Sabrina Carpenter
Sabrina Carpenter/Instagram

Sabrina Carpenter has become the latest pop star caught in a political firestorm after publicly criticising the Trump White House for using her song 'Juno' to soundtrack a video celebrating ICE deportation. Carpenter described the video as 'evil and disgusting,' telling officials not to use her music to promote 'inhumane' policies.

The White House responded aggressively, defending the footage as a tool to highlight the removal of 'dangerous criminal illegal murderers, rapists, and pedophiles,' while questioning Carpenter's intelligence. The dispute quickly became a trending topic on X, fuelling debate around music licensing, immigration, and the broader culture war.

The backlash swiftly escalated as MAGA influencers and conservative accounts began circulating clips from Carpenter's music videos, accusing the singer of mocking Christianity and 'disrespecting religious values.' Users amplified selective footage to portray Carpenter as anti-religion, prompting calls for boycotts and claims that the pop star is 'anti-American.'

Supporters of Carpenter have countered that the accusations are baseless and represent an attempt to punish an artist for opposing far-right political messaging. The incident follows similar disputes involving Olivia Rodrigo and Kenny Loggins, whose music was also used without approval.

The controversy highlights an increasingly hostile relationship between artists and the Trump administration, where pop culture and politics collide over immigration, censorship, and copyright.

As MAGA supporters attempt to 'cancel' Carpenter, the episode reflects a familiar pattern: high-profile artists object to the political exploitation of their work, only to become targets of backlash driven by outrage and misinformation.

Whether the attacks will harm Carpenter's rising pop career remains unclear, but the incident reinforces how fiercely contested cultural symbols have become in US politics.