A bizarre AI-generated video of former US President Donald Trump sucking Elon Musk’s feet was briefly played on screens inside the headquarters of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), triggering an internal investigation.
‘Long live the real king’
According to The New York Times, the footage, which appeared to mock Trump’s close ties to Musk, was broadcast on Monday. Over the surreal visuals, an inscription read, “Long Live the Real King,” a reference to Trump’s triumphant post on Truth Social after his administration scrapped New York City’s congestion pricing plan.
Musk, now overseeing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has been tasked with slashing federal staffing and spending—a move that has already rattled thousands of government employees.
HUD vows to fire those responsible
A spokesperson for HUD condemned the video as an “abuse of taxpayer resources” and vowed to hold those responsible accountable. An internal investigation is now underway, with potential terminations on the table.
The video surfaced on the same day as Musk’s controversial “productivity audit,” which required federal employees to justify their roles via email. Many agencies—some led by Trump loyalists—urged staff to ignore the directive, creating widespread confusion.
Musk’s response: ‘Another chance’
Musk, seemingly unfazed by the video scandal, reiterated on X that federal employees still had “another chance” to justify their jobs—or risk losing them.
Meanwhile, the Democrat-led House Committee on Financial Services responded with a cryptic post on X: “Not all heroes wear capes.”
The incident has added fuel to the fire of an already chaotic restructuring of the federal workforce, blending satire, AI trickery, and political intrigue in ways that feel almost too absurd to be real.