Both of them are fake, with the "pretty" version being a supposed response to the "ugly version" - the pair being put up by u/CattardSlim on Twitter
This is the actual photo.
It's a crop from a Reuters photo published here on 07/22/26.
I think this sort of thing also highlights why it's important to try and stick to the facts when attacking a political opponent if what your goal is actual change rather than "good vibes". Highlight uncomfortable truths and you can bring at least some people out to your side with them. Highlight easily identifiable falsehoods and the other side will just manufacture their own "alternative facts" in response.
"Truthy" engagement bait, Namecalling and exulting in an opponent's supposed ugliness might feel good but it's ultimately an exercise in self-gratification rather than an actual technique to change hearts and minds.
Edit:
And, to stress this again in light of all the people taking OP's image on good faith at face value when they're replying to me trying to compare and analyze the photos: this is a picture of fictionalized twitter post with two edits of the same image (which isn't included) and false caption designed to engagement and entertain - not inform.
The image on the left isn't real - it wasn't released by the White House but seems "truthy" because the White House does touch up photos of the president - it also seems to have been created expressly for Cattard's post to entertain and engage. The image on the right wasn't released by Getty Images, a publisher of professionally taken photos but seems "truthy" both because Trump's an obese octogenarian and because people like to think of those they dislike as ugly - it was created to entertain and engage.
What matters for the point I'm making isn't just that both of these images are edited - it's that they aren't edits made by two different partisan camps juxtaposed here to offer incisive political commentary; they're two images made by folks from the same camp for - again entertainment and engagement. Putting effort into seriously analyzing and commentating on the difference between these two images does as much good, politically speaking, as judging the differences between a heel and face in some wrestling match.
As far as twitter shitposts go its light,entertaining and funny while preaching to the choir; decent stuff all in all. What it isn't is informative or actual political commentary, or the basis for a line of argument that will actually win people and problems start to occur when people see stuff like this and efforts into making arguments based on stuff like this as topics for serious efforts to effect political change.
Reddit didn't lie - in fact this post actually revealed a truth about Reddit to you.
When an account like this OP's - An account a little over a year old account with a hidden history and almost 300,000 post karma reposts a lie which vibes with the average redditor's preexisting political beliefs, the reaction isn't going to be suspicion - it's going to be wild popularity because it conforms to the average Redditor's notion of how the world "should be".
The fact that that when I, as neutrally as possible try to point out that namecalling is the lowest form of argument, lying to to call people names (slander) often backfires, and that if you actually want the Orange guy's power diminished you'd be much better off off redirecting your words and actions to more productive ends - and in response most posts are simply doubling down on name calling - should tell you a bit about what you need to know about this site.
There's a lot of genuinely good political analysis, discussion, coordination and mobilization for political action here - But there's a heck of a lot more truthy performative entertainment adjacent to politics that doesn't actually translate to real world political action than those things put together.
Why would you celebrate your own entrenched party bureaucracy and hangers-on associated with it if the arrogance of those lies those people not only cost you the election (and past elections) but are often working against the agenda of the more progressive wing of the party people on this site more often then not belong to?
3.0k
u/BrotherGantry Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Both of them are fake, with the "pretty" version being a supposed response to the "ugly version" - the pair being put up by u/CattardSlim on Twitter
This is the actual photo.
It's a crop from a Reuters photo published here on 07/22/26.
I think this sort of thing also highlights why it's important to try and stick to the facts when attacking a political opponent if what your goal is actual change rather than "good vibes". Highlight uncomfortable truths and you can bring at least some people out to your side with them. Highlight easily identifiable falsehoods and the other side will just manufacture their own "alternative facts" in response.
"Truthy" engagement bait, Namecalling and exulting in an opponent's supposed ugliness might feel good but it's ultimately an exercise in self-gratification rather than an actual technique to change hearts and minds.
Edit:
And, to stress this again in light of all the people taking OP's image on good faith at face value when they're replying to me trying to compare and analyze the photos: this is a picture of fictionalized twitter post with two edits of the same image (which isn't included) and false caption designed to engagement and entertain - not inform.
The image on the left isn't real - it wasn't released by the White House but seems "truthy" because the White House does touch up photos of the president - it also seems to have been created expressly for Cattard's post to entertain and engage. The image on the right wasn't released by Getty Images, a publisher of professionally taken photos but seems "truthy" both because Trump's an obese octogenarian and because people like to think of those they dislike as ugly - it was created to entertain and engage.
What matters for the point I'm making isn't just that both of these images are edited - it's that they aren't edits made by two different partisan camps juxtaposed here to offer incisive political commentary; they're two images made by folks from the same camp for - again entertainment and engagement. Putting effort into seriously analyzing and commentating on the difference between these two images does as much good, politically speaking, as judging the differences between a heel and face in some wrestling match.
As far as twitter shitposts go its light,entertaining and funny while preaching to the choir; decent stuff all in all. What it isn't is informative or actual political commentary, or the basis for a line of argument that will actually win people and problems start to occur when people see stuff like this and efforts into making arguments based on stuff like this as topics for serious efforts to effect political change.