In a desperate move by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign team, a video was released on social media that features former President Donald Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci. The video showcases Trump, as the host of “The Apprentice,” before transitioning to the president praising Fauci and explaining why he couldn’t fire the former head of The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The video then shows Trump and Fauci in pictures and embraces, some of which seem to be created by artificial intelligence (AI).
Donald Trump became a household name by FIRING countless people *on television*
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) June 5, 2023
But when it came to Fauci… pic.twitter.com/7Lxwf75NQm
Leading digital forensic expert and a professor at the University of California, Berkeley’s School of Information, Hany Farid, confirmed that the images in the ad were indeed AI-generated, according to CNN. Farid noted that the nonsensical text in the image supposedly from the briefing room indicated the picture’s inauthenticity.
Twitter appended a community note to the post, alerting the site’s users that the video contains three images that left-wing media outlets maliciously claimed were generated by AI.
National Spokeswoman for President Donald J. Trump, @realLizUSA, shares her reaction to the DeSantis campaign using fake AI images of President Trump hugging Dr. Fauci.
— Real America's Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) June 9, 2023
Watch LIVE➡ https://t.co/aeKhZCtVbe
Watch more #JustTheNewsNoNoise with @AmandaHead here:… pic.twitter.com/3H0vfFjxPi
Trump’s allies came to his defense in wake of the fake ad, including Ohio Senator JD Vance who tweeted, “Smearing Donald Trump with fake AI images is completely unacceptable. I’m not sharing them, but we’re in a new era. Be even more skeptical of what you see on the internet.”
Smearing Donald Trump with fake AI images is completely unacceptable. I’m not sharing them, but we’re in a new era. Be even more skeptical of what you see on the internet.
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) June 8, 2023
Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also commented on DeSantis’ ad, tweeting, “Those fake AI campaign ads need to be taken down immediately.”
I agree. Those fake AI campaign ads need to be taken down immediately. https://t.co/CEPPFGaV4V
— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) June 8, 2023
One thing is clear – Trump’s enemies will stop at nothing to try and tarnish his legacy. From fake news to AI-generated images, their desperate smear campaign is in full force. But they won’t succeed, as the American people know the truth about this great leader and his contributions to our country. It’s time to take a stand and fight back against these underhanded tactics once and for all. The truth will always prevail.