Trump's AI-Generated Video Sparks Controversy and Criticism

Hispanic groups criticize Trump's sombrero memes, videos

Several Latino advocacy groups called out President Trump over his use of artificial intelligence and memes to target Democratic Congressional leaders, including depicting House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) wearing a Mexican-style sombrero. Hispanic Federation, the Latino Victory Foundation, League of United American Citizens, Mi Familia Vota, UnidosUs and Voto Latino released a joint statement on Wednesday condemning the memes and videos as "dangerous" and "reprehensible." "Hours before a looming shutdown, Trump shared an AI-generated racist video," the statement, shared on Instagram, reads. "The video portrayed House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the first Black person to hold this position, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the first Jewish person to hold this position, using hateful stereotypes and demeaned Latinos, the nation's second-largest ethnic group," the online statement continues. The groups added, "This rhetoric isn't careless; it's dangerous." Advocates called on the White House to unite people and "not vilify communities that power our economy, culture and democracy," while calling the memes and videos "dangerous tropes... beneath the office of the presidency." "The troubling use of AI to amplify hateful stereotypes is not only reckless, but it serves as an act of disinformation designed to further stigmatize Latinos when the tensions facing the community driven by policy and rhetoric are at an all-time high," they wrote. The criticism comes days after Trump shared an AI-generated video of Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) with Jeffries sporting the sombrero and a handlebar mustache while Latin-style music plays in the background. Schumer's comments were also dubbed with audio lamenting his own party beginning with, "Look guys, there's no way to sugar coat it, nobody likes Democrats anymore." Jeffries pushed back on the video, slamming the president and Republicans as "racist." Schumer also blasted Trump over the post, saying he is "busy trolling away on the internet like 10-year-old" while Washington is dealing with the shutdown. Vice President Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) came to Trump's defense, suggesting the posts were made in jest. "Oh, I think it's funny," Vance told reporters on Wednesday. "The president's joking, and we're having a good time." He added, "You can negotiate in good faith while also poking a little bit of fun at some of the absurdities of the Democrats' positions." Johnson played it off as "games" and just "sideshows." "People are getting caught up in -- in battles over social media memes," Johnson said at a press conference early Thursday. "This is not a game. We've got to keep the government open for the people. I don't know why this is so complicated." "And to my friend Hakeem, who I was asked about: Man, just ignore it," the Speaker added. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Tuesday posted a video inspired by the president's sombrero video, adding the hat and mustache motifs to his 44 Democratic colleagues. In the background, a parody version of "Macarena" plays with a Trump-like voice.

Trump posts deepfake video of Jeffries, Schumer with racist tropes as shutdown looms

Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called out President Donald Trump for an expletive-laden, racially charged deepfake of Congress' top Democrats. * President Donald Trump posted a deepfake video of Democratic leaders following failed government shutdown negotiations. * The AI-generated video used racial stereotypes and contained disinformation about immigrants and voters. President Donald Trump posted an expletive-laden, deepfake video with racist tropes about immigrants after talks with Democrats did not end in agreement to keep the federal government open. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries met with Trump and Republican leaders on Sept. 29, just over 24 hours ahead of the government funding deadline. Later that night, Trump posted an apparently AI-created video of Schumer speaking in a fake voice and Jeffries standing next to him with a sombrero, a mustache and mariachi music playing in the background. "There's no way to sugarcoat it, nobody likes Democrats anymore. We have no voters left because of our woke, trans (expletive)," Schumer's fake voice says. "Not even Black people wanna vote for us anymore, even Latinos hate us. So we need new votes. And if we give all these illegal aliens free healthcare, we might be able to get them on our side so they can vote for us. They can't even speak English, so they won't realize we're just a bunch of woke pieces of (expletive)." Jeffries and Schumer responded to the video by bringing it back to the fight over government funding. "Bigotry will get you nowhere," Jeffries posted after Trump's video. "Cancel the Cuts. Lower the Cost. Save Healthcare. We are NOT backing down." Video called racist for stereotypes about immigrants and dig at Black voters The video is widely considered racist, including by Jeffries himself. Trump shared it on his Truth Social account and X account, where it garnered more than 22.8 million views. The video contains several pieces of disinformation. About half of all U.S. immigrants speak English according to Pew, immigrants in the U.S. illegally can't vote, and undocumented immigrants are not eligible for federally funded coverage, like Medicaid. Some have characterized the video as satire, mocking or trolling. "Whether or not it's satirical, it's still racist," said Peter Loge, the director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication at The George Washington University. He explained how it used Mexican stereotypes with the hat and music, falsely equated every Mexican person with undocumented immigrants, and put down the intelligence of Black and Latino voters. "The president of the United States has a responsibility to increase trust in the democratic institutions and to bring the American people together," Loge said. "Nobody should be sharing that video. Certainly not the president of the United States who represents all of the Americans, not just a small political base that supports him." "Anyone who's feigning outrage over a perfect meme should instead focus on the countless Americans who will suffer as a result of the Democrat shutdown," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told USA TODAY in a statement. Jeffries redirects to Epstein, healthcare funding fight Jeffries and House Democrats held a press conference on Sept. 30 to highlight their efforts to fight for their healthcare demands as the threat of a government shutdown looms. "Mr. President, the next time you have something to say about me, don't cop out to a racist and fake AI video. When I'm back in the Oval Office, say it to my face," Jeffries said on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. He went on to blame Republicans for not negotiating to fund the government. Jeffries also took a hit back at Trump on social media shortly after the AI video went up, pointing to the ongoing controversy over Trump's relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. "If you think your shutdown is a joke, it just proves what we all know: You can't negotiate. You can only throw tantrums," Schumer posted on Sept. 29 when sharing Trump's AI video. Schumer also called Trump a 10-year-old trolling the internet in remarks on the Senate floor, according The Hill. US heads for government shutdown Oct. 1 Funding for the government expires at midnight on Sept. 30 and a breakthrough for an agreement looks unlikely. "There was a frank and direct discussion with the president of the United States and Republican leaders," Jeffries said after meeting with the president on Sept. 29, but added, "significant and meaningful differences remain." Republicans want a stopgap solution that would extend funding through Nov. 21, and Democrats want changes to healthcare access and subsidies as part of the deal. Both sides are trying to blame a potential shutdown on each other. Without funding, staffing at many federal agencies will be significantly reduced and federal services (except those considered "essential") will be halted. (This story has been updated with additional information.) Contributing: Zachary Schermele, Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.

House Speaker Makes Light Of Trump's Racist Sombrero AI Video Of Hakeem Jeffries

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) offered some advice to his "friend" House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) about the racist AI videos President Donald Trump posted showing him in a sombrero. Trump uploaded the controversial deep fake video featuring Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday just before the government entered a shutdown. In the falsified clip, which was set to the tone of mariachi music, Jeffries is depicted wearing a sombrero and a mustache. An AI version of Schumer standing next to Jeffries can be heard making disparaging remarks about immigrants, Latinos, Black people and trans people. The fake audio of Schumer also ripped Democrats as "woke pieces of shit." Trump doubled down on taunting Jeffries by posting another AI video less than 24 hours later. The additional doctored clip kicks off with Jeffries criticizing Trump's initial post during an interview. The clip then transitions into altered footage of Jeffries again wearing a sombrero and mustache before a mariachi band with Trump's face superimposed on each musician appears. In a press conference Thursday, Johnson referred to Trump's social media antics as a "sideshow." Claiming that people have asked him why Jeffries was "all alarmed" about the memes, Johnson said, "These are games. These are sideshows. People are getting caught up in -- in battles over social media memes." He continued, "This is not a game. We've got to keep the government open for the people. I don't know why this is so complicated." Johnson went on to address Jeffries directly while publicly dishing out advice to him. "And to my friend Hakeem, who I was asked about: Man, just ignore it," he added. Johnson then pointed to California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) who posted a video depicting Johnson as a yellow minion from the animated comedy film "Despicable Me." He called Newsom's dig "hilarious." "I mean, Gavin Newsom was trolling me last night. He painted me like a minion. He painted me yellow with big glasses and overalls. And I thought it was hilarious. You don't respond to it ... Don't respond to it," he said. Johnson added: "Get to work, do the people's business, and let's get on with it." Jeffries addressed Trump's trolling by delivering a direct message to him on the steps of the Capitol Tuesday. "The next time you have something to say about me, don't cop out through a racist and fake AI video," he said. "Say it to my face." Despite Trump's bizarre post being met with widespread backlash, the White House said Wednesday that AI videos and memes portraying Democrat leaders in sombreros "will continue" until the United States government has reopened, according to Newsweek. White House officials didn't immediately respond to HuffPost's request for comment. Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance dismissed the outrage over the deep fake video of Jeffries, calling it "funny" and claiming Trump was "joking." "The president's joking! And we're having a good time," Vance told reporters Wednesday. "You can negotiate in good faith while also poking a little bit of fun at some of the absurdities of the Democrats' positions, and even poking some fun at the absurdity of the Democrats themselves."

