Trump Deletes Video Depicting Obamas As Monkeys After Widespread Backlash

President Donald Trump appears to have deleted a video on his social media platform, Truth Social, depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys after receiving widespread backlash, including from Republicans.

The original post with the video can no longer be found on Trump's profile on Truth Social as of Friday at noon. According to Axios, the White House blamed a staffer for erroneously posting the video.

Trump has not reacted publicly to the video, for which he was widely criticized. Heat even came from allies like Republican Senator Tim Scott, who called it "the most racist thing I've seen out of this White House." "Praying it was fake," Scott added before the images were removed.

The images in question featured the Obamas' faces superimposed on monkeys along with new false claims about the 2020 election.

The one-minute video, originally produced by outlet Patriot News, repeated allegations that ballot-counting company Dominion Voting Systems helped steal the 2020 election in favor of Joe Biden. Near the end of the clip, the Obamas' faces appear on animated monkeys while the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" plays. As of Friday morning, the post had received thousands of likes and reposts.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom's press office also criticized the post, stating: "Disgusting behavior by the President. Every single Republican must denounce this. Now."

Besides the controversial images of the Obamas, the video included claims that voting machines in battleground states were manipulated, that hidden wireless modems transmitted vote data, and that counting pauses were used to alter results. Courts, state officials, and federal agencies previously found no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election. Dominion reached a $787.5 million defamation settlement with Fox News in 2023 over similar allegations.

In recent statements, Trump has also suggested the federal government should take greater control over election administration, a proposal legal scholars say conflicts with the Constitution's delegation of election management to the states.

• Trump Ally Tim Scott Calls On Him To Remove Video Depicting Obamas As Monkeys: 'Most Racist Thing I've Seen Out Of This White House'
• Trump Draws Backlash for Sharing Video Depicting Obamas as Monkeys: 'This Is Overt Racism'

© 2025 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.