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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Joe Sommerlad

Trump and White House ramp up racist memes blaming Democrats for shutdown: ‘Dollar Store Obama’

President Donald Trump has continued to troll senior Democrats on social media as the U.S. federal government remains mired in shutdown, with no breakthrough in sight on Capitol Hill.

The president was busy online on Thursday night, posting a meme of a glum-looking Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer under a headline calling the opposition “the party of hate, evil, and Satan.”

There was also a Superman clip and an AI-edited video of the commander-in-chief picking up a red “Trump 2028” baseball cap and tossing it directly onto the head of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

That came after Jeffries complained about the merchandise’s presence in the Oval Office when the leadership met with Trump on Monday to discuss a new funding deal, which ultimately proved fruitless.

The president went on to post a clip of a right-wing comedian dressed in a multi-colored poncho and sombrero impersonating him and lashing out out at “Cryin’ Chuck” and “El Hakimo ‘Jefe’ Jeffries” over the shutdown, in which the speaker jokes that the latter is a “Dollar Store Obama.”

Trump posted another AI clip of himself as the Grim Reaper – set to Blue Oyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” – in which he glories in the prospect of Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought slashing the federal workforce.

The mariachi jibes at Jeffries began last week when Trump posted a modified video of him with a curly moustache and traditional Mexican attire as the deadline for shutdown talks neared, which also featured a fake Schumer declaring: “Nobody likes Democrats anymore, we have no voters left because of all of our woke trans bull****.”

Jeffries responded by saying angrily at a press conference: “Mr President, the next time you have something to say about me, don’t cop out through a racist and fake AI video. When I’m back in the Oval Office, say it to my face.”

Undeterred, Trump quickly responded with a followup in which he appears himself as a complete quartet to drown out the New Yorker with blasting trumpets.

The original fake AI video posted by Trump mocking Democratic congressional leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer (Donald Trump/Truth Social)

A portrait of Jeffries in the same costume can also be spotted lining the walls of the Capitol alongside those of his fellow Democrats in the Reaper video.

The official White House X account likewise joined in the taunting, posting a child’s drawing of a sombrero with the caption, “Our social media manager was furloughed, but... Almost Friday,” followed by a maracas emoji.

Once known only for sober pronouncements on matters of national importance, the account has drawn criticism under Trump for posting tongue-in-cheek memes.

One cast the president as the Man of Steel and in another he is seen striking a heroic pose and proclaiming ominously: “I was the hunted – now I’m the hunter.”

The White House joins in with Trump's mockery of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries by posting a sombrero meme on its offical X account on Friday October 3 2025 (The White House/X)

Responding to the onslaught of abuse on his own X account, Jeffries said on Friday: “Trump continues to hide behind deepfake videos. Meanwhile, Democrats are fighting to protect your healthcare.”

The shutdown came to pass at midnight on Tuesday, despite the Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress, because the GOP could not secure the support of the seven Democrats it needed in the Senate to pass a House resolution that would have secured fresh funding for government agencies.

Democrats refused to support a stopgap spending bill without an extension of Covid-era healthcare premium subsidies for Obamacare being included. Without it, they argued, premiums for more than 20 million American citizens could more than double each month from $888 to $1,904 once the subsidies expire on December 31.

For his part, Trump has not publicly offered any concessions to Democrats, preferring to insist instead that they must simply abandon their concerns and fall in line with his demands.

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