President Donald J. Trump posted a video on his Truth Social platform late Thursday night that shows a very controversial portrayal of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. This has sparked a firestorm of criticism from both sides of the aisle. The video mostly talked about unproven claims about the 2020 election. At the end, there was a short part that showed the faces of the country’s first Black president and first lady superimposed on the bodies of dancing apes.
The post has become the center of a heated national debate as of February 6, 2026. Democratic leaders, civil rights groups, and even high-ranking members of the President’s own party have quickly condemned it.
Inside the Video: Election Conspiracies and AI Imagery
The 62-second video that the President shared looks like a mix of conservative internet memes and pictures made by AI. Most of the video repeats false claims about Dominion Voting Systems and the 2020 presidential election, but the last two seconds switched to a “jungle theme.”
The part shows different Democratic leaders as jungle animals, with the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” playing in the background. The Obamas are shown as monkeys for a short time, while President Trump is shown as a lion (the “King of the Jungle”). The clip is said to have come from a meme creator on the platform X (formerly Twitter) in late 2025. However, its distribution through the official account of the sitting President has made it an international news story.
Bipartisan Backlash: “There is No Bottom”
The response from Capitol Hill was quick. Political disagreements are common in the current administration, but the way this image was used—long thought to be a racist trope used to dehumanize Black Americans—was too much for many lawmakers.
Notable Reactions:
- Senator Tim Scott (R-SC): The sole Black Republican in the Senate expressed profound disappointment, stating on X, “I am praying this was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House. The President should remove it.”
- Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA): A vocal critic of the administration, Newsom’s office called the post “disgusting behavior” and challenged every Republican to denounce it.
- Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY): The House Minority Leader described the President as a “vile, unhinged, and malignant bottom feeder” following the post’s circulation.
- NAACP: President Derrick Johnson issued a statement calling the video “blatantly racist, disgusting, and utterly despicable.”
“Let it haunt Trump and his racist followers that future Americans will embrace the Obamas as beloved figures while studying him as a stain on our history.” — Ben Rhodes, former National Security Advisor to Barack Obama.
The White House Defense: “Fake Outrage”
At first, the White House stood by the post. Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, said that the backlash was just the media’s way of trying to make a scandal during Black History Month.
Leavitt called the video a “internet meme” based on the 1994 movie The Lion King. In it, Democrats were just different animals to show a “political jungle.” She told the press to “stop the fake outrage and report on something that really matters to the American people.”
But as the pressure grew—reportedly including private calls from Republican lawmakers—the story changed. The post was gone from the President’s Truth Social account by Friday afternoon. Later, a high-ranking official at the White House said that the post had been “mistakenly made by a staffer” and was taken down as soon as the mistake was found.
Historical Context and Digital Norms
The incident shows how the Trump administration’s “meme-heavy” social media strategy is still at odds with the traditional behavior expected of the president. Since starting his second term, President Trump has often used AI-generated images and controversial videos to get around traditional media and talk directly to his base.
Critics say that by sharing this kind of content, the government makes dehumanizing language seem normal. On the other hand, supporters see these posts as harmless jokes meant to “troll” political opponents and keep people interested in a crowded online world.
What Happens Next?
As of Friday, neither Barack Obama nor Michelle Obama have made an official statement about the video. But the political fallout is likely to last through the weekend.
People are already asking legislative leaders if this will make it harder for both parties to work together on upcoming economic bills. The “Lion King” meme is now part of a growing list of digital controversies that show how the 47th president interacts with social media and talks about race.