©  GIPHY News

What a surreal moment: A former president of the United States, booked at a county jail, mug shot and all. 

We got an answer to the question everyone was wondering — would former President Trump smile at the Fulton County Jail? — with his stern stare fixed on camera.

Expect to see this mug shot *everywhere*. This should keep Etsy sellers busier than during bachelorette party season or Black Friday. Here’s the historic mug shot 

Trump traveled from his Bedminster, N.J., golf club to Atlanta to surrender on Thursday evening in the Georgia case over claims of election interference. After going through the standard booking process and being released on $200,000 bond, he briefly spoke with reporters before flying back to New Jersey.  

The former president then spoke with Fox News Digital and Newsmax before rounding out his day by rejoining X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Here’s his first tweet  

Wow, what a striking comparison: Check out Trump’s timeline. The last tweet before last night was from Jan. 8, 2021, right after the insurrection. 

Trump recounting his indictments: “I went through an experience that I never thought I’d have to go through, but then I’ve gone through the same experience three other times. In my whole life, I didn’t know anything about indictments. And now I’ve been indicted, like, four times,” he told Newsmax. 

Never heard of it?: “I took a mug shot, which I’d never heard the words mug shot…They didn’t teach me that at the Wharton school of finance,” Trump said.

More of Trump recounting his experience 

It’s Friday, Aug. 25. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here. 

Photos of Trump walking off his plane via C-SPAN.

That is an insane number of vehicles: Check out the motorcade escorting the *former* president. It looks more like a parade than a police escort. Video from C-SPAN’s Howard Mortman 

^ More footage of the massive motorcade 

What a hot week for camera crews: BBC News’s Carl Nasman posted video of journalists outside of Fulton County Jail in 95-degree heat. Watch 

Trump's official booking: The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld noted that “Trump's booking report was posted before he even walked in the door. His weight/height is already posted, so it's not being measured inside the jail.” The official booking report 

Tidbit from a commercial airline at Newark airport: NBC News’s Ben Collins posted, “On the tarmac at Newark Airport right now and pilot just noted you can see former President Trump’s plane out the left window and cop cars presumably transporting him onto it. Whole plane audibly groaned.” Photo 

Spotted: CNN’s Alayna Treene posted that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) was seen at the Atlanta airport “before she headed to the Fulton County jail where she [planned] to protest his indictment.” 

The front page of today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution 

@acyn posted a clip of Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on Fox News last night with host Laura Ingraham. Ingraham cut Ramaswamy off mid-sentence and said, “AlL right Vivek, we gotta get back to the Trump chase.” Watch the 12-second clip 

The Messenger’s Marty Kady commented, “Pretty much sums up the moment.”  

The first GOP debate of the 2024 presidential primary season began on Fox News this week with an unusual prompt: a clip of a low-budget country song from singer Oliver Anthony, who had no public name recognition as of three weeks ago.  

“Rich Men North of Richmond” exploded to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart this week and has been praised by a host of right-wing figures. 

But it’s not just a viral one-off: Jason Aldean’s controversial conservative hit “Try That in a Small Town” and the faith-based movie thriller “Sound of Freedom” have also exploded in popularity this summer. 

Why this is notable: "Hollywood" has long been synonymous with progressive media. Republicans have scoffed at the powerful microphone that they believe liberal elites hold in television, film and music. And as the country becomes increasingly polarized, conservatives are coalescing to amplify their own voices.  

We may be entering a new era of partisan pop culture: Read my full reporting on what this means for pop culture going forward.  

©  GIPHY/ The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Sweetgreen is launching an outpost on the House side of Capitol Hill Sept. 6, according to an email announcement obtained by The Hill. 

What is a Sweetgreen outpost?: “Your company is set up as a new pickup location in the sweetgreen app and online, and you’ll have a dedicated courier who delivers all orders to your location at a set time(s) daily for maximum convenience.” More details from Sweetgreen 

The most-read article on The Hill today really strikes a nerve among Americans.  

The Hill’s Joseph Choi reports that “the recent upturn in COVID-19 cases in some regions has spurred a handful of entities around the country to reinstate mask mandates, reigniting the debate over what place masking requirements have in an era of living with the coronavirus.”  

How bad is COVID-19 at the moment?: “Nationally, hospitalizations due to COVID-19 have been rising the past few weeks. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), however, shows that hospital admission rates are still considered low in 97 percent of the U.S.”  

What we know about emerging mask mandates 

RELATED: 

• The Washington Post’s Fenit Nirappil reports that “a highly mutated form of the coronavirus that threatens to be the most adept yet at slipping past the body’s immune defenses is capturing the attention of virologists and health officials.” The full Washington Post story 

The Washington Post’s Azi Paybarah posted screenshots of the Thursday and Friday covers of the New York Daily News featuring the mug shots of former President Trump and longtime ally Rudy Giuliani. See the covers 

And here is yesterday’s New York Post cover. Photo from CNN’s Wolf Blitzer 

The House and Senate are out. President Biden is in Nevada, and Vice President Harris is in Washington, D.C. 

• 🏀 2 p.m.: Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff welcome the Las Vegas Aces to the White House to celebrate their 2022 WNBA Championship. Livestream 
• 🥘 August 28: Summer Restaurant Week begins in Washington, D.C. List of participating restaurants 
• 🗓️ September 5: The Senate returns. Senate calendar 
• 🗓️ September 12: The House returns. House calendar  
  
  

All times Eastern.

Today is National Whiskey Sour Day! 

©  GIPHY/Will & Grace

And to get you in a weekend mindset, here's a dog who likes cheese — and another dog who REALLY loves cheese. 

If I’m being honest, I absolutely relate to dog No. 2. 

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