President Donald Trump shared on his social media platform late Thursday evening a video that included a racist animation of former President Barack Obama and former first woman Michelle Obama depicted with the our bodies of apes.
After backlash, the White Home at about midday Friday stated the submit had been taken down from the president’s web page.
The roughly minutelong video, shared by Trump at 11:44 p.m. ET on Thursday, largely targeted on debunked claims concerning the 2020 election.
On the finish of the video, the Obamas’ faces seem abruptly and with out rationalization for seconds with the track “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” taking part in over it. The video then ends again on comparable imagery of the conspiracy video footage.
President Donald Trump speaks throughout a invoice signing ceremony within the Oval Workplace of the White Home in Washington, February 3, 2026.
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
The Obamas had no remark when ABC Information reached out to their representatives for a response.
White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when first requested for remark early Friday, had stated, “That is from an web meme video depicting President Trump because the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from the Lion King. Please cease the faux outrage and report on one thing at present that truly issues to the American public.”
Although later Friday afternoon, a White Home official informed ABC Information {that a} “staffer erroneously made the submit.”
The video reposted by Trump in a single day included solely imagery of the Obamas.
The meme video referenced by Leavitt was shared in October by the Hardin County Republican Social gathering of Kentucky on Fb, which led the chairman to challenge an apology and deleted the submit after swift backlash noting the lengthy historical past of racist tropes depicting Black folks as apes or monkeys — a software of slave merchants and segregationists to dehumanize them.
Former President Barack Obama and former first woman Michelle Obama pay attention throughout a State Funeral on the Nationwide Cathedral, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington, for former President George H.W. Bush.
Alex Brandon/AP
Trump’s in a single day repost was condemned by lawmakers on Capitol Hill, a few of whom had known as for it to be taken down and for the president to apologize.
Home Democratic Chief Hakeem Jeffries, the primary Black chief of a celebration in Congress, wrote on X: “President Obama and Michelle Obama are good, compassionate and patriotic Individuals. They characterize the perfect of this nation. Donald Trump is a vile, unhinged and malignant backside feeder.”
“Each single Republican should instantly denounce Donald Trump’s disgusting bigotry,” Jeffries wrote.
Republican Sen. Tim Scott, the one Black Republican within the Senate and in addition the top of the Nationwide Republican Senatorial Committee, posted on X: “Praying it was faux as a result of it is essentially the most racist factor I’ve seen out of this White Home. The President ought to take away it.”
Republican Sen. Roger Wicker wrote in a submit: “That is completely unacceptable. The president ought to take it down and apologize.”
Senate Minority Chief Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, wrote in a submit: “Racist. Vile. Abhorrent. That is harmful and degrades our nation — the place are Senate Republicans? The President should instantly delete the submit and apologize to Barack and Michelle Obama, two nice Individuals who make Donald Trump appear like a small, envious man.”
