Overview
- President Donald Trump posted the image on his Truth Social account on Saturday, May 23, 2026, labeling Ro Khanna a “Dumocrat” and a “lying sleazebag” and saying Fox News should not put him on air.
- The picture, widely reported as a generative AI creation, depicted Khanna with exaggerated fangs, horns, a sheepskin and dollar bills and carried a banner calling him a “SLEAZEBAG.”
- Khanna replied on X by mocking Trump for skipping Donald Trump Jr.’s Bahamas wedding and used the attack to highlight what he called the president’s misplaced priorities.
- Journalists and commentators condemned the post as offensive and dehumanizing, and the episode followed another recent AI-based violent post about Stephen Colbert that intensified worries about normalizing AI political attacks.
- The incident deepens a months-long feud over guest booking and messaging between Trump and Fox News and raises risks that AI-enabled imagery could further escalate targeted political attacks ahead of the midterm season.