I made ‘no mistake’ sharing video depicting Obamas as apes – Trump

United States President Donald Trump has defended himself for briefly sharing a video on his official Truth Social account that depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump insisted he had done nothing wrong and said he does not owe an apology.

“I didn’t make a mistake,” Trump said. “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. Then I gave it to the people.”

When asked whether he condemned the video’s content, Trump replied, “Of course I do.”

The video, posted late Thursday, pushed a conspiracy theory about voting machines used during the 2020 election and included a racist depiction of the Obamas.

It remained on Trump’s account for roughly 12 hours before being deleted on Friday morning, following widespread bipartisan calls for its removal.

Earlier on Friday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the post in an emailed statement to reporters, saying it was “from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from The Lion King.”

Leavitt added, “Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public.”

Hours after the statement, the video was removed from Trump’s Truth Social account.