President Donald Trump on Feb. 6, 2026, removed a video from his Truth Social feed that portrayed former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes, prompting bipartisan criticism and leading the White House to say a staffer posted it.
The clip, posted at 11:44 p.m. ET on Thursday, Feb. 5, stayed on Trump’s social media platform until around midday Friday, when it was removed as pressure intensified from lawmakers across the political spectrum.
The roughly one-minute video largely focused on claims regarding the 2020 election. At the 59-second mark of the one minute two second video, images depicting the Obamas as apes suddenly appeared, set to the 1961 track “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” A watermark reading Patriot News Outlet was visible before the footage shifted back to similar conspiracy-themed visuals.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt first defended the upload, referring to it as an online meme and dismissing criticism as manufactured outrage. By midday Friday, the administration changed its explanation, stating a White House staffer had mistakenly posted the video.
In response, Barack Obama referred to the social media activity as a “clown circus.”
Republican Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, the Senate’s only Black Republican, described the post as “the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,” urging Trump to take it down.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the first Black congressional party leader, issued a sharp rebuke. “President Obama and Michelle Obama are brilliant, compassionate, and patriotic Americans,” Jeffries wrote, calling Trump vile and malignant.
Republican Representative Mike Lawler labeled the post extremely offensive, while Republican Senator Roger Wicker said it was entirely unacceptable. Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick demanded a direct apology from Trump, and Republican Representative Mike Turner echoed that call.
Senator Pete Ricketts acknowledged the racist nature of the imagery, stating that any reasonable viewer would recognize its racist implications even if intended as a meme reference.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer questioned the stance of Senate Republicans, calling the video racist and dangerous. Republican Senator John Curtis denounced the content as blatantly racist and inexcusable, noting how long it stayed online. Senator Katie Britt said the post should never have gone up and that it did not reflect American values.
Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned the racist imagery and its ties to the historical dehumanization of Black Americans.
The episode renewed attention on Trump’s posting patterns and his longstanding conflict with the Obama family. Trump launched Truth Social in February 2022 after being banned from major platforms. The site has served as his primary channel for communicating with supporters, sharing everything from policy commentary to personal attacks to reposted videos and memes.
Trump’s tensions with the Obamas date back more than a decade, including his promotion of false claims about Obama’s birthplace.
Critics argue that the incident aligns with a familiar pattern in Trump’s online conduct. They often accuse him of using controversy to distract from politically damaging developments.
Supporters of the president often claim that backlash to his posts is politically motivated. They argue he simply shares material he finds interesting or humorous, not necessarily endorsing everything in it. Critics counter that the president’s platform carries inherent authority, and sharing content still amplifies it, regardless of intent.
The Friday claim that a staffer made the post raised questions about White House social media oversight and who can access the president’s accounts. The shift from initially defending the post to later blaming staff signaled possible internal disagreement about communication strategy or a response to the scale of public criticism.
For Democrats, the incident created an opportunity to emphasize what they describe as Trump’s pattern of racist conduct and to challenge Republicans to either defend indefensible material or distance themselves from their party leader. The fact that numerous prominent Republicans criticized the post suggested the imagery crossed a boundary even for those typically hesitant to publicly oppose Trump.