Trump and Newsom deploy deepfake videos in political attack escalation
President Trump and California Governor Newsom exchanged AI-generated deepfake attack videos targeting political opponents. Trump posted videos of Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer in false statements and altered appearances, which Jeffries condemned as racist and fake. Newsom responded with deepfake videos mocking Vice President JD Vance.
What happened
On Monday, President Trump posted a deepfake video showing House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in a sombrero with a handlebar mustache alongside Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, with falsified audio of Schumer saying Democrats 'have no voters left because of our woke, trans bullsh*t' and proposing to give illegal aliens free healthcare to gain their votes.
Trump posted a second clip of Jeffries in a sombrero. In response, California Governor Gavin Newsom posted two deepfake videos on September 30 and October 1, both targeting Vice President JD Vance, one depicting him hosting a show about couches and another mocking an old photo of Vance in drag.
Reported impact
Hakeem Jeffries condemned the footage as 'racist and fake,' stating on Tuesday: 'Mr. President, the next time you have something to say about me, don't cop out through a racist and fake AI video.'
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.