If the United States wasn’t already divided because of politics, human rights, women’s rights, and everything in between, a photo of press secretary Karoline Leavitt with her baby at the White House has widened that divide even further. In a photo shared on X (formerly Twitter), Leavitt is feeding her baby while she works at her desk in her office.
For some, this image is the perfect representation of a working mom having it all. For others, it’s a slap in the face for women who don’t work in the White House but are judged for working and being a mom at the same time or for needing to bring their child to work sometimes. Even the comments on X show a strong divide, with those who support Donald Trump unsure about how Leavitt’s photo as a multitasking mom speaks to the values of Trump’s administration.
Karoline Leavitt’s multitasking mom moment has people divided.
Walked in to @PressSec typing with one hand, and feeding her son with the other 💙
— Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) May 8, 2025
Super Mom! pic.twitter.com/UOMkHj5mV8
Margo Martin, special assistant to Trump and communications adviser at the White House, shared a post on X where she wrote, “Walked in to @PressSec typing with one hand, and feeding her son with the other. Super Mom!” In the photo, Leavitt is holding her infant son as he drinks from a bottle. She is also typing at her computer.
Although the idea behind the photo seems to be that Leavitt is doing it all as a mom and White House employee, the comments on the X post don’t all agree with Martin. In fact, some are downright hateful toward the double standard of other women being criticized for working or needing to bring a child to work at times. Instead of that same rhetoric, Leavitt appears to be expected to be praised for doing just that.
One person commented, “I love how a democrat in congress can’t bring their kid to work because she ‘using her chil’ for a photo op, but this is okay. Right. Lol.”
This is in reference to Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen, who brought her 9-week-old son to the House Floor in April 2025 to speak out about a law that would allow new parents to vote by proxy. According to ABC News, she said it was “a very difficult decision to fly across the country” with her infant, but it was a move that drew criticism. In contrast, Leavitt received some praise before her critics joined the chat.
“Staged photo,” someone wrote on X in response to Leavitt’s image. “‘Look at me ladies, I’m just like you’ says the woman making six figures taking a baby to the White House for a photo op.”
Another person commented, “Weird… because Trump [a]ssured us that people can’t get work done at home because of their kids. Isn’t that why he forced moms back into the office? The hypocrisy is quite glaring!”
Others came to Leavitt and even Trump’s defense and commented in the thread on X that it was a photo op and nothing more. But in sharing that, they gave more ammo for Leavitt’s critics to point out the hypocrisy in her photo.
Someone else added, “Are all federal employees allowed to bring their babies to work, or is it just certain privileged ones?”
