Trump Declines Apology After Sharing Video Depicting Obamas as Apes

Former President Donald Trump on Friday rejected calls to apologise after he shared and later deleted a video on his Truth Social account that included a racist depiction of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama.

Speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he had made “no mistake” in posting the video and had no plans to issue an apology.

“I didn’t make a mistake,” he said.

The roughly one-minute clip, posted late Thursday, largely pushed false claims about voter fraud and alleged irregularities involving voting machines in the 2020 election. Near the end, however, the video included a brief but offensive segment reported to be AI-generated showing the Obamas’ faces superimposed onto apes, accompanied by the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.”

Trump said he had not watched the entire video before it was shared.

“I didn’t see the whole thing. I looked at the first part, and it was really about voter fraud in the machines, how crooked it is, how disgusting it is,” he said. “Then I gave it to the people. Generally, they look at the whole thing. But I guess somebody didn’t.”

The post triggered swift backlash from across the political spectrum.

Several Republican lawmakers condemned the imagery as offensive and called for its removal. The video was taken down from Truth Social after several hours.

White House officials initially described the video as an “internet meme,” but later said it had been posted in error by a staff member.

When asked directly whether he denounced the racist imagery shown in the clip, Trump replied, “Of course I do.”