Political Photos Even Crazier Than This Election Year 》

Another election year is upon us, and you can practically feel the craziness in the air like the approach of an oncoming storm. We’re still months away from any debates between Joe Biden and his Republican contender (likely to once again be Donald Trump), but all the political headlines and viral videos out there are already making us sick to death of politics.

In reaction, we decided to seek out the ultimate cure: silly photos. Specific, silly photos that serve as a reminder of how equally silly the democratic process can be. Ready to see your favorite (and least favorite) politicians as you’ve never seen them before? Keep reading to discover political photos even crazier than our current election year!

John McCain or a level 1 goblin?

In 2008, John McCain was Barack Obama’s opponent during the presidential election. They had many debates together, including this October 15 debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. When McCain found out he was trying to exit the wrong way, he made a face that, frankly, haunts us to this day. Good luck sleeping tonight!

The opposite of kissing a baby

It’s an old stereotype that would-be presidents need to get good at kissing babies in order to win the populace over. Two-time president George W. Bush apparently never got that memo, and during a July 13, 2006 trip to Trinwillershagen, Germany, this baby let the world know exactly how he felt about being part of an optics photo for this veteran politician.

Angela Merkel’s in quite a pickle (and vice versa)

It’s not just American politicians that go out of their way to win common people over. Here, we see German Chancellor Angela Merkel attending a name-giving ceremony for a fish trawler in Sassnitz, eastern Germany, and getting into the spirit of things by devouring some pickled herring. Unfortunately, this photo of her about to chow down makes her look less like a national leader and more like Gollum from Lord of the Rings.

Biden creates the wrong kind of photo-op

When Vice President Joe Biden stopped into the Cruisers Diner on Sept. 9, 2012, he wanted to win over the voters in attendance by showing them how down-to-earth he is. But there is such a thing about being a little too folks, or maybe we should say a little too handsy: we’re not entirely sure if that lady exactly wanted a backrub, Joe. Honestly, the faces of the two fellows on either side perfectly reveal how weird this photo op got!

A genuine presidential staredown

There was never any love lost between President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladamir Putin. However, the two had to sit and play nice during a UN General Assembly luncheon on September 28, 2015. Here, we see the two national foes acting cordial as they clink glasses together during a toast, but their eyes tell you exactly how they really feel about one another.

It was just never meant to be

Considering what a pariah he eventually became among conservatives, it’s interesting to look back on a time when Donald Trump was considering asking former presidential contender Mitt Romney to be his running mate. It wasn’t meant to be, and this November 29, 2016 photo from Jean Georges restaurant explains why. At the end of the day, Trump loves all forms of media attention and is actively mugging for the camera. Romney, meanwhile, is clearly uncomfortable and would like to fade back into obscurity ASAP.

Clintons going crazy for…balloons?!?

Very few people can remember exactly what happened during the 2016 Democratic National Convention. That’s because our minds were collectively blown away by this crazy imagery of both Bill and Hillary Clinton going absolutely crazy over a cascade of balloons. In retrospect, Hillary’s presidential campaign went so poorly in 2016 that trying to reach out for these colorful balloons may have been the highlight of her entire year!

Politician vs. cash register

This image looks weird right away, and honestly, it only gets stranger in context. In 1992, president H.W. Bush traveled to Orlando, Florida to attend the National Grocers Association trade exhibition. As usual, the goal was to showcase that he was a man of the people, but this viral image made it look like he had never even seen a cash register. This resulted in the idea that Bush was completely out of touch with ordinary Americans and was part of why he lost the election that year to Bill Clinton.

The worst handshake in political history

On November 13, 2017, President Donald Trump attended the ASEAN Summit at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. To get into the spirit of things, he tried to participate in something known as the ASEAN-way handshake, and as his face indicates, he had quite a bit of trouble with this. We can’t dunk on Trump too hard for this…we’re still not sure how this handshake was supposed to work, and we doubt he really did any worse than we would have in his place!