Billboards showing Joe Biden eating ice cream against the backdrop of Afghanistan evacuations have popped up in North Carolina and Wisconsin.
But it’s not clear who put them up. The buyer in North Carolina remained anonymous; the buyer in Wisconsin is unclear, although the billboard says it is “paid for by U.S. veterans.”
The billboards are causing a stir in both states. The Wisconsin billboard went up in Greenfield, Wisconsin, which is a suburb of Milwaukee. The North Carolina billboard appeared in Wilmington, North Carolina. They contain similar, but slightly different, pictures of Biden eating ice cream cones juxtaposed against a scene of the Afghanistan evacuations. Both are swing states. Both are digital billboards.
Some critics of President Joe Biden have mocked the media in the past for asking him softball questions on ice cream flavors. ZeroHedge, a conservative news site, alleged, without evidence, that a viral photo showing Taliban soldiers eating ice cream was meant as a message to Biden.
Here’s what you need to know:
Wilmington, North Carolina, Biden Billboard
According to Fox News, a Biden eating ice cream billboard showed up in Wilmington, but the person who bought it was anonymous, according to WWAYtv3.com.
Sonya Patrick, a representative for the New Hanover County Democratic Party, told the television station, “This is not a laughing matter, this is a very sensitive issue, and it’s not to be made fun of. Maybe that’s why the person didn’t put their name on it because a part of their conscience if they have any type of moral conscience, it’s letting them know this.”
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Donald Trump Jr. posted a photo of the North Carolina billboard on his Instagram account, writing, “This is apparently a billboard in Wilmington, North Carolina from pics that a buddy sent me. They get it thanks guys hopefully the rest of the world doesn’t have to keep learning the hard way about the Biden administration’s incompetence.”
Donald Tedder, owner of Tedder Billboards, told the New York Post that the anonymous buyer was upset after watching the Kabul chaos.
“They were disappointed by what has been happening,” Tedder said to the Post. He said the purchaser thought a billboard would reach more people than a letter to the editor would.
“I think it worked better than we expected it to,” he told the publication.
Greenfield, Wisconsin, Biden Billboard
The billboard company in Greenfield, Wisconsin, is Jones Sign. That doesn’t mean that company created the Biden billboard. It means that the space was rented from them. Heavy contacted Jones Sign to ask who put up the Biden billboard but hasn’t heard back yet.
“Jones Sign fabricated and installed this billboard in the Milwaukee, WI area. The billboard has two EMCs (electronic messaging centers) to be viewed by drivers going both directions,” according to Wes Cover of the billboard space.
The site adds of Jones Sign, “Since 1910, Jones Sign Company has provided industry-leading design, manufacturing, installation, & maintenance of signage, lighting, & architectural elements to construction companies, design firms.”