Trump Posts, Then Deletes, Video Showing Obamas as Apes After Bipartisan Outrage
President Donald Trump sparked a major controversy after posting a video on his Truth Social account that showed former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama with their faces superimposed on primates in a jungle scene. The video, shared Thursday night, was part of a longer clip spreading false claims about the 2020 election.
Critics quickly condemned the imagery as a racist trope historically used to dehumanize Black people, triggering swift statements of disapproval from lawmakers and civil rights groups on both sides of the aisle.
According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, the meme came from an “internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from The Lion King,” and she urged critics to “stop the fake outrage.”
The backlash intensified, with Republican Senator Tim Scott saying he was “praying it was fake” and that Trump should remove the post. Other Republican and Democratic leaders also called it unacceptable.
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Hours after Leavitt’s defense, the post was deleted and a White House official told reporters it had been shared mistakenly by a staffer.
This episode came amid ongoing debates over Trump’s use of social media and AI-generated content in political discourse, raising concerns about vetting processes and respect for historically marginalized communities.
The Obamas have not publicly responded, and it remains unclear what internal White House changes may follow to prevent similar incidents.
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