Overview
- Trump, who toured Graceland on Monday after a Memphis Safe Task Force roundtable, received a private walkthrough and signed a replica guitar modeled on Elvis’s 1973 “Aloha From Hawaii” instrument.
- During the walkthrough he said “I love Elvis,” acknowledged he never met Presley, and asked staff if he “could have taken him in a fight,” a quip that spread widely online.
- Guides showed him the Jungle Room, an Army helmet Presley initialed, and a gold‑plated Social Security card and phone, prompting Trump to muse that metal Social Security cards should return.
- He also named “Hurt” as a favorite Elvis song and joked that President Joe Biden “couldn’t” sign a guitar, according to pool reports and outlet videos.
- The visit unfolded as the White House paused planned strikes on Iranian power plants and deployed immigration officers to help TSA during a Homeland Security shutdown, and coverage split with left-leaning outlets stressing a distraction from crises while right-leaning sites emphasized a light cultural stop, noting he is only the second sitting president to tour the landmark.