Army Combat Uniform) which replaces the BDU (Battle Dress Uniform) around 2000. But this is what he wears to meetings in the WH with the President? Was it like business casual day? Is this what the Army wears in the office now?
@gVOR08:
Do not know WH protocol, but I assume standard dress would be Class As for desk duty.
This strikes me cosplay for effect.
Unless my assumption is flat out incorrect it looks and feels banana republic bullshit.
@gVOR08:
A lot old school folks disdain them as “ripstop jammies”.
I like the the look, myself. Especially the Marine pattern.
Afaik, BDU is still common parlance.
@MarkedMan:
Lifts would explain Trump’s rumored aversion to stairs.
Probably took a hard tumble one time and got spooked.
Even if that all is untrue, he is still a laughably insecure overcompensating man.
@de stijl:
He just said he wanted the protesters to leave in tears. He didn’t order tear gas.
Why can’t Trump be a Nazi?
It is interesting to me how much farther ahead Trump has gotten (or been allowed to get) in the 3rd of your images. It makes it feel that much more staged that everybody in his entourage has fallen back to give him that space with the phalanx of armed officers. It also makes his entourage look that much more obsequious.