Twitter Can’t Get Enough of This Hilarious Photo of the Bidens and the Carters

A new photo of first couple Joe and Jill Biden with former President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter has been making the rounds, and boy is it funny. The photo was taken at the Carters’ home in Plains, Georgia, and thanks to the magic of forced perspective and a (possibly) wide-angle lens, the Bidens look absolutely enormous compared to the teeny tiny Carters. It is true that humans get shorter in their old age, but that’s only 1-2 inches of shrinkage. I mean, this is some Peter Jackson, Gandalf in the Shire-style hijinks:

The photo quickly made the rounds online, and why wouldn’t it? It’s exactly the kind of crowd pleasing, wholesome meme that anyone can get on board with, regardless of age, creed, or political party. Seriously, when did the Carters become the Borrowers? Folks were quick to make jokes on Twitter about the absurd photo, so we decided to compile some of our favorites.

While the forced perspective of this photo was obviously unintentional, it reminds us of the complicated forced perspective techniques used in The Lord of the Rings films. What a fascinating, old school optical illusion:

Of course, Republicans are here to ruin our joy by calling out the lack of face masks in the photo as some sort of “gotcha” moment. In fact, fully vaccinated people can congregate indoors per the latest CDC guidelines. But I wouldn’t expect Donald Trump Jr. or Lauren Boebert to be informed of that, or informed of anything, really.

In the meantime, I am thrilled to see all the wholesome memes coming out of this photo. What a soul cleanse for the timeline.

(image: The Carter Center)

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Chelsea Steiner

Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.

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