President Donald Trump shared a video on his Truth Social account late Thursday night that included a racist depiction of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes in a jungle setting.
The roughly one-minute clip, which also promoted false claims of 2020 election fraud, featured the Obamas’ faces superimposed on cartoon primates near the end, accompanied by the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.
” The post remained online for about 12 hours before being deleted on Friday amid widespread condemnation.The video drew immediate bipartisan backlash, with critics labeling it blatantly racist and invoking a long history of dehumanizing tropes against Black people. Republican senators, including Tim Scott, called it “unacceptable” and “the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,” while Democrats and civil rights leaders condemned it as offensive.
The White House initially defended the post as originating from an “internet meme video” and dismissed some reactions as “fake outrage,” but later attributed the sharing to a staffer who “erroneously” made the post.Trump refused to apologize on Friday, insisting he “didn’t make a mistake” and claiming he hadn’t seen the offensive final frames. He blamed a staffer for the error but stood by not expressing regret for the incident.
The deletion marked an unusual walk-back for the president, following pressure from allies and opponents alike.The episode has intensified debates over racial imagery in political discourse, particularly during Black History Month, with some observers noting its ties to historical racist caricatures and ongoing election-related conspiracies.
