President Donald Trump complained last month about a portrait of him hanging in the Gallery of Presidents in the Colorado Senate building’s rotunda. He said it was “truly the worst” and claimed his image had been “purposefully distorted.”
Trump wrote on social media: “In any event, I would much prefer not having a picture than having this one, but many people from Colorado have called and written to complain.” He added, “In fact, they are actually angry about it!” (The painting was removed.)
BREAKING: Trump is having a full-blown meltdown on Truth Social—this time over a painting of him displayed at the Colorado State Capitol. He’s lashing out at the governor, claiming the portrait is “distorted.”
It’d be a real shame if everyone saw it… and shared it. pic.twitter.com/NS8iSr4pjs
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) March 24, 2025
On April Fool’s Day, Democratic Governor Jared Polis posted a cartoonish image of himself in a gilded frame hanging on the wall of a state building in Colorado (see below) and wrote: “No one likes an unflattering photo or painting of themselves, which is why I went in a different direction for my official portrait.”
No one likes an unflattering photo or painting of themselves, which is why I went in a different direction for my official portrait. I’ve always been proud to support Colorado art, and this portrait was an exciting opportunity to do exactly that while embedding my image into the… pic.twitter.com/SO6YIsuyg4
— Governor Jared Polis (@GovofCO) April 1, 2025
Polis added: “I’ve always been proud to support Colorado art, and this portrait was an exciting opportunity to do exactly that while embedding my images into the fabric of Colorado’s history. I’m proud of the final product and want to thank the artists for their artistic vision, and personally feel that I have never looked better.”
MAGA supporters are upset with Polis’s post, as one replied: “This is embarrassing and a bad attempt to make Trump look bad.” Another wrote: “Yes, because every state wants to be governed by a chronic festival attendee who sees himself as a cartoon.”
Commenters in the anti-Trump camp are noting that Polis’s post is an April Fool’s Day joke and are gloating over its effects on MAGA, suggesting that the President’s movement is suffering from a version of Polis Derangement Syndrome, or PDS.
As one replied: “The maga meltdown on this April Fools Day in response to @GovofCO brilliant mockery of their megalomaniac Clown-in-Chief just goes to show that they really are #MAGACultMorons.”
The commentary seems to provide ample evidence that despite various calls by lawmakers to lower the political temperature, things are only getting hotter in the American body politic during the early days of Trump 2.0.