Washington (AFP) – Washington politics watchers did a double take Thursday at pictures showing Donald Trump in front of a presidential seal manipulated to make the eagle resemble Russia’s two-headed version.
In another humorous barb, the seal, displayed behind Trump at a speech he gave earlier this week, had the eagle clutching golf clubs instead of arrows.
The large prank seal was projected onto a white background behind Trump as he addressed a right-wing student group, Turning Point USA, on Tuesday. However, no one noticed the changes to the otherwise authentic-looking design until The Washington Post ran a story Thursday.
The transformation of the usual American bald eagle into the Russian version, which looks in two directions at once, may have been meant to poke fun at Trump’s controversial Moscow links.
The golf clubs, held in the talons of bird’s left foot, could refer to Trump’s passion for playing the sport — and his ownership of courses around the world.
The Post reported that Turning Point USA and White House officials could not explain the glitch, which could have been the result of a deliberate prank or simply unintentional use of a bogus seal marketed online by anti-Trump website OneTermDonnie.