The White House ripped off Game of Thrones in a new social media video that transformed the Resolute Desk into the Iron Throne — using the fantasy reference to declare order restored in the nation’s capital.
The minute-long video, posted to X on Monday, spoofs the iconic Game of Thrones opening sequence, with the realm of Westeros swapped out for Washington, D.C. The HBO show’s ominous, minor-key melody plays over the visuals.
“THE CAPITAL: RESTORED,” the White House captioned the video. “Order restored. The capital reclaimed.”
The video depicts various parts of Washington rendered like clockwork, including architectural features that have been restored by the Trump administration as a part of its beautification campaign. Among them is the cascading fountain in Meridian Hill Park, where water began flowing again earlier this year for the first time since 2019.
Other fountains touched by the administration’s restoration campaign, including those at Dupont Circle and beside Union Station, are also featured.
Conspicuously missing, however, is one of Trump’s most expensive restoration efforts: the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. The $16 million project has been dogged by problems — including algae blooms and peeling sections of its newly installed liner.
As the video nears its close, the camera glides toward the White House and into the Oval Office, where the presidential seal on the carpet has been replaced by the sigil of House Targaryen.
The Resolute Desk then morphs into the Iron Throne — the seat fashioned from swords from which a monarch rules in the HBO series.
The suggestion that President Donald Trump wields — or aspires to wield — the unchecked power of a king is hardly new.
Last year, the White House circulated a fake Time magazine cover depicting the Republican president in a golden crown alongside the headline: “Long live the king.” Trump also shared a seemingly AI-generated video of himself piloting a jet emblazoned with the words “King Trump” and dropping excrement on protesters. He has, meanwhile, repeatedly floated the prospect of seeking an unconstitutional third term.
The White House’s communications strategy has also leaned on pop-culture imagery. Earlier this month, it posted a video likening ICE agents to Spider Man, with detainees shown ensnared in webs. And last year, capitalizing on a social-media trend, the White House shared a Studio Ghibli-style illustration of a detained migrant.
HBO has previously pushed back against Trump using imagery from Game of Thrones. In 2018, the president posted “Sanctions are coming” on Twitter, seemingly referencing the show’s “Winter is coming” tagline. The font appeared similar to that used by the show.
“We were not aware of this messaging and would prefer our trademark not be misappropriated for political purposes,” HBO said in response
