Earlier this summer, the White House announced a new front in the Biden administration's campaign to get more Americans vaccinated against the Wuhan coronavirus — social media influencers.
It all started with actor and singer Olivia Rodrigo who visited the White House in July to speak at the daily press briefing, talk with the President, and film videos with Dr. Fauci, all with the goal of pushing more young people to get vaccinated.
According to a report from The New York Times, the White House has recruited Village Marketing to find and enlist young influencers on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Twitch to push their audiences to get vaccinated as the Biden administration frets about the Delta or other future variants.
As a candidate for President, Joe Biden tweeted in October of 2020 that "eight months into this pandemic" President Trump "doesn't have a plan to get this virus under control."
We're eight months into this pandemic, and Donald Trump still doesn't have a plan to get this virus under control.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 16, 2020
I do.
Now that Joe Biden's been in charge for nearly the same amount of time, his plan to get more people vaccinated in order to stem the number of new cases relies on videos posted by the likes of Benito Skinner, better known on Instagram as @bennydrama7.
Apparently one of the influencers partnering with the Biden administration, Skinner posted a video on Monday in which he sports long acrylic nails and a skirt while skipping around the White House complex in character as "Kooper the Gen Z White House intern."
"Hey Jenny, I booked you a nail appointment love," Skinner says to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki who makes a cameo in the post. "We need to get shots in the arms of every single American," he adds.
In addition to his youth vaccination promotion on behalf of the White House, Skinner has made many other videos posted to his Twitter account under the same handle that are... interesting.
He's donned devil horns and makeup to celebrate pride, slipped into a pink mermaid tail, and impersonated everyone from the Kardashians to Lady Gaga to Billie Eilish.
Happy pride ?? pic.twitter.com/kNsWn0KH6P
— Benito Skinner (@BennyDRAMA7) June 2, 2021
Aquamarine (2006) @charli_xcx pic.twitter.com/210kZmzjoT
— Benito Skinner (@BennyDRAMA7) April 19, 2021
Monday's Instagram post was not the first time the Biden administration partnered with Skinner, having had him on a social media briefing Jen Psaki hosted in June.