Why does the White House keep beefing with pop stars?

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. When Sabrina Carpenter toured in 2024, her performance of the song “Juno" was often a bawdy concert highlight. The singer would pretend to arrest a fan with pink handcuffs, and as she sang the line “Have you ever tried this one?" she would mischievously act out a different sex position.

“Juno" appeared in a starkly different context this week when Immigration and Customs Enforcement used it as the soundtrack of a video promoting the organization’s deportation efforts. “Have you ever tried this one?" the caption read. “Bye-bye." Carpenter condemned the clip, calling it “evil and disgusting" on X.

“Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda," she wrote. Abigail Jackson, a White House spokesperson, countered with a statement that referenced the singer’s album title and lyrics. “Here’s a Short n’ Sweet message for Sabrina Carpenter: we won’t apologize for deporting dangerous criminal illegal murderers, rapists, and pedophiles from our country," Jackson said.

“Anyone who would defend these sick monsters must be stupid, or is it slow?" A representative for the singer declined to comment. This marks at least the fourth time in less than three months that a star artist—Bad Bunny, Zach Bryan, Olivia Rodrigo and now Carpenter—has taken flak from the White House, either for opposing ICE or objecting to the use of their song in an ICE-related video. While past administrations might ignore artists’ comments, keeping their powder dry for showdowns with political rivals, this one often prefers to fight fire with fire, taunting both Bryan and Carpenter by including their own words in playground-ready rebukes.