A Norwegian tourist says his U.S. vacation turned into a nightmare after border agents allegedly denied him entry over a meme mocking Vice President JD Vance.
Mads Mikkelsen, 21, was flying to visit friends in New York and Texas when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) searched his phone and found a viral image of Vance with a bald, egg-shaped head. He claims that led to 12 hours of interrogation, a strip search, and deportation.
“They treated me like a criminal,” Mads told Norwegian outlet Nordlys. He says agents threatened jail and a fine unless he gave up his phone password, then flagged the meme and a photo of him holding a homemade pipe as “problematic.”
CBP strongly denied the meme was the issue. “False,” the agency posted on X. “He was denied entry for admitted drug use.” The Department of Homeland Security echoed that statement.
Despite that, Mads insists his treatment was excessive and politically motivated. He describes being held without food or water, blood-tested, and scanned. “I felt like I was being treated as a terrorist.”
The meme—originally a joke from X user @DaveMcNamee3000—remains widely shared online. Meanwhile, the case is fueling debate about border searches and digital privacy.
Mads says he no longer feels safe returning to the U.S. Norway’s Foreign Ministry is urging travelers to review U.S. digital policies carefully.
His dream trip, he says, ended in humiliation.