President Donald Trump's administration made an unexpected debut on the social media platform Bluesky on Friday, releasing a video that has since gone viral. Bluesky, which originated as a Twitter project in 2019 under Jack Dorsey's leadership, has become known as a decentralized network and gained popularity among left-leaning users, particularly after Elon Musk acquired Twitter.
The White House's post was a campaign-style video that highlighted President Trump's tenure, including international diplomacy such as the Israel-Gaza peace agreement. In the video, President Trump is heard saying, "My fellow Americans, our movement is far from over. In fact, our fight has only just begun. We are one movement, one people, one family, a glorious nation under God.”
Also featured in the video were achievements like the signing of the "Big Beautiful Bill," which fulfilled several of President Trump's key campaign promises, according to Trending Politics. The video took a turn when it humorously announced the renaming of the "Gulf of Mexico" to the "Gulf of America" and included the phrase "Daddy's Home," followed by a sequence of memes, some of which were satirical takes on political events and figures on the left.
The video's soundtrack, Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit In The Sky," accompanied the visuals, which seemed designed to provoke a strong reaction. Indeed, the response from Bluesky users was swift and severe, as many of them decried the video as "fascist propaganda" and accused the administration of "mocking democracy."
This interaction on Bluesky is not without precedent. Vice President JD Vance had joined the platform in June and faced a temporary ban, which Bluesky later called a "mistake." In his initial post, Vance stated, "Hello Bluesky, I’ve been told this app has become the place to go for common sense political discussion. So I’m thrilled to be here to engage with all of you." He also shared a quote from Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas regarding a controversial law in Tennessee.
The platform has come under criticism for its handling of conservative voices and for the reaction of some users to the assassination of conservative figure Charlie Kirk. Bluesky had pledged to "crack down on violent rhetoric," but critics argue that the issue has persisted.
The strategic decision by the White House to join and post on Bluesky appears to be a deliberate move to challenge the platform's ideological homogeneity. The rapid and intense backlash from Bluesky's community serves to underscore the current polarized state of political discourse on social media.
