Donald Trump: I’ll probably go to heaven
President Donald Trump spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast and said, “I’m probably going to go to heaven.”
- Republican Sen. Tim Scott criticized a video posted by President Trump that depicted the Obamas as monkeys.
- The video, shared on Truth Social, also included baseless allegations of voter fraud.
Republican Sen. Tim Scott, one of President Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters, is condemning the president’s late-night truth social posts that depicted former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama as monkeys.
In an unusual rebuke, a junior senator from South Carolina said in a Feb. 6 post to
The now-deleted one-minute video highlights unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election, then briefly introduces derogatory footage of the Obamas.
The senator’s comments on Trump’s Feb. 5 post mark the resignation of Scott, who serves as the longest-serving black senator in U.S. history and chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Scott is also a former 2024 Republican presidential candidate and was on Trump’s short list of running mates.
The White House acknowledged that the president posted the video and also defended his actions.
“This is from an internet meme video that depicts President Trump as the king of the jungle and Democrats as characters from ‘The Lion King,'” White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said in a statement to PBS News correspondent Liz Landers on February 6.
Hours later, a White House official told USA TODAY that a White House official had made the post in error and it has since been deleted.
President Obama’s press secretary did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment.
The Truth About Trump: Bipartisan Leaders Condemn Social Posts
President Trump’s Truth social posts were widely condemned by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who called the president “unstable.”
In a post on “Why do Republican leaders like John Thune continue to support this sick man? All Republicans must immediately denounce Donald Trump’s disgusting bigotry.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized Trump’s post as racist and vile. And abominable.
“This is dangerous and degrading to our country. Where are the Senate Republicans?” Schumer wrote in a post on
At least two Republican senators have also condemned Trump’s now-deleted post, including Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska.
“Even if this was a Lion King meme, a reasonable person would understand that it has a racist undertone,” Ricketts said on Show X. “The White House should do what anyone would do when they make a mistake: take it down and apologize.”
Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi echoed similar sentiments.
“This is completely unacceptable. The president should retract and apologize,” Wicker said on the X Show.
Contributors: Joey Garrison and Zachery Schermele, USA TODAY
