'Why Is X on the Screen?': Donald Trump Ridiculed for Massive Social Media Screen in Mar-a-Lago 'War Room' Images
President Donald Trump posted photos showing what he described as a Mar-a-Lago 'war room'.
Jan. 4 2026, Published 1:15 p.m. ET
President Donald Trump was ridiculed on social media after posting images from what he described as a Mar-a-Lago "war room" during the U.S. military's capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, RadarOnline.com can report.
Several social media users fixated on an unexpected detail in the background — the Trump team checking X on the biggest screen in the room.
The Backlash to the 'War Room'
Social media users quickly noticed a large television screen in the background.
Photos shared by Trump appeared to show members of his inner circle, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, gathered in a room monitoring the operation. Behind them, a large television screen was visible, displaying an open tab on X. The imagery sparked a wave of commentary across both X and the rival platform Bluesky.
Some users responded with humor. One X user suggested Hegseth appeared to be changing a password while squinting at his screen, before asking, "Also, why the f--- is X on the big screen?"
Another user, posting under the name "Chubby", joked that Trump and his cabinet "checking the timeline wasn't on my bingo card".
Others speculated that Hegseth looked as though he was "scrolling hard" and repeatedly searching for "Venezuela" on the platform.
Continued Outrage
One Bluesky post claimed the images were proof the country was being run irresponsibly.
The reaction on Bluesky was notably more critical. One user questioned, "For what reason would you need your X feed on the big screen while you invade another country?" adding, "JFC."
A separate post accused Hegseth of "overseeing the illegal detention of a foreign head of state next to a comically huge emoji on X, the everything app."
Trump's Description
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Trump said he watched the operation unfold live from Mar-a-Lago alongside military generals.
Trump later described the operation in a phone interview with Fox News, saying he watched the capture unfold live from Mar-a-Lago alongside military leadership.
"I was told by real military people that there's no other country on Earth that can do such a maneuver," Trump said. "If you would have seen what happened, I mean, I watched it literally, like I was watching a television show."
He told the outlet: "If you would have seen the, the speed, the violence, you know, they say that the speed, the violence, they use that term. It's just, it was an amazing thing, amazing job that these people did. There's nobody else could have done anything like it.
"Well, we watched it from a room. We had a room, and we watched it, and we watched every aspect of it. We were surrounded by lots of people, including generals, and they knew everything that was happening. And it was very complex, extremely complex."
Trump added: "Really, they just broke in, and they broke into places that were not really able to be, broke into steel doors that was were put there for just this reason, and they got taken out in a matter of seconds. I've never seen anything like it," Trump added.
He also said the United States had a "massive number" of aircraft available for the operation, including helicopters and fighter jets.
