Getty Images of Kevin Mazur/Kevin Mazur/RRHOF
Culture warriors have continued to celebrate since the tragic murder of renowned film director and activist Rob Reiner. Shortly after Reiner's death, President Donald Trump himself took to social media to denounce Reiner as a “suffering, struggling artist,” adding that Reiner was “a psychopath as far as Mr. Trump is concerned.”
President Trump's inflammatory comments were condemned by a wide range of celebrities and government officials, from Whoopi Goldberg to Marjorie Taylor Greene to Joe Rogan. Jack White, the Detroit-born indie rock musician who became famous for his role with the White Stripes, also joined the effort.
At the time, White criticized the comments on Instagram, calling Trump “disgusting, mean, self-centered, and a loser.” [and] child. “As a musician, White is a bit known for jumping into public fights, but even he probably couldn't have imagined what would happen next.
Two weeks after Mr. White jumped in to defend Mr. Reiner's legacy — an eternity in the fast-paced culture wars — Tennessee Congressman Tim Burchett threw himself into the mosh pit. Burchett reposted an apparently AI-generated video of White calling a potential fan, who is also a Trump supporter, a “fascist” and wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “That pretty girl from the Addams Family is so ugly I'm mad.”
Mr. White responded by hitting back at Mr. Burchett, calling him one of Mr. Trump's “stooges and snatchers.”
“Can you believe that a member of Congress, yes, a member of Congress (from my state), who once held a sacred and respected position in our society, reposted an AI-generated video containing false comments that he never said (without any research I might add) and then added to that that he tried to insult my appearance like a 10-year-old on the playground?” White exclaimed on Instagram. “What kind of joke are we living in now?”
“It's really sad how embarrassing our leaders have become. I wish the average American conservative could just for a moment have a conversation with intelligent people from other countries around the world and actually understand what a joke our government (and on behalf of our country) has become,” the musician continued. “It’s all about giving power and a soapbox to the lower class playground bullies like Trump and Rep. Burchett.”
When an X user pointed out that Burchett had been fooled by an AI deepfake, the congressman tried to ignore it, replying, “You mean it's not the girl from the Addams Family?”
Learn more about celebrities: Glock makes wildly contradictory claims about Rob Reiner's death
