It seems just yesterday that a smart, genuine, and down-to-earth family occupied the residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Ahh, the good ole' days…back before Russian hacking controversies dominated the airwaves and unhinged presidential Tweets became the new normal.
The Obama legacy will be equally weighted by the signature achievements accomplished during his two-term presidency and the unprecedented swag factor that Michelle, Sasha, Malia, Mrs. Robinson, Bo and Sunny brought to the White House. Obama era nostalgia is real out here.
Lucky for us, White House photographer Pete Souza was right there, camera in hand, capturing the most candid, natural and priceless moments of the Obama presidency. So what has Mr. Souza been up to since the former first family vacated their post? Well, it seems that while the Obama's have been out here thriving and living their best post-presidency lives, the former first photographer has picked up a little hobby of his own. To our savage pleasure and petty delight, Mr. Souza is out here on Instagram lowkey wildin,' trolling every disastrous Trump headline with perfectly timed Obama posts highlighting the polar contrast between the two Presidents.
We've rounded up a few of his most classic Instagram ethers proving that Pete Souza is the official First Photographer of Petty:
Exhibit A: Comey
During his recent testimony before the Senate intelligence committee former FBI Director James Comey revealed his trepidations about the integrity of President Trump, essentially indicating that he felt threatened and uncomfortable by the President's requests to meet alone, as this was not customary. Following Comey's testimony, Mr. Souza shadily took to the gram with a photo of POTUS44 and the former FBI Director, non-creepily chopping it up in a room full of people.
Exhibit B: Holding Hands
You don't have to be a clairvoyant to see that Melania wants no parts of her husband's awkward public displays of affection. During the Trump's first international trip, the First Lady made headlines when she aggressively snatched away from her husband's tiny hand. On the day of the hand swat heard 'round the world, our boy Pete took to Instagram with a photo of the Obama's simply captioned, "holding hands." Petty.
Exhibit C: Being Respectful
In April, Trump invited Sarah Paulin, Kid Rock, and Ted Nugent (who is on record for referring to President Obama as a "piece of sh**" and a "subhuman mongrel") to the White House. When the trio mockingly posed in front of a photo of former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, cousin Pete wasted no time clapping back with a photo of Obama conducting business, like an adult, beneath a portrait of Republican President Ronald Reagan. The caption: "Being respectful." Where's the lie?
Exhibit D: Tweeter-In-Chief
While Obama was the first President to fully leverage social media, Trump has taken this platform to new lows. A fact that Mr. Souza couldn't resist highlighting in this not so subtle post. #Hardcorial
Exhibit E: A True Diplomat
During his first meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, photographers asked Trump and Merkel to shake hands, as is customary for such photo ops. Even after Merkel leaned in to quietly ask, “Do you want to have a handshake?," Trump refused. Ya'll know cousin Pete was not about to let it ride. Thuglife.
Exhibit F: First Pitch
When President Trump broke with a century-long tradition by declining the Washington Nationals’ invitation to throw out the first pitch on Opening Day, cousin Pete hit us with this throwback.
Exhibit G: The Paris Agreement
When President Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Paris climate accord, Souza posted this photo of the document signed by Obama with a fitting caption, "He tried. But we failed our children." Facts.
Exhibit H: The Pope Be Knowin'
When Donald Trump visited the Vatican it was crystal clear that Pope Francis was not here for it. In photos and live footage of the event, his holy realness found it impossible to disguise his disdain for the demagogue. You know cousin Pete was just waiting to floss this one for The Gram.
Pete Souza has time y'all. We salute you sir, for the constant reminder that this ish right here, will never be normal. On behalf of concerned citizens everywhere, we hereby acknowledge Pete Souza as Chief Petty Officer First Class and vow to fix his plate at every cookout henceforth and forever more. Keep running those receipts cousin. We're here for it.
Want more articles by Ebony F? Sign up for Blavity’s daily newsletter.
