‘That was Photoshop?’: Donald Trump proves completely incapable of spotting obviously edited photo

For better or worse (generally worse), Donald Trump is the leader of the free world. With a swipe of his pen he can remove rights from millions of people, a Truth Social post can crater the stock market, and one phone call from him can unleash nuclear armageddon.

All of which means it’s deeply disturbing that Trump apparently cannot spot when an image has been very obviously edited, and even when it’s repeatedly pointed out and explained to him will insist it’s real. The revelation came via an interview with ABC News’ Terry Moran in which the ongoing case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia was discussed.

This is the hand of the man that the Democrats feel should be brought back to the United States, because he is such “a fine and innocent person.” They said he is not a member of MS-13, even though he’s got MS-13 tattooed onto his knuckles, and two Highly Respected Courts found… pic.twitter.com/31sNr2k1SK

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 18, 2025

Trump repeatedly claimed Garcia has “MS-13” tattooed on his knuckles, holding up a photograph that shows various symbols tattooed on his fingers. The Trump White House claims these symbols are code for “MS-13” and, as such, someone has superimposed the letters “MS-13” above them. Trump, incredibly, believes he actually has MS-13 tattooed on his hands. Moran tries to explain, but Trump apparently can’t grasp the concept of an edited image:

TRUMP: He had MS-13 on his knuckles, tattooed!

MORAN: That was photoshopped

TRUMP: Terry, they're giving you the big break of a lifetime. I picked you. But you're not being very nice. pic.twitter.com/NgCpEB8o1S

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 30, 2025

It’s worryingly common for older people to become confused as to whether images are real or not – just take a peek at the reactions to crushingly obvious AI slop posted to Facebook if you don’t believe me. But while those people are generally confused older internet users, Trump is literally the leader of the free world. If he believes this image is real, you wonder what other obviously fake images he believes in?

The cherry on top is that the symbols on Garcia’s fingers aren’t even code for “MS-13”. Snopes confirms that “Abrego Garcia’s tattoos did not match known MS-13 tattoos” and that an ICE source they spoke to confirmed he had “never heard of those resemblances being made”. Presumably, if someone had edited the letters “MAGA” onto his knuckles instead of “MS-13” Garcia would be on the first flight back to the United States and a parade held in his honor.

But, sadly, the objective truth and literal reality of a situation don’t count for much in the Trump White House. The President is incapable of admitting fault and knows that if he just lies enough his lapdop followers will shrug and ignore the facts staring them in the face.