When Asked, "Did You See the Time Cover?"
NYT: "Trump Obsessed with Time Covers"
Donald Trump, the President of the United States, showed a peculiar reaction to the new cover photo of Time, the world's most influential current affairs weekly magazine.
On the 8th, Yonhap News reported this citing the NYT. According to the NYT, when reporters asked President Trump, who was about to hold a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru at the White House, about Time's new cover, he sarcastically replied, "Is Time still in business? I had no idea."
Cover photo of the July 24 issue released on the 7th (local time) by the American news weekly magazine Time. Time magazine cover capture
The cover photo of the issue published on the 24th of this month, released by Time on the same day, depicts Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and a 'close associate' of President Trump, sitting confidently on the White House presidential desk. It appears to represent the current situation where the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Musk, is wielding absolute power across the U.S. federal government, including budget cuts and civil servant layoffs.
The New York Times (NYT) pointed out in an article titled "Will Time's Cover Cause a Rift Between Trump and Musk?" that President Trump did not seem pleased with the cover featuring Musk and remarked, "It is unlikely that President Trump was unaware that Time is still in business."
The NYT cited the reason that President Trump was selected as Time's 'Person of the Year' last year and commemorated it by visiting the New York Stock Exchange to participate in a bell-ringing ceremony. It added, "President Trump's obsession with Time covers is a fundamental aspect of Trumpology (which everyone knows)."
In fact, the day after his first inauguration in 2017, President Trump boasted, "I have been on the cover of Time 14 to 15 times, which is an unprecedented record in Time's history." However, the actual number of times he appeared on Time's cover up to that point was 11.
CNN reported on the same day that "Time's cover implies that Musk, not President Trump, is effectively at the center of power," and "this could potentially upset President Trump."
In December last year, Donald Trump, the President-elect of the United States, attended and spoke at an event held at the New York Stock Exchange to celebrate his selection as Time magazine's "Person of the Year." Photo by AP Yonhap News
Last November, Time also featured Musk on its cover, describing the 'Citizen Musk' as a 'Kingmaker.' Musk contributed significantly to the presidential election victory through massive donations and emerged as a new influential figure in Trump's second administration.
While Musk usually posts on social media even about trivial matters, he has remained silent about this Time cover.
Earlier, on the 22nd of last month, right after President Trump announced a plan to invest up to $500 billion (about 710 trillion won) in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, led by ChatGPT developer OpenAI, Oracle, and Japan's SoftBank, Musk poured cold water on the plan by posting on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), "They actually don't have the money," which drew backlash from Trump's close aides and supporters.
President Trump personally stepped in and said, "I don't care," supporting Musk, but at the time, The Wall Street Journal noted, "This shows the sometimes awkward and uncomfortable dynamics between Musk and President Trump."
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