Jack White has reacted to the newly unveiled golden statue of Donald Trump in Florida, using the moment to comment on what he believes is one of the “most frustrating” aspects of modern American culture.
The 22 foot sculpture portrays the US president raising his fist into the air, mirroring the gesture Trump made following the assassination attempt during a 2024 rally in Pennsylvania.
The statue was unveiled at Trump’s golf resort in Doral during a ceremony led by Evangelical pastor Mark Burns, who has previously described Trump as someone chosen by divine intervention (according to The Independent).
During the event, the statue was covered with white and blue fabric resembling a Greek toga, while Burns played an audio message from Trump through his phone and microphone setup.
“I want to thank Mark Burns. He’s a good pastor, he’s a good man,” Trump said in the recording. “I’ve known him a long time, he’s been with me right from the beginning, maybe about two days later… I want to thank everybody there. I know it was done from love.”
Earlier this year, sculptor Alan Cottrill told The Times that he agreed to create the bronze statue for $300,000 (£221,800) and personally suggested adding gold leaf to the design, which he described as being received like offering water “to a person dying of thirst”.
Reacting to the sculpture on social media, Jack White criticised what he sees as blind loyalty surrounding the president.
Posting a photo of the statue on Instagram, White wrote: “The most frustrating part of modern American life is the attempt to make sense of people who don’t even CARE that they make no sense at all.”
As noted by Rolling Stone, the former White Stripes frontman was raised Catholic and has a strong familiarity with Judeo Christian teachings, leading some to interpret his comments as a reference to Biblical warnings against false idols.
Burns quickly rejected comparisons between the statue and idol worship. Posting on X/Twitter, he wrote: “Let me be clear: this is not a golden calf. This statue is a celebration of life. It is a symbol of resilience, freedom, patriotism, strength, and the will power to keep fighting for the future of America.”
This is not the first controversial Trump statue to appear during his political career. Previous installations included Best Friends Forever, which portrayed Trump alongside convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and King Of The World, inspired by the famous pose from Titanic.
Both sculptures were created by protest group Secret Handshake and were quickly removed after installation, according to The Independent.
Jack White has repeatedly criticised Trump over the years and recently condemned him for sharing an image depicting himself as Jesus Christ while also verbally attacking Pope Leo.
“How can any so-called Christian support him after this blasphemy? How could any Catholic support him after he attacks the character of their Pope multiple times? How did so many millions of people fall for this conman?” White wrote.
“He’s already got worst President in the history of America on lock, but I’m gonna go ahead and take the honour of pronouncing Trump ‘Worst American of All Time’.”
Before that, White also criticised Trump over military action involving Iran and mocked him for leading the so called Board of Peace.
The musician has previously called for Trump to be removed from office after a racist meme shared on Truth Social depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes. Earlier this year, White also mocked Trump’s rambling anniversary press conference and joined other celebrities in condemning comments Trump made about filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife Michelle.
The singer-songwriter has additionally criticised plans by the Treasury Department to place Trump’s signature on future US paper currency and previously described him as a “manipulative, loophole finding, egomaniacal, conman”.
