- United States
- Ohio
- Letter
I am writing to demand immediate congressional action to remove President Trump from office following his posting of an overtly racist video depicting former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes. This incident, which occurred during the first week of Black History Month, represents a fundamental breach of the dignity and standards required of the presidency.
On Thursday night at 11:44pm ET, President Trump posted this video to his Truth Social account, where it remained for approximately 12 hours. When confronted by reporters on Air Force One, he refused to apologize, stating "No, I didn't make a mistake." This is not a case of an inadvertent error. The video employed centuries-old racist tropes that were historically used to justify slavery, lynching, and Jim Crow laws. NAACP national president Derrick Johnson called it "blatantly racist, disgusting, and utterly despicable."
Even Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, described it as "the most racist thing I've seen out of this White House," despite Trump later claiming Scott "understood that 100%." The White House's response has been chaotic and dishonest, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt initially defending the post as "fake outrage" before it was quietly removed with no explanation for the deletion.
This incident is part of a documented pattern. Trump led the racist "birther" movement falsely claiming President Obama was born in Kenya, has said immigrants are "poisoning the blood" of the U.S., and claimed Vice President Harris "became" Black. Before Trump's entry into politics in 2015, such behavior would have ended any political career.
Congress has constitutional mechanisms to address a president who violates basic standards of decency and uses the office to promote racism. I urge you to pursue all available remedies, including censure, impeachment, or invoking the 25th Amendment. The integrity of our democracy and the dignity of all Americans demand immediate action.