Trump defends AI-generated Obama video, says he 'didn’t make a mistake'

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump addressed public backlash on Friday, February 6, over a now-deleted AI-generated video that depicted Barack and Michelle Obama as apes, insisting he did nothing wrong and will not apologize.

The controversial video briefly appeared on Trump’s Truth Social account before being taken down. It quickly sparked outrage online, with critics calling the imagery racist and offensive. The White House later said a staff member was responsible for posting the clip.

Trump spoke about the controversy while traveling aboard Air Force One from the White House to Mar-a-Lago, brushing off questions about accountability and defending his handling of the situation.

Trump denies wrongdoing after backlash over AI-generated Obama video

When asked whether he planned to apologize for the post, Trump was direct.

“No, I didn’t make a mistake,” he said, adding that he had only watched the beginning of the clip before it was shared.

Trump claimed the portion he viewed focused on alleged voter fraud during the 2020 election and said he was unaware of the offensive imagery that appeared later in the video.

“I saw it, and I just looked at the first part. It was about voter fraud in Georgia — there was a lot of voter fraud, 2020 voter fraud,” Trump said. “I didn’t see the whole thing.”

He continued, “I guess toward the end there was some kind of picture that people didn’t like. I wouldn’t like it either, but I didn’t see it.”

Trump says he will not fire staffer who posted video

A reporter pressed Trump on whether he would fire the staff member who shared the video.

“No. I looked at it. I didn’t see the whole thing. I gave it to the people, they posted it,” Trump replied.

He added that the video was removed once the controversial content was discovered.

“We took it down as soon as we found out about it,” Trump said. “But that was voter fraud that nobody talks about. They don’t like to talk about that post."

Trump also suggested the ending of the video resembled a parody.

“I mean, I look at a lot of thousands of things, and I looked at the beginning of it. It was fine,” he said. “I guess it was a take off on the Lion King."

White House removes controversial Obama video

The meme-style video was about a minute long and largely featured clips repeating claims about voting machines and election interference during the 2020 vote count.

Near the end, the video briefly showed two jungle apes with the smiling faces of Barack and Michelle Obama edited onto them — a moment that triggered the strongest backlash online.

The clip is no longer visible on Trump’s Truth Social account. Democratic leaders quickly condemned the post, while Barack and Michelle Obama have not publicly responded.

Trump said he later spoke with Senator Tim Scott about the controversy.

“I spoke to Tim Scott, and he was great. Tim is a great guy. He understood that 100 percent,” Trump said.