Senile Trump Posts, Then Deletes, AI Deepfake Of Himself Promoting Wacky MedBed Conspiracy Theory

from the seems-bad dept

Remember all that concerned coverage about an elderly President’s cognitive decline? And all those (admittedly overhyped) warnings about deepfake videos tricking the gullible?

Well, we now have a President who was apparently fooled by an AI deepfake video of himself to the point that he posted it to Truth Social as if it documented something real.

On Saturday evening, Trump posted this now-deleted video of a fake Fox News clip hosted by a fake AI-generated Lara Trump (his daughter-in-law) about a fake AI-generated Donald Trump apparently signing an executive order on “Medbeds.”

For those blissfully unaware of this corner of the conspiracy theory universe, “medbeds” are supposed miracle devices that allegedly cure all ailments and reverse aging—basically MRI machines crossed with magic. The QAnon crowd has embraced them enthusiastically, convinced the government has been hiding this nonexistent technology.

Even for someone with Trump’s well-documented cozy relationship with conspiracy theories, posting a deepfake of yourself promoting impossible technology represents a new level of… something.

The video, which has since been deleted, was intended to resemble a Fox News segment on the show hosted by the president’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, featured an AI version of Trump promising access to new medical technology. This segment has never aired on the network.

“Every American will soon receive their own medbed card,” said the false rendering of Trump. “With it, you’ll have guaranteed access to our new hospitals led by the top doctors in the nation, equipped with the most advanced technology in the world.”

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In the artificial video Trump posted and then deleted, he touts the benefits of the supposed therapy.

“These facilities are safe, modern and designed to restore every citizen to full health and strength,” the false Trump said. “This is the beginning of a new era in American healthcare.”

The most charitable explanation is that Trump saw what looked like fawning coverage of his supposed executive order and shared it without watching. But that raises its own questions about presidential decision-making processes.

Think about what this means: the President of the United States either cannot distinguish between his own actual statements and AI-generated fakes, or cannot remember what executive orders he’s signed. For all of Trump’s complaints about Biden’s “autopen,” he’s now promoted an executive order that exists only in an AI-generated alternate reality.

If a President can’t tell the difference between his own real actions and deepfaked ones, who exactly is running the government?

And it’s not like him deleting that faked video has made him any more careful. On Sunday he posted another video, this time a “commercial” by a group lobbying for getting medical cannabis covered by Medicare, where the video is clearly addressing Trump and trying to get him to do this, talking about “cementing your legacy.” And he just… posted it out.

It’s worth remembering that we spent months hearing about Biden’s supposed cognitive decline based on things like mixing up names or stumbling over words. Meanwhile, Trump posts AI-generated videos of himself promoting nonexistent executive orders about magical healing devices, and it barely registers as news.

Imagine if Biden had shared a deepfake of himself announcing miracle cancer cures. The media would have declared it proof positive of complete mental collapse and demanded immediate removal from office. But when Trump does it? A brief CNN story and crickets.

The President of the United States just promoted fictional government policy based on a fake video of himself that he apparently couldn’t distinguish from reality. If that’s not evidence of cognitive decline serious enough to question fitness for office, what exactly would be?

I can’t wait for the Jake Tapper book all about Trump’s mental state… to be published in… five years.

Filed Under: ai, conspiracy theories, deepfake, donald trump, executive orders, medbed, medical cannabis

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