The Pokémon Company issued a formal public condemnation of the White House today after the Trump administration used Pokémon imagery in an official government post without permission. This follows a prior incident in which the Department of Homeland Security used the Pokémon theme song and the franchise's iconic catchphrase "Gotta catch 'em all" in a video depicting immigration arrests. The Pokémon Company responded then by stating it had no involvement in the content and had not granted permission. Now the White House has done it again with a new Pokémon meme, prompting a second formal statement in which the company declared its "mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda."​

When the BBC sought comment from the White House, the administration implied The Pokémon Company may possess a political bias — a response that falls in line with a pattern of the current administration pushing back against brands that object to unauthorized use of their intellectual property. The Pokémon Company has not clarified whether it plans to pursue legal action. Legal observers have previously noted that while the IP violation is clear, executives at The Pokémon Company's US operations hold green card status, a factor that may complicate the calculus around directly suing the federal government.

The broader context matters here. Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are among the most aggressive IP enforcers in the entertainment industry globally. They sued Palworld maker Pocketpair over patent infringement in Tokyo District Court and have consistently pursued every unauthorized use of their characters at scale. The fact that a foreign company is publicly condemning the sitting US president for using their brand without permission twice — while the White House responds by questioning their political neutrality — is an extraordinary situation that has no real precedent in the gaming or entertainment industry.

BREAKING: The Pokémon Company Just Condemned the White House for Stealing Its Brand Without Permission 🚨