Jeffries Criticizes Trump Over Obama Ape Video

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sharply criticized President Donald Trump on Friday after the president posted a video on his Truth Social account that depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama with their faces superimposed on animated apes. The post, which appeared Thursday evening and remained online for about 12 hours, drew widespread condemnation from Democrats and Republicans before the White House removed it.

The video, set to the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," showed the Obamas' heads on the bodies of chimpanzees in a jungle scene. It also portrayed other Democratic figures in animal roles, including Vice President Kamala Harris as a turtle, former President Joe Biden as a gorilla, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as a warthog, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a hyena, with Trump depicted as a lion. According to White House officials, the content originated as an internet meme portraying Trump as the "king of the jungle."

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt initially defended the post, describing it as a lighthearted reference to "The Lion King" and dismissing the backlash as "fake outrage" manufactured...