President Donald Trump on Monday made a surprise stop at Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate in Memphis, Tennessee—a diversion from the ongoing war in Iran and airport security delays—and his visit quickly went viral after the president wondered aloud whether he could have beaten the “king of rock ‘n’ roll” in a fight.
Why It Matters
The stop came at a fraught moment. Thousands of Americans are navigating long lines at airport security checkpoints after Trump deployed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to assist the Transportation Security Administration during the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Trump also ordered a “temporary” halt to planned strikes on Iranian power plants, though American forces remain engaged in the broader regional conflict.
Trump, who has long played Presley’s music at campaign rallies and at times compared himself to the legendary performer who died in 1977 at age 42, visited Graceland after a roundtable on the city’s Safe Task Force initiative. “I’m going to see Graceland after this, I think. Is that right?” Trump said during the meeting. “I love Elvis.”
The Graceland detour drew scrutiny from critics who viewed the outing as a distraction from issues with which Americans are struggling.
What To Know
Graceland—which has at times ranked as the second most-visited private home in the U.S. after the White House—temporarily closed to the public for Trump’s private tour. He examined an Army helmet Presley had scrawled his initials in after reporting to basic training in 1958, toured the “Jungle Room” with its green shag carpet and indoor rock waterfall, marveled at Presley’s gold-plated Social Security card and peered at Presley’s gold phone, saying, “I would like to hear some of those conversations.”
A Graceland guide handed Trump a replica guitar from Presley’s 1973 “Aloha From Hawaii” concert to sign. After being told Presley had not actually played that particular guitar, Trump grew reflective. “Could I have taken him in a fight?” he asked, lamenting that he had never met the singer. Staff told him Presley “would have been respectful enough to let you win.”
Trump called Presley “the most famous person on the planet” and praised him as “a good person with a complicated life.” When a staffer asked whether Mar-a-Lago could one day draw similar pilgrimages as Graceland, Trump demurred: “I don’t know. It’s something I could never say. That’s a special place too.”
Trump has long drawn comparisons between himself and Presley, once posting a composite photograph on social media combining their faces. “For so many years people have been saying that Elvis and I look alike,” he wrote at the time.
Internet Reacts
The fight question spread quickly across social media, drawing a mix of mockery, political criticism and amusement.
Call To Activism, @CalltoActivism, X account with over 1.2 million followers: “Elvis Presley was a kind, generous, humble, caring person. He didn’t like arrogance. If he were still alive Trump would have never passed through the gates at Graceland.”
Clay Travis, @ClayTravis, Outkick founder and conservative host with over 1.3 million followers: “President Trump visits Graceland, learns Elvis had two black belts, and asks the tour guides who would have won in a fight, him or Elvis?”
Lucia, @Lucia_uiu: “People are choking under inflation, housing is a mess, billions are burning, and Trump is asking if he could beat Elvis in a fight. That is exactly the kind of unserious distraction that shows how detached he is from real life.”
Eric L. Mitchell, @EricLMitchell, national sports analyst: “Unlike Bone Spurs, Elvis served.”
Art Candee, @ArtCandee, political commentator: “Precisely zero chance.”
Pithy Galore, @Pithy_Galore, AI consultant: “Trump was scared of an eagle. What a wimp.”
Reporting from the Associated Press contributed to this article.
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