Democrat confronts Johnson over Trump AI video: 'It's racist. You should call it out'

Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.) confronted House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) over President Trump posting a deepfake video of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). The fake video, altered with artificial intelligence, depicts Jeffries donning a sombrero and handlebar mustache and Schumer saying Democrats "have no voters left because of our woke, trans bulls -- ," while mariachi music plays in the background. When Dean asked Johnson about the video, which Trump posted to his Truth Social platform and the social platform X, the speaker said, "it wasn't my style" and turned to walk away. "Not your style? It's disgraceful. It's bigoted. It's racist. You should call it out," Dean responded, according to a video posted by CNN's Manu Raju posted on X. During an interview with CNN's Kaitlan Collins on Tuesday evening, Johnson said that Trump posted the video "as a joke" and is not "the real issue." "The fight tonight is not about social media posts," the speaker added. "The fight is about whether [Democrats will] keep the government open for the American people." The video also depicts Schumer saying, "if we give all these illegal aliens free healthcare, we might be able to get 'em on our side so they can vote for us." Trump, Johnson, Vice President Vance and other GOP lawmakers have accused Democrats of prioritizing health care for immigrants without legal status amid government shutdown negotiations. The Democratic-backed proposal to fund the government through October, which all 53 Republicans voted against on Tuesday, included a permanent extension of subsidies offered under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the restoration of $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts. However, only immigrants lawfully in the U.S. are eligible to receive ACA subsidies and enroll in Medicaid. Immigrants without legal status are not eligible for either. Medicaid payments for emergency services can be made to hospitals on behalf of immigrants without legal status. According to KFF, a non-partisan health policy research group, those payments accounted for less than 1 percent of total Medicaid spending in fiscal year 2023. KFF also said last week that cuts to ACA subsidies and Medicaid resulting from the tax and budget law the president signed in July will lead to 1.4 million immigrants with legal status losing insurance coverage. Jeffries and Schumer criticized Trump for posting the video. The former challenged the president to "say it to my face," while the latter said Trump "is busy trolling away on the internet like a 10-year-old." Republican Sen. Roger Marshall (Kan.) told CNN on Monday that the president posted the video "in jest."

Jeffries: Trump AI video 'designed to be a malignant distraction'

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) slammed President Trump for a sharing a video Monday that used artificial intelligence (AI) to alter Democratic leaders' comments ahead of a looming government shutdown. "This is all designed to be a malignant distraction from people who are determined to continue to rip healthcare away from the American people and Democrats are resolved to stand up for it," Jeffries told MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell in an interview. "They are lying about what we're asking to do." "We've made clear that federal law currently prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving comprehensive health care paid for by federal American tax dollars," he continued. "And no one is asking to change that law, but what we are doing is making it clear that we need to protect the health care of the American people, which has been under relentless assault by the Republicans throughout this year." The AI video features Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). A sombrero and mustache are superimposed on the House Democratic leader as Latin-inspired music plays in the background. "Look, guys, there's no way to sugarcoat it. Nobody likes Democrats anymore. We have no voters left because of all of our woke trans bulls -- ," Schumer is made to say in the altered video. "Not even Black people want to vote for us anymore. Even Latinos hate us." "So, we need new voters, and if we give all these illegal aliens free health care, we might be able to get them on our side so they can vote for us," the video shows the senator saying. Trump's post came amid heated tensions between Republicans and Democrats ahead of a lapse in government funding. On Monday, Congressional leaders ended a meeting with Trump saying they were unable to made progress in negotiations that could have averted a shutdown. "If you think your shutdown is a joke, it just proves what we all know: You can't negotiate," Schumer responded to the AI video in a post on social platform X. "You can only throw tantrums."