Plenty of celebrities have spoken out against president Donald Trump since his inauguration in January, but right now, the White House is turning its sights on Ariana Grande in particular. This week, the Wicked star shared a meme about life under Trump that asks whether anyone’s actually doing better than they were under president Joe Biden, and the White House wasted no time clapping back.
It started with a post Ariana shared over the weekend.
In a since-expired post on her Instagram Stories, Ariana shared a post from podcaster Matt Bernstein that asked Trump voters, “has your life gotten better?”
“Have your groceries gotten cheaper? Has your health insurance premium gone down?” Bernstein asked. “Has your work/life balance improved? Can you take a vacation yet? Are you happier?” Has the widespread suffering of others paid off for you in the way he promised it would, or are you still waiting?”
The White House quickly clapped back.
White House spokesperson Kush Desai responded to Ariana’s re-share with a statement to the Daily Beast.
“Save your tears, Ariana, because President Trump’s actions ended Joe Biden’s inflation crisis and are bringing in trillions in new investments,” Kush said. “[Trump] even signed an executive order just like magic that paved the way for the FTC to crack down on Ticketmaster for ripping off Ariana Grande’s concert-going fans. Get well soon, Ariana!”
Fans will recognize that “Save Your Tears” and “Get Well Soon” are both references to her songs.
Fans quickly came to Ariana’s defense.
Some couldn’t understand why Trump supporters were angry with Ariana for speaking her mind. “Why they suddenly mad now?? Ariana’s been anti Trump for years,” one person wrote on X.
Another fan said, “They need to get jobs and leave Mother alone.”
This isn’t the first time she’s spoken out against Trump.
As Billboard reported, back in January, Ariana reposted a statement from Advocates for Trans Equality to show support to her LGBTQ fans and loved ones in the wake of Trump’s inauguration.
“The incoming Trump administration, and the Project 2025 extremists who will staff it, are reacting to decades of progress made by our LGBTQI+ community by trying to drag us backward,” the statement said. “But we have fought even harder battles before, and won. We’ll do it again.”
