In a new and unusual campaign ad, Donald Trump’s head takes the place of the moon and blocks out the sun in reference to Monday’s solar eclipse.
The campaign video was posted on Truth Social on Sunday, and begins with the words, “the most important moment in human history is taking place in 2024.” It shows an image of the glowing sun as amazed crowds gather to watch the solar eclipse wearing protective eyewear.
As a huge shadow is cast on Earth, Trump’s head comes into view. “We will save America. And make it great again,” the video concludes, a nod to his 2024 presidential campaign.
The video invokes visuals and the opening score from Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The eclipse is set to pass over Mexico, the United States, and Canada on Monday afternoon. As the moon passes between the sun and Earth, a moment of almost total darkness will be cast for a number of minutes.
The event will not occur again in North America until 2044, but it last occurred seven years ago, during the first year of Trump’s presidential term. Trump made comments after he ignored the advice of experts by looking directly at the eclipse without protective eyewear. His wife, then First-Lady Melania Trump and their son Barron were also present, and both wore glasses to observe the eclipse.
Experts say that looking at the eclipse with the naked eye can cause blurred vision, floaters, blind spots, or low vision. In some extreme cases, where exposure is extended, retinal burns can lead to blindness.
“Solar retinopathy is a photochemical injury to your retina,” Dr. Nicole Bajic, a surgical ophthalmologist at the Cleveland Clinic, stated.
Sunday’s video campaign is the latest in a string of unusual statements the former President has made recently. During a Saturday night fundraiser in Palm Beach, FL, Trump claimed that the incumbent President Joe Biden soiled himself in the Oval Office at the White House.
Trump’s speech at the fundraiser lasted 45 minutes, during which he mocked Biden’s policies, before referencing the widely recognizable Resolute desk, a gift from Queen Victoria in 1880.
“Ronald Reagan used it, others used it. And he’s using it,” he said of Biden. “It’s been soiled. And I mean that literally, which is sad,” he commented.