Overview

• The Republican Party’s official X account on August 3 posted a doctored birthday greeting for Vice President J.D. Vance using a photo from his Inauguration Day arrival at the U.S. Capitol.
• Digital retouching slimmed Vance’s waistline and removed his thumb while blurring flag stars and misaligning his right arm.
• Observers quickly compared the altered image to the original shot and highlighted the glaring editing glitches.
• Social media users mocked the inauthentic picture as embarrassing and accused the administration of valuing optics over honesty.
• This episode follows earlier instances of GOP photo alterations of Vance, underscoring a broader pattern of political branding through image manipulation.