Don't buy claims Trump runs a White House MAGA gift shop
The photo showed Trump, Zelenskyy, Macron and an unidentified man in front of a shelf of neatly arranged hats and other items. The hats bore slogans including "Make America Great Again," "Trump 2028," "4 More Years" and "Gulf of America." "Make America Great Again" was a term popularized by Trump during his first and second presidential election campaigns.
One X user whose post had more than 600,000 views at the time of this writing posted the photo with the caption, "Embarrassing….Trump showed Zelenskyy and Macron his MAGA gift shop at the White House"
(X user @WUTangKids)
The claim that the photo depicted Trump showing off a gift shop also circulated on Facebook (archived), Threads (archived), Instagram (archived) and Bluesky (archived). Snopes readers wrote in to ask if the claim was true.
The photo of Trump, Zelenskyy and Macron was authentic and originally posted (archived) to X by Margo Martin, one of Trump's communications advisers. Martin identified Macron, who stood with his back to the camera in the photo.
However, we found no evidence to support the accompanying claim that hat Trump was running a MAGA gift shop out of the White House. It was unclear where exactly Martin took the photo, though official photographs from the Aug. 18, 2025, meeting indicated that the leaders met at the White House.
The Trump Organization, Trump's business managed by his sons Eric and Donald Jr., has an online merchandise store as of this writing that sells some of the items seen in Martin's photo, though the company does not appear to have a White House branch. The White House does have an official gift shop that supports injured Secret Service members and charitable causes. That shop does not sell hats like the ones seen in Martin's photo.
Snopes contacted the White House to ask if Martin's photo showed a MAGA gift shop inside the White House as social media users claimed, and we await a reply.
The Aug. 18, 2025, meeting with European leaders and Zelenskyy was not the first time Trump showed off the collection of merch to guests visiting the White House.
Trump hosted Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the White House on Aug. 8, 2025, as the pair signed a joint declaration of peace in the long-running conflict between the countries.
Shortly thereafter, a video (archived) circulated online that featured Trump showing off the same collection of merch from Martin's photo to Aliyev. In the footage, Trump handed one item to Aliyev saying it was "for your wife." After showing off his "Trump 2028" and "4 More Years" hats, Trump gestured toward the video recorder and said, "Fellas, grab what you want, it's OK."
The video from Aliyev's visit appeared to indicate that Trump kept a stock of his merch to give to guests as gifts rather than to run an official store.
"Trump 2028" and "4 More Years" were references to Trump's previous indications that he would like to run for a third term despite the Constitution's 22nd Amendment that barred any person from being "elected to the office of the President more than twice."
Trump told NBC in March 2025 that "A lot of people want me to do it," referring to running for a third term and that "There are methods which you could do it." During a CNBC interview on Aug. 6, 2025, Trump said he would "probably not" run again though "I'd like to."
Trump further told Aliyev on Aug. 8, 2025, while holding a "Trump 2028" hat, "Everybody wants me to run."
"45 | 47 Collection." Trump Store, https://www.trumpstore.com/collections/45-47/.
94 Trump Zelenskyy Macron Photos & High Res Pictures - Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com/search/2/image?family=editorial&phrase=trump%20zelenskyy%20macron&sort=newest&specificpeople=118600%2C9899223%2C21397582&phraseprocessing=excludenaturallanguage. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
"CNBC Transcript: President of the United States Donald Trump Speaks with CNBC's 'Squawk Box' Today." CNBC, 5 Aug. 2025, https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/05/cnbc-transcript-president-of-the-united-states-donald-trump-speaks-with-cnbcs-squawk-box-today-.html.
Donald J. Trump Collectibles & Gifts | Official White House Gift Shop. https://www.whitehousegiftshop.com/45th-President-of-the-United-States-Donald-J-Trump-Gifts-s/2419.htm. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
KINNARD, MEG. "The White House Says It's a 'fact' That the Gulf of Mexico Has Been Renamed. Is That Right?" AP News, 7 Jan. 2025, https://apnews.com/article/trump-gulf-of-mexico-bc438f4feca1234475a1adef99344da7.
KULLAB, SAMYA, and JOHN LEICESTER. "European Leaders to Join Ukraine's Zelenskyy for Meeting with Trump." AP News, 17 Aug. 2025, https://apnews.com/article/european-leaders-white-house-meeting-zelenskyy-trump-d7b082bae4136ef8932e16ac2d166303.
"President Trump Brokers Another Historic Peace Deal." The White House, 8 Aug. 2025, https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/08/president-trump-brokers-another-historic-peace-deal/.
The History of the White House Gift Shop, Est. 1946 by Permanent Order of President H. S. Truman & U.S. Secret Service. https://www.whitehousegiftshop.com/aboutus.asp. Accessed 19 Aug. 2025.
"Trump Won't Rule out Seeking a Third Term in the White House, Tells NBC News 'There Are Methods' for Doing So." NBC News, 30 Mar. 2025, https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-third-term-white-house-methods-rcna198752.
"Twenty-Second Amendment." Constitution Annotated, https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-22/.
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