One of the rare moments of joy during President Donald Trump‘s 2024 presidential campaign and eventual second presidency has been the proliferation of baby-faced JD Vance memes: Some have him bald; some have him with curly hair; some will make your stomach churn; and some will make you wish that guy from England never invented the internet. He’s been memed into a minion, a goth rocker, a Bob Ross, a Shrek, and a purple Violet Beauregarde—but they all feature him with exaggerated baby cheeks and at least one of them may or may not have gotten a 21-year-old from Denmark in trouble with Customs and Border Patrol and barred from entering the U.S.

It (most likely) didn’t, but it’s a deeply believable story. We’re living under a vain and pathetic but wannabe authoritarian regime, which has detained protesters and arrested students for writing op-eds, so we’re all forgiven for believing it to be true. Regardless of what really happened, the story itself means the meme has now officially gone international, which is fun.

On June 11, Mads Mikkelsen said he was denied entry at Newark Liberty International Airport because CBP found the bald, baby-faced Vance meme on his phone and considered it “extremist propaganda.” He claims CBP interrogated him about drug trafficking and terrorism, threatened him with fines or jail time if he didn’t hand over his phone, and then sent him back home to Norway after finding the meme. The Norwegian newspaper Nordlys first reported the story; British tabloids picked it up; and on Tuesday, Irish lawmaker Ivana Bacik held up a printout of the meme in Irish Parliament—which is now one of my all-time favorite images.

Ivana Bacik speaks while holding up meme of US VP JD Vance in Irish Parliament. pic.twitter.com/S0jLf8a4sa

— NO CONTEXT HUMANS (@HumansNoContext) June 26, 2025

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denied all this, writing on social media: “Claims that Mads Mikkelsen was denied entry because of a JD Vance meme are FALSE. Mikkelsen was refused entry into the U.S. for his admitted drug use.”

Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin also denied it, posting a screenshot of Daily Mail‘s story on Twitter, which included the Vance meme, and writing, “BS.” Succinct!

BS. Claims that Mads Mikkelsen was denied entry because of a JD Vance meme are FALSE.

Mikkelsen was refused entry into the U.S. for his admitted drug use. pic.twitter.com/AbXczQ8tg5

— Tricia McLaughlin (@TriciaOhio) June 24, 2025

Mikkelsen told Nordlys that he’d told agents he legally consumed cannabis in both Germany and New Mexico; I’m grateful he was honest, and I’m even more grateful to DHS for making sure this craven, maniacal, clearly dangerous drug addict was barred from entering Gildead the Great United States of America 🫡🇺🇸🦅🫡🫡🦅🇺🇸🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸! Even if he does have excellent taste in memes.

10 years after the Obergefell decision, only 40% of Republicans support gay marriage. [Associated Press]
Despite a promise to remove the “worst of the worst,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement has arrested only 6% of known immigrant murderers. [NBC News]
The Trump administration appeared to confuse Mahmoud Khalil with Kilmar Abrego Garcia. [Mother Jones]
ICE imprisoned the wife of a Marine Corps veteran—who was still nursing their 3-month-old baby—because her *mother* failed to attend a hearing in 2018. [Associated Press]
The Washington Post published an op-ed from Kristi Noem with the headline: “Harvard flouted the rules. Now it’s getting a hard lesson.” Interesting choice. Thanks, WaPo! [Bluesky]

Florida is building a concentration camp called Alligator Alcatraz. [New York Times]
Sen. Mitch McConnell on Medicaid cuts: “They’ll get over it.” [NOTUS]
Speaker Mike Johnson is warning Senate Republicans about losing seats due to Medicaid backlash. [Politico]
Wheelchair users were arrested and cuffed with zip ties at the Capitol for protesting Medicaid cuts. [CNBC]
88-year-old D.C. delegate in Congress insisted for the second time she’s running for re-election. Her office again says no decision has been made. [NBC News]
Fox News’ chyron on Mamdani’s very good policies. [Bluesky]

“Kennedy Withdraws U.S. Funding Pledge to International Vaccine Agency.” Cool! [New York Times]
Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee tweeted that “Zohran ‘little muhammad’ Mamdani” should be deported and denaturalized. So cool! [The Hill]

This has been your weekly Barf Bag, thanks for reading!

Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that it was ICE, not CBP, that denied Mads Mikkelsen entry to the U.S. We regret the error.