I remember when I first saw the Homeland Security post to X that had me doing a double-take because I almost didn't believe what I saw. I was brushing my teeth in my bathroom when I saw a Warthog with the Master Chief in the driver's seat and a marine at the gun on the back. Halo stretching into the background.
The copy on the screen read "DESTROY THE FLOOD," and below it was "join.ice.gov."
I actually laughed like Rafiki from The Lion King. I knew this post was going to get one of the largest reactions an administration got from a social media post in the history of social media, and sure enough, I was right. Over 28 million views, and that was just on X alone.
Finishing this fight. pic.twitter.com/6Ezq9NUqMq
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) October 27, 2025
It was absolutely brilliant, because it did two things.
It caused abject rage from leftists, and it made right-leaning people, especially men, feel a massive morale boost. Here was a game we millennials played endlessly in our youth, and here it was being used to promote ICE. It was, to put it bluntly, pretty badass.
And I'm not going to say that it directly led to people signing up for ICE, but the following weeks saw 200,000 applications arriving at the DHS to be a part of it.
"We are not sacrificing training standards or our hiring standards, we’re going to make sure we get best of the best out there." - ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) November 10, 2025
@ICEgov has received OVER 200,000 applications from patriotic Americans to help remove criminal illegal aliens. pic.twitter.com/rkUQ5sdrO0
Whoever is running Trump's administration's accounts is beyond talented at what they do. They're so well connected to the vibe of the nation that they're capable of not just playing to it, but doing so in a way that doesn't look forced, like Hillary Clinton telling everyone to "PokemonGO to the polls."
When the White House team leans into things, they do it in a way that they know will result in media saturation and ultimately result in support.
In fact, here's the White House posting a satirical version of Pokopia, the recent Pokémon game from Nintendo. It was clearly designed to be funny and not be taken seriously at all, but the left couldn't help but get apoplectic about it, only causing Trump's supporters to double down and create their own memes around Pokémon.
Ditto and friends are determined to keep Pokopia safe! pic.twitter.com/mmtWGf8c2z
— Scott Headley (@Scott_Headley) March 5, 2026
I'll give you another example of how they use online jujitsu in such a way that even when it looks like they're defeated, they're just springing a trap.
Back in December, the White House account used a Sabrina Carpenter song to promote ICE, to which Sabrina Carpenter naturally lost her mind about. She would have to in order to maintain her "of the bubble" status among celebrities and make herself seem like she, too, is just as woke as her fans.
🚨 SABRINA CARPENTER rips Trump’s White House for using her song in an “evil and disgusting” video about their “inhumane” anti-immigrant agenda pic.twitter.com/LukUUGUq5D
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) December 2, 2025
The White House would go on to delete the video after it caused an absolute uproar, but this was no victory for Carpenter. First, a White House spox returned fire with a message that was an absolute slap in the face, not just to Carpenter on a surface level, but actually framing her as the type to stand up for murderers and rapists, ending with "Anyone who defends these sick monsters must be stupid, or is it slow?" effectively turning Carpenter's own lyrics against her.
But then the White House posted this.
🎤Biały dom odpowiedział na Tweet Sabriny Carpenter, publikując kontrowersyjne nagranie.
— NA CZASIE (@naczasienews) December 5, 2025
X: WhiteHouse pic.twitter.com/2yrXolYYwj
There hasn't exactly been any word from Carpenter after this, and I can only assume it's because she knows she's not winning the PR battle against this account. It's too good at what it does, and that's use reactions on top of already brilliant posts to boost its own presence and accomplish the administration's goals.
Corporations pay millions and millions of dollars to marketing firms to raise this kind of engagement to strengthen their brand, and they don't get half this kind of ROI. This is relevancy kept consistent through expert manipulation of online chatter. It knows when and what to post, what tone it needs to strike, and does so while not looking try-hard in the process.
Government accounts used to be something you followed to get up-to-date info on goings on within the administration or, at the very least, see what propaganda they're spraying to the masses, but under Trump, these accounts are must-see entertainment.
Whoever is running them understood Andrew Breitbart's assignment. Culture is upstream of politics, and they're using culture to bend politics like masters.
