President Donald Trump received rare blowback from Republican lawmakers over a video posted to social media that included a racist image of Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, shown as primates. The condemnation came as Republicans have often avoided public criticism of Trump’s actions since he returned to the White House, with lawmakers instead raising concerns privately.
According to the Associated Press, the post also echoed false conspiracy theories about the 2020 election—an element that drew additional ire beyond the imagery. In response, multiple GOP members of the Senate and House joined their Democratic counterparts in urging Trump to remove the content.
Several Republicans criticized the president quickly after the video’s racist portion circulated online and remained posted. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, chair of the Senate GOP’s campaign arm and the only Black Republican in the Senate, publicly urged Trump to take it down, writing that he was “Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House. The President should remove it.”
Other GOP senators echoed the sentiment. Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska said “Even if this was a Lion King meme, a reasonable person sees the racist context to this,” adding that “The White House should do what anyone does when they make a mistake: remove this and apologize.” AP reported that Sen. Susan Collins of Maine called the image “appalling,” while Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi denounced it as “totally unacceptable” and said the president should take it down and apologize. Sen. John Curtis of Utah called the post “blatantly racist and inexcusable,” saying it should never have been posted or left up “for so long.”
In the House, Rep. Mike Lawler of New York called Trump’s post “wrong and incredibly offensive—whether intentional or a mistake—and should be deleted immediately with an apology offered.” AP also reported that Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, a frequent Trump critic, made remarks on social media about the White House’s shifting explanations for how the video was posted and why it was later removed.
As the backlash continued, more Republicans voiced objections after the video was taken down. Sen. Katie Britt, an Alabama Republican, wrote that the content “was rightfully removed, should have never been posted to begin with, and is not who we are as a nation.” Rep. John James, a Michigan Republican running for governor and one of four Black Republicans in the House, said he was “glad to see that trash has been taken down,” adding that he was “shocked and appalled by that post” while defending Trump’s character.
James said he believed Trump was not racist, saying, “I know the President. He is not racist,” in remarks AP described as part of his defense of Trump. Still, AP reported that some of Trump’s closest allies pushed back against the criticism. Laura Loomer, a far-right activist and media personality, called on her social media followers to highlight what she characterized as GOP lawmakers “attacking Trump today with false accusations of racism,” and she said she was compiling a list of the “GOP Senator[s]” who criticized Trump for distribution at the NRSC Winter Meeting in Palm Beach, Florida.
AP also described how the White House narrative changed around the video. Trump’s animosity toward the Obamas has long predated his presidency, and AP noted that he earned fame among conservatives before entering politics by promoting the “birther” conspiracy theory that falsely claimed Barack Obama was not born in the U.S. In the days leading up to the backlash over the racist imagery, White House officials made multiple statements about how the animated video—described by some as AI-generated—appeared on Trump’s account.
At first, AP reported, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the post depicted Trump as “King of the Jungle” and portrayed the Obamas and other Democrats as characters from “The Lion King,” while also stating the video was AI-generated. AP reported that the Disney animated classic does not include any characters depicted as apes and is set in an African savanna rather than a jungle. Later, AP said, White House officials said the video was erroneously posted by a staffer.
Trump himself did not apologize, AP reported, saying he did not see the racist portion when he passed the video on to staff. AP also reported that Trump told reporters on Air Force One: “I liked the beginning. I saw it and just passed it on, and I guess probably nobody reviewed the end of it,” and that when asked if he condemned the racist parts, Trump said, “Of course I do.”
Democrats and former Obama White House officials also weighed in online. AP reported that Pete Souza, the former chief White House photographer during the Obama administration, posted that “We should ALL be outraged” and shared photographs of the former first couple instead of a screenshot of the video. AP said Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts shared images of the Obamas while praising their “brilliance, elegance, and beauty.” AP also reported that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, wrote to the Obamas that she wanted young Americans to know “that the vast majority of our country supports and uplifts you despite the filth spewing from the Oval Office.”