President Donald Trump is demanding that Colorado remove a “purposefully distorted” portrait of him hanging in the State Capitol, saying it’s the worst he’s ever seen.
“Nobody likes a bad picture or painting of themselves, but the one in Colorado, in the State Capitol put up by the Governor, along with all other Presidents, was purposefully distorted to a level that even I, perhaps, have never seen before,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “The artist also did President Obama, and he looks wonderful, but the one [of] me is truly the worst. She must have lost her talent as she got older.”
Trump went as far as saying he’d rather not have a portrait at all than have the one currently displayed. He also claimed that many Coloradans have reached out to the state, urging them to remove or replace the painting.
“I am speaking on their behalf to the Radical Left Governor, Jared Polis, who is extremely weak on Crime, in particular with respect to Tren de Aragua, which practically took over Aurora (Don’t worry, we saved it!), to take it down,” Trump wrote. “Jared should be ashamed of himself.”
Trump was referencing the violent Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, which had a reported presence in Aurora, Colorado, last year. He had recently used the Alien Enemies Act to deport nearly 300 alleged members of the gang. The group had reportedly taken over an apartment building, with a video showing armed men at the site just before a shooting incident. Trump visited the area during his campaign to highlight the issue.
In 2018, a political activist placed a portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin where Trump’s should have been in the Capitol, after Republicans struggled to raise the funds to commission Trump’s painting, according to 9News in Denver.
A spokesperson for Governor Jared Polis responded to Trump’s criticism, saying, “Gov. Polis was surprised to learn the President of the United States is an aficionado of our Colorado State Capitol and its artwork. The State Capitol was completed in 1901, and features Rose Onyx and White Yule Marble mined in Colorado, and includes portraits of former Presidents and former governors. We appreciate the President and everyone’s interest in our capitol building and are always looking for any opportunity to improve our visitor experience.”
