Donald Trump Jr. Is No Salt Bae

A New York Times profile of the president's oldest child, Donald Trump Jr., took a backseat to the article's main photo showing the 39-year-old sitting on a tree stump looking lost in thought. The photo was relentlessly mocked online following its release, mostly focusing on how out-of-place the billionaire's son looked in the natural setting. But on March 19, just a day after the article was published and the photo went viral, Trump Jr. responded to the tree meme with an Instagram post.

The post featured a screenshot of a tweet from writer Jordan Freiman poking fun at the way Trump Jr. sits, comparing the New York Times tree stump photo with other photos of the president's son seated. But, in the accompanying caption, Trump Jr. attempted to brush off the joke, writing:

Apparently I'm really bad at sitting?!?! Based on the memes out there I now know what it feels like to be Salt Bae! Thanks internet... And in all honesty if a couple bad pics is all you've got I'm pretty psyched. #tryharder #saltbae #trump#haters #hatersgonnahate

In his response, Trump Jr. referenced Salt Bae, a popular meme of chef Nusret Gökçe fantastically sprinkling salt of a steak screenshot from a video on the chef's own Instagram page. Over the past couple months, Salt Bae has become a sensation.

But there's one major thing Trump Jr. gets wrong in his response to "#haters." People all over the world love Salt Bae, and the meme is most often used as a shorthand for adding one's own personal touch to something. It's a meme about flair, style, and shameless self-expression. And, thanks to its popularity, Gökçe has become a beloved international celebrity in his own right.

On the other had, memes of Trump Jr. on the tree stump are nearly all at his expense, deriding him for his wealth, his privilege, and for just generally being unlikable.

So, no, Trump Jr. doesn't know what it's like to be Salt Bae, because Salt Bae is universally loved. And Trump Jr., the son and fierce defender of someone who said he could "grab [women] by the p---y" (among so many other terrible remarks), is most definitely not. (Insert Salt Bae meme here.)

The only thing going for Trump Jr. is that he seems like he can take a joke at least a little bit better than the man he is named after. But by no means does that make him Salt Bae. Nice try, Trump Jr. Nice try.