Staff Reports
On September 24, 2025 President Donald Trump unveiled a new “Presidential Walk of Fame” along the West Wing colonnade and — as promised — placed a photograph of an autopen where Joe Biden’s official portrait would traditionally hang, a deliberate rebuke that the mainstream media is already trying to gaslight into a scandal. This was small-state theater with a very big message: the White House belongs to the American people, not to the prestige of a cable-news narrative.
The installation features black-and-white presidential images in gilded frames, but Biden’s slot features an autopen image — an unmistakable jab at questions conservatives have raised about the former administration’s transparency and signature practices. The display was personally curated and touted by the White House, so there’s no mystery about the intent behind the choice.
Trump didn’t hide that he was going to do this; he openly told interviewers weeks ago that he would “put up a picture of the autopen,” so the staged outrage today is theater from the same partisan press that ignored bigger issues. For voters who watched the last years closely, this is a symbolic correction — a reminder that presidents answer to citizens, not the giddy reverence of legacy outlets.
As expected, the credentialed shriekers on television responded with breathless denunciations about decorum and dignity while studiously avoiding the actual questions at issue. The same networks that cheered for permanent Washington’s rituals suddenly discover scandal when a political outsider decides to dismantle those rituals for the sake of accountability.
Meanwhile, the internet did exactly what it always does: it roared. Conservatives and ordinary Americans flooded social platforms with praise for a president who can still rile the swamp, while the left churned out predictable think pieces and moralizing takes. The White House even amplified the rollout by posting video of the display, turning the media hissy fits into free advertising for the point Trump wanted to make.
This isn’t merely trolling for trolling’s sake. It’s a political statement that leaders will no longer be insulated from scrutiny by taboos and tradition. If Democrats want to scream about taste, they should first explain why they never answered straightforward questions about signature practices and accountability when those questions were raised.
Let the critics clutch their pearls and call it petty. The rest of us recognize a leader who understands optics and isn’t afraid to use them to defend the truth. Patriots should be proud of a president who will stand up to the managerial class and remind Washington that symbols matter and the people are watching.
