After Epstein files, Trump posts Obamas as apes

On the night of February 5, President Donald Trump shared an AI-generated video on Truth Social that depicts Barack and Michelle Obama with their faces superimposed on the bodies of apes in a jungle setting. The Obamas appear for a second or two near the end of a roughly one-minute clip that otherwise pushes false claims about 2020 election fraud, reports the New York Times.

The White House has defended the post, saying it came from an internet meme portraying Trump as "King of the Jungle" and Democrats as "Lion King" characters, dismissing the backlash as "fake outrage." Civil rights advocates and elected officials have condemned the post as blatantly racist, invoking the long-standing racist trope of comparing Black people to apes.

This came just days after the Epstein files released Friday revealed over 5,300 documents containing more than 38,000 references to Trump, his wife, Mar-a-Lago, and related terms. The files include unverified FBI tips accusing Trump and Epstein of sexual abuse, interview notes where victims describe interactions with Trump, and evidence their relationship continued longer than Trump has admitted. Prosecutors privately flagged Trump for as many as eight previously undisclosed flights on Epstein's plane.

Trump claimed Saturday that the files "absolved me," but the documents tell a different story — one that dominated headlines until this video conveniently changed the subject. When you're staring down 38,000 references in pedophile sex trafficking documents, posting something so deliberately inflammatory that it becomes the new story is Trump's way to control the news cycle. A

Previously:
• The Epstein files contain over 5,300 documents mentioning Trump
• "Highly disturbing allegations of Donald Trump raping children"
• Donald Trump spews racism targeted at Obama in hate-filled speech
• Melania Trump pushed racist Obama 'birther' conspiracy