On Thursday morning, Donald Trump posted an image of a Game of Thrones meme declaring “game over.” His tweet was made after Attorney General William Barr prefaced the release of the Mueller report to the public with a press conference.
Barr held a press conference on Thursday to announce that the Mueller report found no evidence against the president, prompting Trump to take a victory lap — and to post the image, which features the hit HBO series styling and a similar font. The message calls out “haters” and “radical left Democrats,” saying that there is no collusion and no obstruction.
This isn’t the first time that Trump has used a Game of Thrones meme to taunt his critics. In November, he posted an image to Twitter which used imagery from the show, angering HBO.
“We were not aware of this messaging and would prefer our trademark not be misappropriated for political purposes,” the network remarked, according to The New York Post .
“How do you say trademark misuse in Dothraki?” HBO wrote.
Actors on the show also responded to Trump’s post with derision and disgust, disgruntled that he would co-opt their show for his messaging.
In January, Trump followed up with another post, this time to Instagram . In this meme, the image promised that “The Wall is Coming,” employing the characteristic Game of Thrones font. Fans of the show were quick to point out that the wall in the show gets destroyed, and that the enemies of Westeros are easily able to ride through thereafter.
Despite Trump’s declaration of victory, the Mueller report — which was released on Thursday — actually spells out that there were multiple instances where Trump or his campaign potentially obstructed justice. The report itself says that it can’t make a determination on whether or not obstruction took place, but that it can’t be ruled out.
“The evidence we obtained about the president’s actions and intent presents difficult issues that prevent us from conclusively determining that no criminal conduct occurred. Accordingly while this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him,” the report reads, according to CNN .
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 18, 2019
User reactions to the president’s tweet were mixed, with some people cheering him for finally being fully exonerated, while others saying that it’s “game over” for the president, who was not fully exonerated by the Mueller report.
Trump pinned the tweet to the top of his feed on Thursday as press coverage of the report hit high gear. HBO hasn’t responded to Trump’s latest tweet.
