WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� won reelection months ago and is barred from seeking another term. You might not know it from official White House communications.
Trump and his team have continued the aggressive media strategy they honed during his winning campaign, using crass language, gleefully lashing out at critics and trolling mainstream news organizations.
The approach was on full display this week as White House communications director Steven Cheung used social media to of anti-Trump Republicans by calling it 鈥渢he Cuck Convention鈥� on his . The word, which describes a man who likes to watch his wife have sex with other men, was frequently used during the campaign to insult and emasculate rivals.
On Tuesday, of shackled migrants being loaded onto planes, with the sounds of clanking chains and whirring jet engines in the background. The caption said 鈥淎SMR: Illegal Alien Deportation Flight.鈥�
ASMR stands for 鈥渁utonomous sensory meridian response," a relaxing and pleasurable feeling some people experience from certain sights or sounds. Critics responded by calling the post 鈥渟hameful" and 鈥渋nappropriate" for the White House.
The account also shared with Trump in a golden crown and the caption, 鈥淟ONG LIVE THE KING.鈥� Trump had earlier declared an end to New York City's by making the same declaration.
The posts are outrageous by design.
鈥淭he president was sent back to the Oval Office on a historic mandate to aggressively deliver on the promises he made, and one of the many reasons the American public overwhelmingly support President Trump right now is because he does what he says he was going to do,鈥� said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. 鈥淗e isn鈥檛 afraid to defend his positions, and that鈥檚 our goal with our messaging every day.鈥�
It鈥檚 not a surprise that Trump's campaign tactics have followed him to the White House. Like in other administrations, the West Wing is filled with dozens of former campaign staffers, from the chief of staff to senior communications aides and those who run the White House digital channels.
That includes Cheung, a veteran of Trump鈥檚 three campaigns who also worked for Ultimate Fighting Championship. His insulting social media posts are known around the White House as 鈥渓ove taps.鈥� On Wednesday night aboard Air Force One, Trump told reporters that Cheung is 鈥渁 sweetheart鈥� and 鈥測ou wouldn鈥檛 want to get in a fight with him.鈥�
One White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal thinking, emphasized that the administration pursues multiple kinds of messaging simultaneously. While there may be raw language at times, other communications are more formal and measured.
However, the official said, some social media posts are designed to have shock value. While Trump's supporters are energized, his critics are angry 鈥� and they end up spreading the president's message even further when they express outrage.
An example came on , when the White House posted 鈥渞oses are red, violets are blue, come here illegally and we鈥檒l deport you."
Kaelan Dorr, a deputy communications director, by sharing a list of headlines about the post.
"Media eating up our content like a crazy ex," he wrote. 鈥淎nd the best is yet to come!鈥�
Alex Conant, a Republican strategist with experience on presidential campaigns and the White House, said every administration reflects the president, 鈥渁nd this president is feeling super combative.鈥�
鈥淚 think they think they won in a landslide and have a mandate and are going to punch back really hard at anyone that undermines that feeling," he said.
While most White House teams feel like they are winning when they're not in the headlines, Conant said, Trump is the opposite and 鈥渇eels like he needs to dominate the news every single day."
鈥淭heir posture is always: Be on offense. Never explain. Never apologize. Never defend,鈥� Conant said. "Just flood the zone as much as you can and stay on offense.鈥�
At the same time, the White House has continued other campaign strategies. Trump was the first sitting president in history to attend the Super Bowl earlier this month, and last weekend , where he led drivers on two laps around the track in the heavily armored presidential limousine known as 鈥淭he Beast.鈥�
Trump's campaign used his appearances at UFC fights and football games to or engage with traditional news sources 鈥� a strategy that could continue to bolster his approval ratings as he pursues his White House agenda.
Critics say Trump's approach marks a break from past administrations, which have generally tried to lower the temperature as staff members transition from partisan campaign aides to taxpayer-paid public servants.
Kate Berner, who worked on former President Joe Biden鈥檚 communications team during the 2020 campaign and followed him to the White House, said Biden 鈥渘ever would have allowed us to use language like that" used by current White House officials, even on the campaign trail.
鈥淵ou can communicate aggressively, clearly in the way that real people talk around the country, and not in the way that鈥檚 disrespecting or degrading or something that we wouldn鈥檛 want our kids to mimic," she said.
As for the ASMR post, Berner said, "it鈥檚 just another way that they鈥檙e showing that they鈥檙e focused just on the base and not on being a president for all Americans.鈥�
One frequent target for Trump allies is Rep. Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat who participated in the House Intelligence Committee investigation of Russian election interference several years ago.
鈥淲e were promised cheap eggs. Instead, all we鈥檙e getting is cheap talk and cheap shots,鈥� Swalwell said.
The latest round of sniping came when Swalwell tried to blame Trump for a series of plane crashes since he became president.
Cheung responded with an official statement saying it was 鈥渇alse and disgusting鈥� to suggest the president was at fault. On social media, Cheung added a sexual insult and referenced years ago. Swalwell has previously said he cut off contact with the woman after federal investigators raised concerns.
Ari Fleischer, who served as White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, said aggressive political messaging is nothing new.
He said the Clinton administration embraced 鈥渢he permanent campaign鈥� with aggressive messaging and the tools available at the time, while President Barack Obama used YouTube to release official videos that in another medium might have been seen as government propaganda.
鈥淚 see the Trump White House as a continuation of all of the above. It's just that we鈥檙e in a sharper era," Fleischer said. "Their messages are arguably tougher. But it鈥檚 a continuation of a pattern that began decades ago.鈥�
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Colvin reported from New York.
Chris Megerian And Jill Colvin, The Associated Press
