A recent profile by Vanity Fair magazine has ignited a firestorm of online discussion, spilling beyond the article itself and onto social media platform Instagram. While the written piece is generating significant conversation, the promotional post on Vanity Fair's official Instagram page has become an unexpected flashpoint, with intense scrutiny focused on a single, extreme close-up photograph of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
The Close-Up That Captured All Attention
The image in question shows Leavitt's face in remarkably sharp detail, where individual pores are visible and marks around her lips appear prominently highlighted. Within hours, the comment section and reposts were flooded with speculation and pointed questions. Many users zeroed in on the appearance of her lips, with some asking bluntly if the marks were from lip fillers.
One user commented, "Are those lip filler marks?" while another asserted, "That first pic was strategic I just know it." Others saw a deliberate editorial choice, with a third netizen noting, "These close ups are great. Seems intentionally comical, like their subjects. Nice work, VF!"
Several online commentators argued that the extreme close-up was far from accidental. They suggested it was a calculated visual strategy meant to underscore the article's critical tone towards the Trump administration's inner circle. The profile itself labels Leavitt as the "mouthpiece," a term many readers believe was intentionally reinforced by the choice of such an unsparing, detailed image.
Reigniting the 'Mar-a-Lago Face' Aesthetic Debate
The article and its accompanying visuals have successfully reignited a familiar online conversation about the aesthetics prevalent within Donald Trump's political orbit, especially among women in high-profile roles. Critics have long pointed to a shared cosmetic look often dubbed the "Mar-a-Lago face."
This alleged aesthetic is characterised by several distinctive features:
- Prominently full, 'bee-stung' lips
- Immovable, frozen eyebrows
- Taut skin on the neck and face
- A high-gloss, polished finish that appears both expensive and meticulously controlled
The overall effect is one where faces seem smoothed, tightened, and preserved against both age and spontaneous expression, as if emotions have been carefully edited out. Other political figures whose names have been associated with this style include Kristi Noem, Kimberly Guilfoyle, Laura Loomer, and Matt Gaetz.
Trump's Own Comments on Leavitt's Lips Resurface
The controversy also brought back into focus President Donald Trump's own repeated public remarks about Karoline Leavitt's appearance, specifically her lips. At a recent rally in Pennsylvania, the 79-year-old president deviated from his script to praise his press secretary.
"We even brought our superstar today, Karoline. Isn't she great? Is Karoline great?" he asked the cheering crowd. He then honed in on her television persona: "You know, when she goes on television, Fox, like, I mean, they dominate... When she gets up there with that beautiful face and those lips that don't stop-op-op-op, like a little machine gun," Trump said, adding bizarre sound effects for emphasis.
This was not an isolated incident. In an August interview with Newsmax, Trump had made strikingly similar observations, stating, "It's that face. It's that brain. It's those lips, the way they move. They move like she's a machine gun." He concluded by saying, "I don't think anybody has ever had a better press secretary than Karoline."
The Vanity Fair article expands into what it describes as a series of "diabolical close ups" of Trump's key team, amplifying scrutiny that extends beyond political messaging to encompass physical appearance itself. The piece describes Leavitt as a "combative" press secretary who fields questions with "all the subtlety of a rottweiler," further fueling the debate about the intersection of media portrayal, political communication, and personal aesthetics in the modern political arena.
