A politically charged transit advertisement near the U.S. Capitol has stirred outrage in Washington, D.C., after it appeared to liken MAGA hat wearers to garbage. The ad, which was spotted by Caleb Morell, a pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Church, features a striking image of a person wearing a MAGA hat, holding a book labeled “Project 2025,” with a red circle and line through it—an unmistakable symbol of prohibition or rejection. The ad’s text reads, “Keep DC trash free,” which many critics immediately interpreted as a direct insult to supporters of former President Donald Trump.
The ad was displayed on public infrastructure, and its appearance caused an uproar among political commentators, social media users, and public officials alike. While it remains unclear who was behind the ad, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) was quick to distance itself from the image. DDOT, which oversees transportation-related signage in the district, issued a statement denouncing the ad’s content and reaffirming that it had not created, funded, or authorized the advertisement.
The controversial ad comes amid an escalating culture war over political expression and public messaging, especially following the 2024 election during which Joe Biden called Trump supporters “garbage” following Tony Hinchcliffe’s gaffe about Puerto Rico at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally. The ad’s stark language and imagery drew immediate backlash from MAGA supporters, who saw it as an attempt to dehumanize or insult them based on their political affiliations. The use of the word “trash” in particular was viewed by many as an inflammatory slur that crossed a line.
Biden’s remarks drew fierce criticism from Republican circles, who accused him of demonizing millions of Americans who support Trump. The White House, attempting to walk back Biden’s comment, claimed that the president had misspoken and intended to reference Hinchcliffe’s inflammatory rhetoric, not the supporters themselves. However, this explanation did little to quell the backlash, and Trump himself quickly capitalized on the controversy, posting a photo of himself in an orange vest, mockingly climbing into a garbage truck as a response to Biden’s comments.
Caleb Morell, who first shared the image, expressed shock at the ad’s content, posting on social media, “This is the level of divisiveness and disrespect that is now being normalized in D.C. politics. It’s beyond partisan—it’s an attempt to demonize people based on their beliefs.”
As of now, the identity of the person or group responsible for the controversial ad remains unknown. The fact that the image was displayed on public infrastructure—specifically associated with the District of Columbia’s Department of Public Works and the Mayor’s Office of Clean City program—has raised questions about oversight and accountability. While the city government has condemned the ad, many have asked whether there should be more transparency in how political ads are vetted and approved for display in public spaces.
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Compare this ad with past ad controversies in DC when conservatives have tried to place ads on buses, edpecially anti-abortion ads. As the old saw goes, if DC didn’t have double standards it’d have no standards at all.
Is Biden really still here? But he’s been gone forever. So happy he left!
Where is equal treatment ??
Being on the on the Left Coast (Not California!!) Around here, we always feel that there is nothing but trash on Washington D.C. I seriously doubt anyone out here would have even noticed any implied or accidental ‘trashng’ of the ‘right’.