The White House has intensified its deportation efforts by sharing a controversial parody of a beloved children’s Christmas film on social media.
On Tuesday, the official White House X account posted a meme titled ‘The Deportation Express,’ a parody of the 2000s Christmas movie The Polar Express.
The meme featured an image styled like the original movie poster, substituting the iconic train with a plane, and included the caption, “Here illegally? The Deportation Express.”
The text read: “BELIEVE YOU CAN GO HOME! It doesn’t matter where they’re going. What matters is deciding to get on. CBP Home App to self-deport today!”
The film The Polar Express, released in 2004, quickly garnered a devoted following, having enchanted audiences for more than two decades. Featuring Tom Hanks’ voice and directed by him, the story follows a young boy’s magical journey to the North Pole aboard a special train on Christmas Eve.
The film’s status as a festive classic, bringing holiday magic to many homes, makes the White House’s association of it with ICE raids particularly unsettling.
“Did they seriously just take a Polar Express train and slap on White House propaganda on it?” one surprised social media user questioned.
Another expressed disbelief, stating: “Imagine posting this so close to Christmas.”
A third user remarked, “Free flight home + $1,000 cash and they made it look like a Hallmark Christmas movie… “
This ICE-themed meme is one of several recent posts from the White House’s social media, following a dispute with singer Sabrina Carpenter regarding the unauthorized use of her song in a controversial deportation video.
Offended by the use of her music for such purposes, Carpenter criticized the U.S. Government online, commenting on X: “This video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.”
Instead of apologizing, the White House released another video featuring Carpenter with edited audio seemingly supporting ICE actions.
The White House also issued a sharp response, stating: “Here’s a Short n’ Sweet message for Sabrina Carpenter: we won’t apologize for deporting dangerous criminal illegal murderers, rapists, and pedophiles from our country.
“Anyone who would defend these sick monsters must be stupid, or is it slow?”
The promotion of immigration raids is part of the Trump Administration’s broader crackdown on migrants, both documented and undocumented, with President Trump focusing on removing what he calls ‘criminal illegal aliens’ since starting his second term.
Trump’s actions, often based on conspiracy theories, target Democrat-majority cities under the pretense of addressing ‘hotbeds of violent crime.’
However, recent ICE statistics disclosed that 21,000 people detained last month had no criminal records, exceeding those with convictions or pending charges.