United States President Donald Trump has said he does not regret briefly posting a controversial video on his Truth Social account that included offensive imagery portraying former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

Speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One late Friday, Trump maintained that sharing the clip was not an error and said he saw no reason to apologise.

“I didn’t make a mistake,” he said.

According to him, he had only watched the opening portion of the video before it was uploaded. Trump explained that the beginning focused on claims of irregularities involving voting machines, which he has repeatedly criticised.

“I only saw the first part. It talked about voter fraud and the problems with the machines,” he said, adding that staff members typically review such content in full before it is posted.

When pressed on whether he disapproved of the racist elements later revealed in the clip, Trump responded that he did.

The video, shared late Thursday, promoted conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 presidential election and contained offensive portrayals of the Obamas. It stayed on Trump’s account for roughly half a day before being taken down Friday morning after criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.

Earlier, the White House had sought to downplay the issue. In a statement to journalists, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the clip as an internet meme that cast Trump as a “King of the Jungle” character while depicting Democrats as figures inspired by The Lion King.

She urged the media to avoid what she called unnecessary outrage and instead focus on issues she said were more important to Americans.

The post was eventually deleted hours after the statement was released.