By Abiola Olawale
United States President Donald Trump has addressed criticism after he shared a video on his official Truth Social account that depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.
Speaking late Friday to reporters accompanying him aboard Air Force One, Trump insisted he made no mistake by sharing the video and does not need to apologise.
He also admitted that he did not watch the entire clip before it was posted.
Trump stated: “I didn’t make a mistake. 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. Generally, they look at the whole thing. But I guess somebody didn’t,” he said.
When asked directly whether he condemned the video’s content, Trump replied, “Of course I do.”
The New Diplomat had reported that the video pushed a conspiracy theory about voting machines used during the 2020 election and allegedly included a racist depiction of the Obamas.
It remained on Trump’s Truth Social account for about 12 hours before being deleted on Friday morning, following widespread bipartisan calls for its removal.
The White House initially defended the post in an emailed statement to reporters on Friday morning by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
She said, “This is 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.”
