“Racist tropes coming from the President should disgust every American,” Newsom says
California Gov. Gavin Newsom condemned what he called “racist tropes” coming from President Donald Trump after a social media post shared from Trump’s account drew swift backlash and renewed questions about oversight of official messaging.
Racist tropes coming from the President should disgust every American. pic.twitter.com/a6mH0vTD11
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) February 10, 2026
“Racist tropes coming from the President should disgust every American,” Newsom wrote in a post that circulated widely on X.
The criticism followed reporting that a video posted to Trump’s Truth Social account depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes, imagery civil rights advocates and historians have long described as a dehumanizing racist trope. The post was later deleted, but the controversy lingered as political leaders and members of Trump’s own party criticized the content and demanded an explanation for how it was shared.
Reuters reported the White House initially defended the post before later saying it was shared in error and taken down. Trump condemned the video but did not apologize, according to the report, and the incident sparked bipartisan condemnation.
The dispute has spilled into broader scrutiny of how senior officials’ accounts are managed and whether staff controls are adequate, particularly as AI-generated and manipulated political content becomes more common online. Newsom’s comments echoed other Democratic officials who framed the episode as part of a wider debate over political rhetoric, race, and the responsibilities of public office in an era when provocative posts can spread rapidly before being removed.
The White House has pushed back on criticism, arguing that opponents are amplifying controversies for political gain. Still, the episode has kept attention on the administration’s public communications practices, especially after other high-profile account deletions and “staff error” explanations in recent days, according to reporting from multiple outlets.
Newsom, a Democrat often mentioned as a future national contender, has frequently positioned himself as a leading critic of Trump. His latest statement, while brief, was aimed directly at the imagery at the center of the dispute and the fact that it appeared under the president’s name before being removed.
Abbie Clark is the founder and editor of Now Rundown, covering the stories that hit households first—health, politics, insurance, home costs, scams, and the fine print people often learn too late.
