Despite the current US government's "America first" philosophy, the White House makes no secret of its love for Japanese art and animation. Even after it increased the price of the Nintendo Switch 2 with inflation-inducing tariffs that were later refunded (to Nintendo, not to consumers), it continued to use AI-generated videos and memes of Super Mario and Pokémon in official government communications.
To celebrate NASA's moon flyby in April, the White House posted a video not of a Disney or Warner Bros character but Mario, a Japanese Italian plumber, representing the US in space. Even more questionable posts included one from the Department of Homeland Security that combined footage of ICE raids with Pokémon animation and music.
