The White House tried to prove America has culture with a TikTok, and a bucket of Chick-fil-A ice became the punchline nobody expected

The White House posted a new video on TikTok intended to showcase American culture, but the response online was far from what officials likely expected, as detailed by Newsweek. The clip opens with a black and white shot of President Donald Trump alongside the text “And they say America has no culture,” a response to a long running meme claiming the United States lacks a distinct cultural identity.

Instead of quieting critics, the video quickly became a target for mockery, with users pointing out that many of the examples resembled corporate chains and household appliances rather than cultural landmarks. The video arrives as the country prepares for the 250th anniversary of independence, a milestone the administration has promoted through its Freedom 250 initiative, according to the program’s official page. White House Spokesman Davis Ingle said the effort is meant to give the country a memorable 250th birthday celebration and to carry out the president’s vision for the milestone year.

He added that events including the Great American State Fair, the Salute to America Celebration, the Patriot Games and Rededicate 250 are intended to build patriotism heading into the anniversary. Despite that formal framing, the TikTok itself leaned into a casual, meme heavy style rather than a traditional patriotic showcase. The montage mixed the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore with a bucket of Chick-fil-A ice, a Super Big Gulp from 7-Eleven and an air conditioning unit, a combination that did not land well with much of the audience.

The comments made it clear viewers weren’t buying the pitch

One of the top comments, read “fast food & a gas station” alongside two crying emojis. Another comment with over 14,000 likes asked “How is Walmart culture,” while a separate user asked “Did they dead serious put chips and salsa.” The reaction fit a pattern of online audiences picking apart viral clips tied to the president, a dynamic that also played out recently around a Trump mannequin video that split opinion online.

This kind of debate about American identity is not new. Social media has spent months on the “American Mind Cannot Comprehend” trend, which contrasts the walkability of European cities with American suburban sprawl and consumer culture. A viral photo of people socializing in a plaza in Marbella, Spain, reignited that conversation earlier this year, and the TikTok appears to be a direct attempt to push back against it.

The Freedom 250 initiative is designed as a large public private partnership, pulling in schools, agencies and local industries to mark the anniversary, per the program’s site. Planned contributions range from the Department of Energy’s videos on American innovation to the Small Business Administration’s Freedom 250 pitch competition, reflecting a broader push toward a unified narrative of national success. The mockery of the TikTok arrived amid a string of unrelated viral disputes keeping social media users engaged this week, including one traveler’s American Airlines seating dispute that drew similar attention.

The gap between that formal, historic vision and the fast paced, meme heavy style of the TikTok became the central point of criticism. The White House had not addressed the mockery directly as of Newsweek’s report, and the video remained live on the account with its comment section still growing.