Donald Trump was able to win the 2016 election in part by positioning himself, despite all evidence to the contrary, that he was a man of the people. That he achieved this status despite literally every single thing about him is still the subject of much debate, but a new photograph taken during his trip to Saudi Arabia, encapsulates why Trump's "populist appeal" was always bullshit.
The photo depicts Trump placing his hand on a glowing globe at the opening of the Global Center for Combating Extremism in Riyadh, flanked by First Lady Melania Trump, Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi. The inclusion of these two leaders gives the picture an irony, thanks to their own extremism: Saudi Arabia is a chief financier of Wahhabism, an ultraconservative interpretation of Islam that encourages terrorism around the world and represses its citizens. el-Sisi led a military coup in 2014 against Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, and won an election amid accusations of rigging, while protestors were routinely "disappeared" by government forces.
Of course, you don't need to know any of that to recognize the picture's cartoonish creepiness. So naturally, Twitter went to town yesterday on it. Check out some of the best ones below.