Donald Trump Deletes Video Depicting Obamas as Apes

The official account of U.S. President Donald Trump removed a controversial video from Truth Social on Friday after bipartisan criticism over a racially offensive depiction of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

The video, which remained online for nearly 12 hours after being posted late Thursday, promoted conspiracy claims related to voting machines in the 2020 presidential election, according to CNBC.

The video, which was posted late Thursday night and remained online for nearly 12 hours, included a racially offensive image portraying former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as monkeys. The clip promoted conspiracy claims related to voting machines during the 2020 presidential election.

According to CNBC, the White House initially defended the post before it was taken down.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in an emailed statement Friday morning that the footage was taken from a satirical online video depicting Trump as “king of the jungle” and Democrats as characters from The Lion King.

“Please stop the manufactured outrage and focus on what truly matters to the American people,” Leavitt wrote.

Hours later, however, the post was deleted from Trump’s Truth Social account.

A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a staff member had mistakenly shared the video and that it was later removed. The administration did not immediately respond to follow-up questions from CNBC, including the identity of the staffer or whether the video had been posted to other official presidential accounts.

A source familiar with the matter later told CNBC that Trump “had not seen the video before it was posted” and ordered its removal once informed.

The initial White House response included a link to a longer version of the video that had been published on October 24 by a pro-Trump parody account on X.

Beyond depicting the Obamas as monkeys, the extended video showed other animals bearing the faces of prominent Democratic figures, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Trump was portrayed as a lion, with the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” by The Tokens playing in the background.

The post drew criticism from several Republican lawmakers.

Senator Tim Scott, a close Trump ally, wrote on X that he hoped the image was fabricated, calling it “the most racist thing I’ve seen from this White House.” He urged the president to delete it.

Representative Mike Lawler, a New York Republican considered politically vulnerable in the upcoming November elections, also condemned the post.

“The president’s post was wrong and highly offensive, whether intentional or accidental, and should be taken down immediately with an apology,” Lawler wrote.

The incident underscores renewed political tensions ahead of the election cycle, as debates over race, media conduct, and online content continue to intensify in Washington.