Trump White House's Attempt To Use A Pokémon Meme Backfires Spectacularly

The meme was quickly turned against the administration.

President Donald Trump’s White House social media team tried to capitalise on a popular new Pokémon meme.

Tweeting from the official account on X, the White House social media team used a meme generator to place Trump’s MAGA slogan into a scene from the new “Pokémon Pokopia” game:

MAGA 🇺🇸⚡️ pic.twitter.com/8QRVP23zGu— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 5, 2026

MAGA 🇺🇸⚡️ pic.twitter.com/8QRVP23zGu

Fans weren’t thrilled.

And neither was The Pokémon Company, which released a statement distancing itself from the memes – although it didn’t mention the Trump administration by name.

“We are aware of recent social content that includes imagery associated with our brand,” company spokesperson Sravanthi Dev told The New York Times. “We were not involved in its creation or distribution, and no permission was granted for the use of our intellectual property. Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda.”

The company issued a similar statement last year when Homeland Security used Pokemon music and images to promote ICE, saying it was “not involved” and did not grant permission.

However, that video remains online.

Soon after the White House posted the latest meme, others used their own takes on that same image to fire back – including the Democratic National Committee, which fired off a message reminding the public of the administration’s attempt to block the release of files related to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was once close friends with Trump:

https://t.co/FHLqGuEjP6 pic.twitter.com/G2jztLzwRH— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) March 5, 2026

https://t.co/FHLqGuEjP6 pic.twitter.com/G2jztLzwRH

Other critics also joined in:

And stop defending pedophiles pic.twitter.com/QgGEeAck2N— James (@James_ENTMT_) March 5, 2026

And stop defending pedophiles pic.twitter.com/QgGEeAck2N

pic.twitter.com/rbfl3ysx6Z— may 爱 (@angelicgirliex) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/rbfl3ysx6Z

pic.twitter.com/KDGfhMeCjE— Zion 🌊🪱 | Tomboy Sea Slug (@ZionZeep) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/KDGfhMeCjE

pic.twitter.com/FLi8NDnrh5— Xachary (@XacharyGG) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/FLi8NDnrh5

pic.twitter.com/CRe4UTYR82— Battra!/VGL58 Eiko's #1 Fan Forever (@CubsVgl) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/CRe4UTYR82

pic.twitter.com/XPjcmmuuq8— Greg 🚭🚯 (@gregalmonte_) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/XPjcmmuuq8

pic.twitter.com/ozBs2HqGh4— DachshundWizard 🧙♂️ (@dachshundwizard) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/ozBs2HqGh4

Notice how the background is the same shape as epstein island pic.twitter.com/XmmIpa1kiY— Omnitrix (@TLOmnitrix) March 5, 2026

Notice how the background is the same shape as epstein island pic.twitter.com/XmmIpa1kiY

pic.twitter.com/R6nXPPJ57m— Jon Russell (@thisjonrussell) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/R6nXPPJ57m

pic.twitter.com/UPWQteOB15— f.₳RT (@cNFTfART) March 5, 2026

pic.twitter.com/UPWQteOB15

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