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Federal staffers at the Department of Housing and Urban Development were greeted by a fake AI video depicting President Donald Trump kissing Elon Musk’s feet when they came into work Monday morning.
Hackers rolled out the 19-second video throughout HUD’s building on the day that federal workers were ordered to return to the office following an executive order bringing an end to working from home.
Captioned “Long live the real king,” the footage depicted the president enthusiastically kissing the feet of the billionaire “first buddy,” who is leading the so-called Department of Government Efficiency’s purge of the federal government.
Management officials at the HUD were not impressed by the stunt.
“Another waste of taxpayer dollars and resources,” HUD spokesperson Kasey Lovett said in a statement to The Independent. “Appropriate action will be taken for all involved.”
The video played on a loop for five minutes on screens in the building, including in the cafeteria, according to journalist Maria Kabas.
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“Building staff couldn’t figure out how to turn it off so sent people to every floor to unplug TVs,” Kabas said, quoting an anonymous agency source.
Trump’s relationship with Musk has been highly scrutinized since the SpaceX boss started bankrolling the president’s 2024 campaign.
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Since then, Musk has muscled his way into the White House, wielding unprecedented powers through DOGE.
The duo told Fox News host Sean Hannity last week that they believe media outlets are trying to drive a wedge between them.
Trump revealed that the speculation over their relationship prompted the Tesla CEO to call him.
“Actually, Elon called me. He said, ‘You know they’re trying to drive us apart,’” Trump recalled. “I said, ‘Absolutely.’”
At one point in the interview, Hannity interjected and remarked: “This is going to be hard. I feel like I’m interviewing the two brothers.”
Pundits have speculated that the bromance between the two billionaires will come crashing down eventually.
“The Trump Show is a one-man play,” Politico’s senior political columnist Jonathan Martin wrote earlier this month. “And there’s not room for anybody else, least of all somebody wealthier and with a (nearly) comparable thirst for attention.”
