{"id":2520,"date":"2026-06-30T21:38:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T21:38:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520"},"modified":"2026-06-30T21:38:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T21:38:57","slug":"white-house-dunces-dont-seem-to-know-what-the-national-anthem-is-about-analysis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520","title":{"rendered":"White House ‘dunces’ don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

On Tuesday afternoon, the White House shared a meme<\/u> that has many scratching their heads. According to some, the post suggests that the White House fundamentally doesn\u2019t understand what the National Anthem is about.<\/p>\n

Read more What happens when forced Bible reading backfires<\/a><\/p>\n

Around 4pm, the White House account posted an image of the painting \u201cWriting the Declaration of Independence, 1776\u201d by American painter Jean Leon Gerome Ferris. It portrays a trio of Founding Fathers laboring on the document, over which someone has applied the stanza \u201cwhat so proudly we hailed at the twilight\u2019s last gleaming.\u201d While the original painting is in a lighter tone of daylight, someone has increased the contrast on the post image to give it a sense that the sun is setting. \u201cMoments that define America,\u201d the post declares. \u201cA nation built on freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t know why I\u2019m bothering to point this out,\u201d responded longtime Republican insider Bill Kristol<\/u>, \u201cbut the ‘twilight\u2019s last gleaming, or for that matter the dawn\u2019s early light,’ don\u2019t refer to Philadelphia in 1776.\u201d<\/p>\n

As one poster noted<\/u>, \u201cDoes anyone want to tell Trump that the star spangled banner was written long after the signing of the declaration and was about the war of 1812, not the revolutionary war?\u201d<\/p>\n

Or as another put it more concisely<\/u>, \u201cDon\u2019t think those words are in the declaration, ya dunces.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Trump is screaming another coup out loud: analysis<\/a><\/p>\n

While there is a humorous element to the White House\u2019s social media slip, it\u2019s also evocative of the \u201cahistorical\u201d nature of President Donald Trump\u2019s administration. Speaking on Monday, renowned American documentarian Ken Burns<\/u> argued that the Founding Fathers \u201cwould be stunned by someone who seems completely ahistorical, completely disinterested in learning. And I think that would be shocking to them. They would be upset at the brazen self-promotion that takes place daily.\u201d According to Burns, Trump and his allies aren\u2019t interested in celebrating history, but would rather see it \u201cabbreviated\u201d to suit their ideological agenda.<\/p>\n

Trump and the wider MAGA movement have displayed this desire to reshape historical narrative in a variety of ways, from seizing control of the country\u2019s top history museum \u2014 the Smithsonian<\/u> \u2014 to strictly controlling school reading lists and adding the Bible<\/u> to curricula, and more. And while the administration has attempted to draw parallels between Trump and George Washington by hanging massive banners of their faces side-by-side<\/u> on government buildings, some have suggested that the president aspires to follow in the footsteps of a very different kind of historical leader. <\/p>\n

For example, in the recent tell-all book Regime Change, it was revealed that Trump is obsessed with comparing himself to some of history\u2019s most notorious mass killers<\/u>, such as Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Adolf Hitler. According to the book, Trump once showed the authors a document explaining why he is more powerful than these and other genocidal figures. The document was written not by a historian, but by his friend\u2019s golf caddy. <\/p>\n

Read more Trump official bashes host after being fact-checked in real time<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Tuesday afternoon, the White House shared a meme that has many scratching their heads. According to some, the post suggests that the White House fundamentally doesn\u2019t understand what the National Anthem is about.Around 4pm, the White House account posted an image of the painting \u201cWriting the Decl…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1654,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nWhite House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"White House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On Tuesday afternoon, the White House shared a meme that has many scratching their heads. According to some, the post suggests that the White House fundamentally doesn\u2019t understand what the National Anthem is about.Around 4pm, the White House account posted an image of the painting \u201cWriting the Decl...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next Address America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\"},\"headline\":\"White House ‘dunces’ don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520\"},\"wordCount\":537,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520\",\"name\":\"White House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?p=2520#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"White House ‘dunces’ don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Next Address America\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextaddressamerica.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"White House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"White House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America","og_description":"On Tuesday afternoon, the White House shared a meme that has many scratching their heads. According to some, the post suggests that the White House fundamentally doesn\u2019t understand what the National Anthem is about.Around 4pm, the White House account posted an image of the painting \u201cWriting the Decl...","og_url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520","og_site_name":"Next Address America","article_published_time":"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3"},"headline":"White House ‘dunces’ don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis","datePublished":"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520"},"wordCount":537,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520","name":"White House 'dunces' don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis - Next Address America","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-30T21:38:57+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/8bb608ab23df9fd4ac099b2f134c2630.webp","width":1200,"height":600},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?p=2520#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"White House ‘dunces’ don\u2019t seem to know what the National Anthem is about: analysis"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/","name":"Next Address America","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a4840e0eb2094ec31aed2107d53108b3","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com"],"url":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2520"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2520\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextaddressamerica.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}