Backlash to Trump mug shot is growing, particularly among black men

Intoxicated by the thrill of humiliating former President Donald Trump for the fourth time, Democrats opted to take and release a mug shot following his arrest in Fulton County, Georgia . It was a serious miscalculation, and the realization of this foolish, unforced error is just beginning to sink in.

Perhaps the most immediate consequence of this colossal blunder was that it instantly catapulted Trump to “legend” status in the eyes of the black men who lined the street as his motorcade wound its way to the Fulton County Jail last week. They see the mug shot as a symbol of “the man” sticking it to “the people,” a feeling with which they are intimately familiar.

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On Friday, rappers Chief Keef and Lil Pump showed their support for Trump on social media. Lil Pump posted his own mug shot next to Trump’s on Instagram with the caption, “Free Trump.” Chief Keef posted a photo of Trump flashing a gang symbol, saying, “he good in da hood,” and predicted that if Trump ever gets convicted, he would “run the prison.”

In a video that’s since gone viral on X (formerly Twitter), @TONYxTwo told a reporter: “Yes. … Look what happened to Martha Stewart. She caught that felony. She goes to all the cookouts. With Snoop Dog. She is endorsed. … Bro, Trump is a brother now. You go to jail in Zone 6 in Atlanta, you’re [inaudible]. They f***** up. N***** like n***** that went to jail. They believe in that s***. …”

Podcaster and convicted felon Antoine Tucker shared a message of his own: “I want to say to the new world order and to the illuminati: Thank you very much for being stupid, dumb, mother f******. We appreciate the fact that you keep elevating my guy, Donnie, to Teflon Don. And as you seen his caravan ride through the hood, and you seen all the love he got, when I tell you I speak for the hood, I tell you this sincerely. We don’t like you anyway. We don’t like the government. The guy be f****** over the black race for the longest. And we watch you f*** with the only man that’s ever offered black people anything. This n**** want to give us $500 billion, you want to lock the n**** up.”

Social media influencer @ImMeme0 said , “If that n**** Trump gets convicted of this crime, and can still run for president, I’m voting for his a**. I’m voting for that n****. I’m voting for him.”

According to data website Statista , Trump won 12% of the black vote in 2020, compared to President Joe Biden’s 87%. But national polls conducted this month (before the mug shot) showed Trump’s support has grown significantly among this group, while Biden’s has markedly shrunk.

A Fox News poll conducted between Aug. 11-14 found that only 61% of black voters support Biden compared to 20% who back Trump. Likewise, a Quinnipiac poll released on Aug. 16 showed Biden with the support of 73% of black voters, compared to Trump, with 20%. Several other polls have shown similar results, according to the Messenger .

It’s important to note that just a small percentage gain in support among this important group could turn the election. Perhaps that’s why, after the initial excitement of finally releasing a mug shot of their nemesis wore off, liberals began to grasp the enormity of their error. And naturally, they’re blaming it on Trump.

In a piece titled “The Mugshot Is a Warning,” the Atlantic’s Megan Garber wrote : “Donald Trump’s booking photo was supposed to be an exercise in humility. He turned it into a threat. … In the portrait — it is a portrait, in the end — Trump glares directly into the camera. He seethes. He glowers. He turns in a studied performance. Photos like this are typically exercises in enforced humility. Trump’s is a display of ongoing power. He treats his mugshot as our menace.”

In an equally tone-deaf article, CNN’s Stephen Collinson explained : “Trump has weaponized every aspect of his legal struggle to supercharge the cult of victimization and vengeance that drives his political appeal. Trump quickly posted his booking photo to his Truth Social network, and used it to return to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. His campaign is already plastering it everywhere — likely to help raise the cash he’s spending on his defense and turning his shame into a new kind of power, in another affront to the justice system.”

He notes, “For any other politician, a mugshot would be the end. For Trump, it’s a springboard.”

Unable to resist another opportunity to humiliate Trump, the Democrats may have just triggered a chain reaction they are powerless to stop. And it will hurt them.

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Elizabeth Stauffer is a contributor to the Washington Examiner, Power Line, and AFNN and a fellow at the Heritage Foundation Academy. She is a past contributor to RedState, Newsmax, the Western Journal, and   Bongino.com . Her articles have appeared on RealClearPolitics, MSN, the Federalist, and many other sites. Please follow Elizabeth on   Twitter  or  LinkedIn .