Trump Obama Apes Controversy: A Global Spotlight on Racial Discrimination

Search Volume Surge

🇺🇸 United States: 200,000+ searches
🇨🇦 Canada: 20,000+ searches
🇬🇧 United Kingdom: 20,000+ searches
🇧🇷 Brazil: 20,000+ searches
🇫🇷 France: 10,000+ searches
🇮🇹 Italy: 5,000+ searches
🇩🇪 Germany: 5,000+ searches
🇦🇺 Australia: 1,000+ searches

Incident Overview

On February 6, 2026, a video posted on President Donald Trump's Truth Social account sparked worldwide controversy. The video contained racially offensive content depicting former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

The controversial video was posted at 11:44 PM ET on Thursday, February 5, and remained online for approximately 12 hours before being deleted. The White House later claimed that a staff member posted it "by mistake."

Content of the Video

The approximately 62-second video primarily featured unfounded conspiracy theories about voting machines being rigged in the 2020 election. However, at the 59-second mark near the end of the video, a brief scene appeared showing the Obamas' faces superimposed on apes' bodies, with "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" playing in the background.

The video appeared to be AI-generated and was excerpted from a longer video that depicted Trump as "king of the jungle" and various Democratic politicians as different animals.

Political Reactions

Criticism from Republican Lawmakers

The most notable response came from Senator Tim Scott. As the only Black Republican senator, Scott posted on X (formerly Twitter): "I prayed this was fake. This is the most racist thing I have seen out of this White House," urging "the President needs to take this down."

Other Republican lawmakers joined the criticism:

Rep. Mike Lawler: "The President's post was wrong and incredibly offensive"
Sen. Roger Wicker: Called the video "completely unacceptable" and demanded its removal and an apology
Sen. Susan Collins: Retweeted Scott's post, describing it as "appalling"

Strong Democratic Backlash

Democratic leadership responded immediately and forcefully. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated: "President Obama and Michelle Obama are good, kind-hearted and patriotic Americans. They represent the best of this country."

California Governor Gavin Newsom posted on X: "Disgusting behavior from the President. Every Republican should immediately condemn this."

White House Response

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt initially dismissed the criticism, explaining: "This is from an internet meme video that depicts President Trump as the king of the jungle and Democrats as characters from The Lion King." She demanded that the media "Stop the fake outrage and report on what actually matters to the American public."

However, after intense backlash from both parties, the White House changed its stance, stating that a staff member had posted it by mistake and that it had already been removed.

Historical Context

Depicting Black people as monkeys or apes is a racist trope that has persisted for hundreds of years. Such depictions have historically been used to justify slavery, lynching, and Jim Crow laws.

The incident occurred during the first week of Black History Month, making it even more controversial. The depiction targeting America's first Black president and first lady shocked many people.

Trump and Obama's Past Relationship

Trump has long spread conspiracy theories about Obama. He was a leading figure in the "birther movement," falsely claiming that Obama was born in Kenya and possessed a forged birth certificate. These claims were intended to suggest that Obama was not eligible to be president.

Global Attention

This incident attracted attention not only in the United States but worldwide. More than 200,000 searches occurred in the US, with tens of thousands of searches in Canada, the UK, Brazil, and other countries. This demonstrates how much global interest exists in the US president's social media activity and racial issues.

Significance and Impact

This incident holds important significance in several respects:

Political Impact: The fact that criticism emerged even from within the Republican Party is noteworthy. Even Trump supporters like Tim Scott strongly criticized this incident.
Racial Issues: It demonstrates how sensitive racial issues remain in American society.
Social Media Influence: It once again confirmed that a single social media post by the president can cause worldwide controversy.
Accountability: Although the White House attributed it to a staff error, many suspect that Trump either didn't review the entire video or posted it intentionally.

Conclusion

The "Trump Obama apes" incident became one of the most controversial political events of early February 2026. This incident brought several important issues back to the surface, including racism, political accountability, and the influence of social media.

Although the video was deleted, the ripple effects of this incident are unlikely to subside quickly. Particularly as 2026 is an election year, it remains to be seen how this controversy will affect the political landscape.

References

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