Trump Does His Best Marie Antoinette Impression for Halloween

Hours before he was set to shut off food stamp benefits to more than 40 million low-income Americans, convicted felon Donald Trump hosted a lavish Great Gatsby-themed Halloween party at his Mar-a-Lago resort in posh Palm Beach, Florida, producing some of the most tone-deaf images ever captured of an American president. Video and photos show a smiling Trump sitting at a table while scantily clad women in glittery 1920s flapper outfits dance around his table.

Trump chats with a guest  dressed in a prison costume at the Mar-a-Lago Gatsby-themed party

Meanwhile, despite two federal judges clearly ordering Trump to continue to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program—better known as food stamps—Trump said it was still unclear to him whether he had the authority to fund the program, and thus he was not yet releasing the funds.  It’s just the latest time Trump has defied court orders to do cruel things.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which runs the SNAP program, also sent a letter to grocery stores that accept SNAP over the weekend saying those stores cannot provide discounts to food stamp recipients to help them pay for their groceries during the lapse in funding.  It shows the Trump administration is okay with following the law—so long as it hurts people they don’t care about.

Just hours before food stamp funding was set to expire, Trump also posted a series of images of a bathroom renovation at the White House, which was refitted with lavish marble and gold fixtures.  Trump also decided that the middle of a government shutdown (when millions of federal workers are being furloughed and worry they won’t be able to feed their families) was a great time to begin construction on a $300 million ballroom at the White House where he can host more of his rich pals for lavish affairs funded by taxpayer dollars. 

Ultimately, the images of Trump at a lavish party while he purposefully cut off food stamps is an absolute gift for Democrats, whose whole message during the month-long government shutdown has been that Trump is more concerned with taking care of himself and his rich pals than the millions of hardworking Americans who are struggling with the cost of living.