Donald Trump has weathered countless controversies over the course of his political career, but something about the latest one felt different. It landed as both a final straw and a rare moment of near-universal agreement: he had gone too far. Still, for some members of his administration, even this was somehow defensible.
Trump shared a disgraceful AI-generated video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. Almost immediately, the reaction was swift and unequivocal. Across race, ideology, and party lines, people agreed it was racist and indefensible. Online, some pointed to the post as proof that Trump hasn’t changed since his 1973 clash with the Department of Justice, when he was accused of using discriminatory practices to keep his New York apartment buildings majority white.
