--- title: White House Sinkhole Appears on Lawn, Internet Jokes description: The Internet is having a field day in the wake of reports that a sinkhole has developed on the White House's North Lawn. canonical: https://time.com/5287474/white-house-sinkhole-reactions/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-05-22T18:40:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T09:28:24.899Z og:title: There's a Metaphor-Ready Sinkhole on the White House Lawn og:description: "There is no better metaphor" og:url: https://time.com/5287474/white-house-sinkhole-reactions/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7140e3c31b76def6/6989312897cdff73d06b54d6/white-house-sinkhole.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: The-White-House og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: There's a Metaphor-Ready Sinkhole on the White House Lawn twitter:description: "There is no better metaphor" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7140e3c31b76def6/6989312897cdff73d06b54d6/white-house-sinkhole.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Sinkhole Has Been Spotted on the White House Lawn and the Metaphors Write Themselves > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=3bc378d1-cd0e-4d77-b4c3-48ae9b6534fb&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: A Sinkhole Has Been Spotted on the White House Lawn [Watch (HLS stream): A Sinkhole Has Been Spotted on the White House Lawn](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/H8Ix3Pbd.m3u8) (0:26)  _Published 2018-05-22. People are having some fun with reports that a White House sinkhole has developed on the North Lawn._  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer May 22, 2018 6:40 PM UTC People are having some fun with reports that a White House sinkhole has developed on the North Lawn.  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer May 22, 2018 6:40 PM UTC People are having some fun with reports that a White House [sinkhole](http://www.thedrive.com/news/19539/worker-in-pickup-truck-survives-150-foot-fall-into-massive-golf-course-sinkhole) has developed on the [North Lawn](http://time.com/5286511/us-north-korea-summit-coin/). The hole [appears](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/sinkhole-appears-on-white-house-lawn/) to be just outside the office of White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley and has been roped off with caution tape and traffic cones by groundskeepers. However, according to some observers, it appears to be getting bigger. “This week I’ve been observing a sinkhole on the [@WhiteHouse](https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse) North Lawn, just outside the press briefing room, growing larger by the day,” [tweeted](https://twitter.com/W7VOA/status/998919472567275520) Voice of America White House Bureau Chief Steve Herman on Tuesday. News of the sinkhole has quickly spread on Twitter, giving users an opportunity to crack jokes about the unexpected development, including Dictionary.com. “Sinkhole: A hole formed in soluble rock by the action of water,” the dictionary site wrote. “Also a sinkhole: A place into which foul matter runs.” > [](https://twitter.com/W7VOA/status/998919472567275520) > [](https://twitter.com/Dictionarycom/status/998986987590901761) See some other reactions below. > [](https://twitter.com/JessicaKRoy/status/998982210790227968) > [](https://twitter.com/RufusOverYrHead/status/998968852112396288) > [](https://twitter.com/ShePlaysGuitars/status/998968436800794624) > [](https://twitter.com/Brian%5FLifeOf/status/998968235289702400) > [](https://twitter.com/Coach%5FCrash/status/998951481817563137) > [](https://twitter.com/sullivka/status/998964709230632960) > [](https://twitter.com/TigerKern/status/998971791308664833) ## Transcript [00:00] [ BLANK_AUDIO ] I don't think [ INAUDIBLE ]. [00:00] [ BLANK_AUDIO ] [ INAUDIBLE ] Yes. 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