Photography In 2016, Wintrich created "Twinks4Trump", a controversial photo series that featured young, slim, and often shirtless gay men known as "
twinks" wearing "
Make America Great Again" baseball caps, which were associated with
Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Primarily shot in his
East Village apartment, the photos were intended to challenge both the religious right and the progressive left, provoking discussions around sexuality, politics, and identity. The event, described by
Rolling Stone as a gathering of trolls, aimed to provide an alternative perspective to the mainstream convention proceedings. Wintrich's photos served as a backdrop for speeches delivered by controversial figures such as
Pamela Geller,
Geert Wilders,
Jim Hoft, and
Milo Yiannopoulos. The series received mixed reactions from both supporters and critics. Supporters praised it for its audacity and for challenging societal norms and political conventions. Some detractors also accused Wintrich of co-opting gay culture and exploiting it for political purposes. In an op-ed for
The Hill, Wintrich stated that he was dismissed from his position at
Anomaly for his political views, and had been up for a promotion before his dismissal. Wintrich sued Anomaly for wrongful termination and reached an out-of-court settlement. The exhibition featured a range of artworks that explored various themes related to conservative values, political commentary, and societal dynamics.
Martin Shkreli displayed a single pill with a $20,000 price tag, a reference to his negative public image. Funding for the exhibition was raised through a crowdfunding campaign on
Indiegogo, as well as private donor contributions, totaling $22,500. The exhibition garnered significant attention but was met with heavy criticism from various outlets. The art show was later featured in the 2021 documentary
Pharma Bro. The day before Donald Trump's inauguration, Wintrich was appointed as the inaugural White House correspondent for the Gateway Pundit, despite lacking formal journalism training. Wintrich described his role in the White House Press Corps as "performance art" and said his position served two purposes: "writing about dry policy stuff" and "trolling the media." He spawned the "#FireColbert" movement, wherein he characterized the night show host's joke involving Trump and
Vladimir Putin in a gay relationship as a "disgusting 12-minute homophobic rant" He frequently used social media to criticize and mock mainstream press outlets for having what he perceived as biases and shortcomings. Following this episode, Wintrich took to
Periscope for a live stream, connecting with his supporters while preparing to cook two lobsters, one of which he named Jared Holt, after the reporter from Right Wing Watch who had actively publicized Wintrich's participation on Fuentes's program. On February 15, 2017, Wintrich was scheduled to speak to the
College Republicans at
New York University (NYU), but the talk was postponed over security concerns. On March 23, 2017, he addressed the NYU College Republicans. On March 10, 2017, Wintrich was confronted by a fellow White House correspondent,
Jon Decker of
Fox News in the
White House Briefing Room, who loudly accused Wintrich of being a
white supremacist. Wintrich fired back at Decker, calling him a "nazi homophobe". After the briefing,
April Ryan of
American Urban Radio Networks approached Wintrich with a live camera and questioned him whether or not he was a racist.
Ben Jacobs of
The Guardian described Wintrich engaging with Ryan as him "holding his own briefing because nothing matters." In May 2017, Wintrich encountered
Malia Obama at the now defunct Parlor club in
Soho, New York. Malia Obama ran up to confront Wintrich at the private social club; Wintrich told Jennifer Mass of Hollywood Life, "I started laughing. I turned around and it was Malia Obama staring me down so I tried to snap a picture while she was staring me down and she came up to me and started yelling." On November 28, 2017, Wintrich was arrested after an altercation in which he, as an invited guest speaker, was lecturing at the podium, when a woman came up heckling and ultimately snatched the written copy of his speech directly from the lectern during a talk at the
University of Connecticut entitled "
It's OK to Be White". He was initially charged with
breach of peace. In December 2017, the charges against Wintrich were dropped and the woman who took the papers,
Quinebaug Valley Community College advisor Catherine Gregory, was charged with attempted sixth-degree
larceny and
disorderly conduct. Gregory was freed after posting $1,000 bail on charges of attempted larceny and disorderly conduct. In January 2018, it was revealed that Wintrich was close associates with
Chelsea Manning. Outings for the two included an "
Escape Room" in Washington, DC and cocktail parties at Wintrich's Washington, DC, apartment where journalists and public figures would play
Cards Against Humanity. As Manning was aligned with
far-left groups such as
Antifa at the time, the relationship generated brief controversy. In February 2018, Wintrich tweeted the
conspiracy theory that some survivors of the
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, who had spoken to the media about
gun control in the wake of the tragedy, were "
trained actors who were recruited by [George]
Soros-linked organizations as spokespeople after a crisis." The tweet was liked by
Donald Trump Jr. but was much criticized by others, including shooting survivor
David Hogg, whom Wintrich accused of being "heavily coached" for interviews. Wintrich defended his claim in Vanity Fair and showed incredulity at the supposed skills of his detractors.
2026 U.S. House campaign Wintrich is running in
the 2026 election for
New York's 12th congressional district as a Republican. ==References==