Donald Trump has privately lashed out at two Republican senators who condemned a racist video posted to the president’s Truth Social account final week depicting the Obamas as apes, in accordance with a brand new report.
A video displaying former President Barack Obama and former first girl Michelle Obama’s faces superimposed onto the our bodies of dancing primates to the music “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” has obtained sharp backlash throughout the political aisle.
Even a few of Trump’s supporters in Congress rebuked the video, which the White House claims a staffer “erroneously” posted on February 5. The clip was taken down a number of hours after it was shared.
“Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House. The President should remove it,” Tim Scott of South Carolina, the one Black Republican senator, wrote on X in response.
Trump then complained to allies whereas at Mar-a-Lago final weekend about Scott, folks aware of the matter advised CNN.
“The president felt he could’ve handled that matter privately,” a senior Trump administration official advised the outlet.
The official added: “He was like, ‘We work together all the time. He didn’t need to comment publicly.’”
Senator Katie Britt from Alabama additionally denounced the racist video, writing on X final Friday, “This content was rightfully removed, should have never been posted to begin with, and is not who we are as a nation.”
One CNN supply mentioned Trump slammed Britt, throwing out expletives, and mentioned she was lifeless to him.
Britt’s workplace referred to as CNN’s reporting “fake news” and defended her relationship with the president.
“Senator Britt has a 100% voting record with President Trump and remains one of his strongest allies in the Senate,” her workplace advised the outlet. “Any narrative suggesting otherwise is not only misleading, it is flat out false.”
The White House boasted about Trump’s “great respect” for “incredible ally” Britt, per CNN.
The Independent has reached out to the White House and the workplaces of Scott and Britt.
Trump has refused to apologize for the racist video, telling reporters on Air Force One on his approach to Palm Beach, Florida, final Friday, “I didn’t make a mistake.” The president insisted he solely noticed the primary a part of the video about “voter fraud,” and never the top that depicted the Obamas as apes.
The begin of the video promoted false claims that Trump misplaced the 2020 presidential election due to voter fraud.
“It was a very strong post in terms of voter fraud,” Trump advised reporters final Friday, including that nobody on his staff knew the clip depicting the Obamas as apes was on the finish. The president mentioned if his workers had appeared, they “probably would’ve had the sense to take it down.”
Trump mentioned that he spoke with Scott, telling reporters, “Tim is a great guy. He understood that a hundred percent.”
The president advised reporters Thursday that the staffer the White House claims mistakenly posted the video has not been fired.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-obama-ape-racist-tim-scott-b2920318.html