White House communications director hits unprecedented low in attack on Hollywood legend

In an era where the boundary between political discourse and celebrity culture has all but dissolved, you can count on the Trump administration hitting back at anyone criticizing its policies.

Several Hollywood stars have criticized the administration for a variety of reasons. Donald Trump even posted an AI-generated video of himself as a doctor diagnosing various Hollywood stars with “Trump Derangement Syndrome”—a non-clinical term used to describe extreme negative reactions to Trump and his policies.

This time, however, it’s White House Communications Director Steven Cheung who has taken to social media in a feud with Hollywood legend Richard Gere. Cheung’s pushback against Gere’s criticism might represent a new low point in political mud-slinging.

Gere takes aim at USAID cuts

Richard Gere has never been shy about his political and humanitarian activism. A longtime advocate for human rights, Tibetan autonomy, and global aid programs, Gere has frequently used his public platform to voice strong opposition to Donald Trump’s rhetoric and policies.

In June, Gere’s criticisms became even more direct. In an interview with the Associated Press published on June 4 on YouTube, Gere said:

“USAID was probably the purest thing America did up to that moment. It was a giveaway program to needy people. He [Trump] stopped that day one. It was insane. He wouldn’t even know what it stands for, USAID. He has idiots around him who have the same ignorance about it.”

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Then Cheung entered the arena

Responding to Gere’s vocal opposition, Trump’s camp fired back—not by addressing his arguments regarding democratic norms or foreign aid, but by digging into the gutter of 1990s tabloid folklore.

The claim referenced a notorious, completely unsubstantiated Hollywood urban legend involving Gere that has been repeatedly debunked by fact-checkers and biographers for over thirty years.

Cheung posted a screenshot of an article and – we’ll just let Cheung’s post speak for itself.

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Debunked decades ago

The urban legend regarding Richard Gere and the gerbil was debunked as far back as 1998 by Snopes.

An article published on March 28, 1998, thoroughly debunked the myth, even providing an interesting look into the origin of the gerbil story.

Apparently, that did not matter to Cheung.

This article is made and published by Jens Asbjørn Bogen, who may have used AI in the preparation