Just in time for BYU-Utah rivalry week, Jon McNaughton is selling prints of his latest pro-Donald Trump painting — which depicts the president in a red jersey crossing the goal line as he leaves blue-clad defenders in his wake.
Brigham Young University and the University of Utah have nothing to do with it, of course. Trump is outfitted in red to represent Republicans; the others are in blue to represent Democrats.
The players are painted in vintage football uniforms, complete with leather helmets. “When they played football in the old days they didn’t have face masks,” McNaughton wrote on his web page. “It was a time of blood, guts, and glory. Today’s politics are rough. You have to push hard for everything you get. The field is muddy, and the players can get dirty. But, we have a President that has risen above the rest. The other side hates him and will do anything to destroy him. Try to take him down — think again! He’s going for the goal, another touchdown, SCORE.”
Other than a grimacing Trump, it’s not easy to identify others in the painting. But according to McNaughton, they are Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J.; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; former Vice President Joe Biden; former President Barack Obama; Sen Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.; Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn; Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. The notes on McNaughton’s web page include “Referee and three blue players in the back: Not telling!”
Reactions to “All-American Trump” on McNaughton’s Facebook page range from “I for one admire the man and appreciate what he’s doing more than I can express” and “#45 heading to the Super Bowl, winning for America! Thank you Jon McNaughton!” to “Looks like propaganda straight out of North Korea or Stalin’s USSR” and “Is he grimacing because of the bone spurs?”
(Kim Raff | The Washington Post) After the 2016 election, Jon McNaughton's paintings gained a hero in Donald Trump instead of just a villain in Barack Obama.
The Provo artist’s previous works include Trump on a football field holding an American flag to his chest; Trump — his foot on a snake — standing over a young family nursing a small plant growing out of the cracked ground; and Trump grabbing a fearful-looking special prosecutor Robert Mueller by the tie.
His previous political works include a painting of Obama burning the U.S. Constitution and one titled “Liberalism is a Disease,” showing a group that includes politicians and entertainers behind quarantine tape.
