Critics of Donald Trump ridiculed the president when he demanded the removal of his portrait from the Colorado state capitol building, describing it as “truly the worst.” In a post on Truth Social, Trump shared an image of the portrait and complained about its quality, blaming Colorado’s governor, Jared Polis, who he insulted as being “radically left.” A Republican admirer had actually commissioned the portrait. House Democrats stated they would remove the oil painting at the request of Republican leaders in the legislature. Senate minority leader Paul Lundeen, a Republican, requested that Trump’s portrait be taken down and replaced with one depicting his ” contemporary likeness.” Colorado House Democrats spokesperson Jarrett Freedman commented that if the GOP wanted to spend time and money on which portrait of Trump would hang in the Capitol, that was up to them. Trump expressed his dissatisfaction with the portrait on Truth Social and posted separate images of himself trying to distribute more flattering photos. Liberal and anti-Trump commentators mocked Trump’s reaction on social media, criticizing his fragile and sensitive nature. Trump claimed, without evidence, that his portrait had been “purposefully distorted.” The painting was actually unveiled by a Republican group in 2019, commissioned by a former Republican state senator who raised funds for it. During his first presidency, Trump did not have a portrait hanging in the Colorado state capitol. In 2018, a liberal political activist placed a large portrait of Vladimir Putin in the empty space, which was quickly removed by capitol staff. A Republican state senator then raised money to hang Trump’s portrait in the state capitol. A Polis spokesperson acknowledged the governor’s surprise at Trump’s interest in the Colorado state capitol

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/24/trump-colorado-portrait-painting