The White House attempted to turn the moment when President Trump needed to be told how to announce a Middle East ceasefire into a petty attack on Joe Biden.
Trump was mocked after being handed a note by Secretary of State Marco Rubio during an Oval Office meeting on Wednesday, telling him that a social media post had been written in his name so he could claim credit for the deal between Israel and Hamas.
The missive, spotted by AP’s chief photographer, Evan Vucci, read, “We need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first.”
Trump then told the assembled media, “OK, I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying we’re very close to a deal in the Middle East and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly.”
On Thursday, the White House posted a picture of the moment on its official X account, alongside a photograph of then-President Joe Biden being handed a note during a 2021 meeting that read, “Sir, there is something on your chin.”
The snarky caption read: “We are not the same.”
The top image shows Biden in July 2021 reading a card an aide slipped him during a meeting on wildfires. Photographers captured the card’s text at the time, in an embarrassing moment then reported by the media.
The lower images show Trump clutching paper at a table and another of Rubio whispering in his ear.
The White House is gaining a reputation for trolling its opponents.
During the shutdown, Trump aides rewrote furloughed workers’ auto-replies to read like campaign broadsides, slamming opponents and promoting Trump’s agenda.
The White House comment line was also converted into a trolling stunt under Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, with callers funneled to a prerecorded message that needled Democrats.
Leavitt even used the official press room podium to mock Biden’s stamina, quipping before he made a primetime address in April that she was surprised the former president, 82, was speaking so late because she “thought his bedtime was much earlier.”
The Trump administration’s latest trolling of Biden came as Israel and Hamas signed the first phase of a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire, clearing the way for a pause in fighting within 24 hours and a staged hostage-prisoner exchange.
Israel’s cabinet approved the package after talks in Egypt, while Hamas officials say they received mediator guarantees—including from the U.S.—that the war will end if the phased plan is completed.
Phase one requires Hamas to release roughly 20 living hostages and transfer the remains of others within 72 hours of the truce starting, while Israel begins repositioning forces and frees large numbers of Palestinian detainees.
Public tallies of Palestinian detainees vary. One outline cites all women and children plus 250 long-term prisoners and about 1,700 others arrested during the war, while another summary puts the total at about 2,000.
Humanitarian aid is slated to surge and the Egypt-Gaza crossing to reopen. Washington has said about 200 U.S. troops will help monitor and support implementation.
Mediators include the U.S., Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey. Key end-state issues—Hamas’ disarmament, Israeli withdrawal logistics, interim governance and reconstruction—remain to be hammered out in later phases.
While the deal offers hope, success still depends on follow-through by all parties and volatile Israeli domestic politics.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
