Viral Trump-Clinton Video Debunked as AI-Generated Fake

A video purportedly showing U.S. President Donald Trump kneeling and kissing former President Bill Clinton’s crotch has been confirmed as a sophisticated fake created with artificial intelligence technology, according to multiple sources familiar with the original photograph.

The manipulated clip gained significant traction after being posted to Reddit on November 16 by user Future_PeterSchiff with the caption “Just saw this drop on a Russian discord server…” The post garnered over 88,000 points before moderators removed it for violating the subreddit’s “no politics” policy.

Investigation revealed that the fabricated video was created by manipulating an authentic still photograph taken at the U.S. Open tennis tournament in Flushing Meadows, New York, on September 9, 2000. The genuine image, captured by White House photographer William Vasta, shows Trump with his hand appearing—from the camera’s viewpoint—in front of Clinton’s crotch.

Vasta confirmed to fact-checkers that the original interaction was entirely innocent. “I didn’t see any inappropriate contact there,” Vasta explained. “Trump was simply signaling to others in the room to gather for a group photo that included him, his guests, and Clinton. What you’re seeing in the still photo is just an outtake between handshakes and gestures.”

The photographer emphasized that no video footage of this moment exists. “Any clips circulating on social media this week are fake. They used my still image to create them,” Vasta said.

Herbert Ragan, an archivist with the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, verified the authenticity of the original photograph, confirming its date, location, and photographer. The photo was released in 2016 as part of an album made public following a Freedom of Information Act request.

Digital forensics experts note that the video was likely created by feeding the authentic still image into an AI generation tool, along with text prompts instructing the software to animate the image in a way that falsely depicted inappropriate behavior between the two politicians.

The manipulated video’s circulation coincided with the November 12 release of approximately 23,000 documents related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein by the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Democrats on the committee simultaneously released three emails, including one claiming Trump “knew about the girls” and another stating he “spent hours” at Epstein’s house with an alleged sex-trafficking victim.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to these email revelations, telling reporters, “The Democrats selectively leaked emails to the liberal media to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump.”

Adding to the controversy was an email from Mark Epstein, Jeffrey Epstein’s brother, suggesting Jeffrey ask former White House adviser Steve Bannon “if Putin has the photos of Trump blowing Bubba.” While some speculated “Bubba” referred to Clinton, Mark Epstein later clarified to The Advocate, “For the avoidance of doubt, the reference to ‘Bubba’ in this correspondence is not, in any way, a reference to former President Bill Clinton.”

A second AI-manipulated clip showing Trump repeatedly patting Clinton’s crotch at the same U.S. Open setting has also circulated widely across social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and X (formerly Twitter).

The incident highlights the growing sophistication of AI-generated content and its potential to spread misinformation, particularly in politically charged contexts. Digital literacy experts warn that as artificial intelligence tools become more accessible, determining the authenticity of video content will require increased scrutiny from both platforms and users.

The Clinton Presidential Library has made the authentic, high-resolution version of the original photograph available to journalists to help combat the spread of the manipulated video.