Trump retweets White House photo of him fiddling, says he doesn't know 'what this means'
If anybody else had tweeted a doctored photo of President Trump playing the fiddle as the new coronavirus spreads throughout the U.S. and wreaks havoc on the U.S. and global economies, the White House would probably protest vociferously. When White House social media director Dan Scavino tweeted out such a photo, saying Trump's next tune is "Nothing can stop what's coming," though, Trump retweeted it with the message: "Who knows what this means, but it sounds good to me!'"
Trump, of course, wasn't playing the violin over the weekend — he was playing golf at his private club in Florida. And since historical and cultural references to leaders fiddling are scarce, especially in times of disaster, lots of people on social media had no problem identifying what they believed the meme meant. Some were curious why Scavino tweeted it, however, or why Trump retweeted it.
Scavino is a federal employee — not a member of Trump's campaign, despite his normal posts — so maybe he's trying to warn Americans about the mood in the White House. Whatever it means, it sounds good to Trump. Which is another way of saying: Wash your hands thoroughly for 20 seconds with soap, and try not to touch your face.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
How Maga fell out of love with beerIn The Spotlight Right-wingers in the US have boycotted beverage brands that fell foul of culture war, and now some are going fully sober
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Bad Bunny headlining the Super Bowl thrills and ranklesIN THE SPOTLIGHT The Puerto Rican superstar’s upcoming halftime performance has fans ecstatic, even as some conservatives gripe
-
One Battle After Another: a ‘terrifically entertaining’ watchThe Week Recommends Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest release is a ‘high-octane action thriller’ and a ‘surefire Oscar frontrunner’
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees



