Trump cuts new Pence logo from campaign website
It didn’t take long for presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to realize that his new, eyebrow-raising logo might not have been the best move.
By Saturday morning, within a day of its unveiling, the new logo had been ridiculed endlessly on social media, and the Trump campaign had it removed from the official website.
The logo was intended to celebrate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence joining the GOP ticket as Trump’s running mate. But it couldn’t even be seen on the “Donate” page of his website alongside the news of Pence.
The Daily Kos political blog was among the first to notice that the Trump campaign apparently had given up on the new design.
The much-maligned logo, which was introduced Friday, featured an interlaced “T” and “P” in blue, with red and white stripes stretching to the right to represent a stylized U.S. flag.
It was instantly mocked on social media for having the “T” pass through the hole of the “P” in a manner that some considered sexually suggestive. Others joked that “T.P.” stands for toilet paper.
Comedian Samantha Bee, the host of “Full Frontal” and a “Daily Show” alum, shared a GIF on Twitter in which the “T” repeatedly thrusts down into the P, causing the bottom red stripe to bounce up and down. It was captioned, “Breaking the mattress of America.”
Breaking the mattress of America. pic.twitter.com/M4Cq62YS2c
— Full Frontal (@FullFrontalSamB) July 15, 2016
And she wasn’t alone in that interpretation.
or something@JuddLegum pic.twitter.com/0AJJDFqiSp
— darth™ (@darth) July 15, 2016
Still not sure if the #TrumpPence logo is too risque for the #RealAmerica pic.twitter.com/5Ll1AMBExa
— Donnacha Kenny (@TheRealDonnacha) July 15, 2016
That #TrumpPence logo though pic.twitter.com/A2k0dVZT4v
— Declan Cashin (@Tweet_Dec) July 15, 2016
U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., said the new logo represents what a Trump and Pence administration would do to the nation.
This logo accurately represents what Trump Pence will do to America. pic.twitter.com/HQisP8QVzb
— Rep. Alan Grayson (@AlanGrayson) July 15, 2016
Sam Baker, a reporter for the National Journal, joked that the new logo would not be welcome at some pizzerias in Pence’s home state, alluding to the controversial “Religious Freedom Restoration Act,” which he signed into law in March 2015 and which critics said promoted discrimination against LGBT people.
This logo is not welcome in certain Indiana pizzarias pic.twitter.com/GGcH1TXUm3
— Sam Baker (@sam_baker) July 15, 2016
Former Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., also chimed in on the new logo.
What is the T doing to that P? https://t.co/tDvYm2QJYi
— John Dingell (@JohnDingell) July 15, 2016
Several graphic designers said that the logo simply wasn’t well made, even putting aside the sexual undertones people were reading into it.
.@realDonaldTrump This took me 5 minutes. Your graphic designers are somehow more incompetent than you. pic.twitter.com/7inPMN4iUF
— Michael Deppisch (@deppisch) July 15, 2016
Trump and Pence made their debut as running mates in New York on Saturday morning. Trump described Pence as his first choice for making the U.S. a safe and prosperous society.
“I’ve admired the work he’s done, especially in the state of Indiana,” Trump said. “But I also admire the fact that he fights for the people and he’s going to fight for you. He is a solid, solid person.”
He also said one of the reasons he chose Pence was to help unify the Republican Party.
Trump’s logo is not the first from this election cycle to receive widespread ridicule. The exclamation mark in former Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush’s “Jeb!” logo was fodder for many jokes. And some liberals were left scratching their heads when presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton unveiled her campaign logo, which features an arrow pointing to the right — rather than the left.