Just hours after being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump’s administration shut down the Spanish-language version of the official White House website. According to an Associated Press report on Thursday, Wednesday, January 22, 2025, the website (https://www.whitehouse.gov/es/) gives users an “Error 404” message with a button that reads “Go to Home Page.”
Per the publication, the news was met with confusion from several Hispanic advocacy groups over the lack of efforts to maintain communication with the Spanish community that supported him during his presidential campaign.
As news spread, internet users were quick to react. One commented:
Many called out those who voted for the billionaire, one even questioning why they were quiet. Here are some comments seen under @theshareroom’s post on Instagram:
Others criticized Trump for the action:
Trump’s administration also shut down the White House’s Spanish profile on X and the government’s reproductive freedom website
According to the Associated Press, in addition to the Spanish version of the White House website, the Spanish profile for Trump’s administration on X (user @LaCasaBlanca) and the government page about reproductive freedom were also taken down.
The button on the disbanded website initially led to a video montage of Trump during his first term but was later updated to take users to the White House homepage.
Notably, Spanish versions of other government websites, such as those of the Department of Labor, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Agriculture, remain available.
Upon inquiry into the reasons behind the move, Harrison Fields, the principal deputy press secretary for the White House, told the Associated Press that the administration was “committed to bringing back online the Spanish translation section of the website.”
“It’s day two. We are in the process of developing, editing and tweaking the White House website. As part of this ongoing work, some of the archived content on the website went dormant. We are committed to reloading that content in a short timeline.”
Several Latino leaders have expressed their confusion and concern over the move, considering POTUS’ popularity within the community. According to the publication, almost half of young Latino men voted for Trump as compared to 6 in 10 voting Democrat during the 2020 elections.
This is not the first time Trump’s administration has taken down the page, doing so during his first term (in 2017). Per the publication, at the time, a spokesperson for the White House asserted that it would be reinstated. However, it wasn’t until former president Joe Biden’s term (in 2021) that it was reinstated. Frankie Miranda, President and CEO of the Hispanic Federation, told AP:
“If the White House is seriously interested in engaging with Latinos, the second largest group in this country, then they need to make sure that updates can also be distributed in Spanish, a preferred language for millions in our community.”
Since his term began, Donald Trump has signed several orders, including pardoning his supporters who rioted at the US Capitol in January 2021, withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement (a second time), and removing limits on America’s fossil fuel industry.
Edited by Shreya Das