Military families were once a cornerstone of Trump’s base, but lately it seems like he can’t stop striking out with the once loyal demographic. First, there was the debacle of him calling fallen soldiers “losers” during his presidency, then last week he further antagonized them by claiming the Medal of Freedom was “much better” than receiving the Medal of Honor. Now, the former president is being met with claims of stolen valor after posting photos of himself “serving” with The A-Team in the 1980s, photos some claim may have been AI generated.
Trump is no stranger to AI, having recently posted fake photos of Taylor Swift and her fans supporting him. While those photos could plausibly be dismissed as tongue-in-cheek, Trump has gone to great lengths to present the A-Team to be “One hundred percent authentic,” posting the first with the following caption:
“Up until now I’ve been unable to speak on my service to this country, but thanks to recent declassification I can proudly share this. Here I am with my brothers in arms, John “Hannibal” Smith, B.A. Baracuss, ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock and ‘Faceman.’ Gone, but never forgotten. Together, we made America the greatest nation on earth. #A-Team #MAGA #Bible”
Trump followed the tweet with several more photos featuring himself and “the boys” in action, the authenticity of each seemingly more dubious than the last. One, featuring the former President having a cigar with John “Hannibal” Smith,” made particularly boisterous claims:
“We sure had some wild times. It wasn’t easy being listed as fugitives to complete crucial black-ops missions too dangerous for the military to handle, but sometimes to make America great you gotta get your hands dirty. It’s said that Hannibal’s plans were often almost as good as mine.”
Critics have been quick to point out that “The A-Team” was a fictionalized television show, and that the photos depict Trump with television actors, many of whom are still alive and never served the U.S military in any capacity. One photo even depicts Trump knocking out B.A. Baracuss during a boxing match, but it’s clearly Mr. T playing Clubber Lang in Rocky 3.
“Baracuss and I had our scuffles (which I always won,) due in large part to his jealousy over the fact that I was the teams seduction expert. but at the end of the day we were brothers,” Trump said at a recent rally in Michigan.
After a barrage of tweets calling the photos fake and accusing Trump of stolen valor, the former President only doubled down on his claims.
“Kamabala dosen’t want you to know that my A-team single handedly freed Alf from the clutches of the evil Doctor Hannibal Lecter, saving Christmas and democracy in one foul swoop. I say TOUGH!”
When reached for comment by the associated press, Mr. T called the use of AI generated images to drum up support desperate and sad, adding “I don’t hate him, but I do pity the fool.”