Trump Posts AI Photo of Kamala Harris as Joseph Stalin — But She Actually Looks Like Mario Instead

Former President Donald Trump has made yet another controversial social media post. This time, he posted an AI-generated image of Vice President Kamala Harris, which was intended to depict Harris as Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. Instead, it resembled the well-known video game character Mario. Trump posted the image on his Truth Social platform. The picture came from a Substack post by a writer for the Gateway Pundit, a far-right website known for spreading false claims about the 2020 election being stolen from Trump, as per Futurism.

The AI-generated image shows Harris dressed in communist clothes and sporting a mustache. But it doesn't seem very realistic. Many users on social media noted that Harris's artificial mustache resembles Nintendo's renowned plumber Mario rather than the feared Soviet dictator. One X user joked, "The only thing this post makes me wanna do is vote for Kamala and then play Super Mario World on my old Super Nintendo system. @realDonaldTrump."

Comedian Jason Selvig added some humor, writing, "BREAKING: Donald Trump accuses Kamala Harris of being a heroic plumber who saved Princess Peach from Bowser and his evil Koopa army." @rloewe65 said, "First it was Elon posting an AI generated image of Kamala Harris dressed in a Chinese Communist outfit, and now Trump posted one that is supposed to be Joseph Stalin, but looks more like Mario." Elon Musk, who owns X, also joined in. He posted his own AI image of Harris in communist attire. Musk tweeted, "Kamala vows to be a communist dictator on day one. Can you believe she wears that outfit!?" Several well-known individuals objected to this post. It includes actor Henry Winkler and former UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson.

Mehdi Hasan, editor-in-chief of Zeteo, commented on Musk's post: "Just straight up disinformation, with no parody label or community note, from the owner of this site and the guy with the most followers. Anyone who claimed he wouldn't use this platform to push rightwing conspiracies and help elect Trump must be feeling pretty dumb right now." Trump's post got mixed reactions. Many Harris supporters mocked the image. But some right-wing figures, like X user Phillip "Catturd" Buchanan, shared it approvingly. His followers responded with jokes about "Comrade Kamala" and even more AI-generated images. 

While some of these graphics are not intended to appear realistic, they can nonetheless convey misinformation and perpetuate wrong beliefs. The use of AI to manufacture propaganda is becoming increasingly frequent. This is not the first time Trump used AI to target Harris. Last month, he published another AI-generated image of her speaking in front of a crowd with Soviet-style flags in the background, as per The Independent. These posts seem to be a part of Trump and his followers' bigger effort to portray Harris as a far-left radical.