Supporters of Donald Trump have taken credit for producing a deepfake video that shows Hillary Clinton endorsing Ron DeSantis for president.
The footage, which has already been viewed more than 400,000 times, was shared on social media Tuesday by two pro-Trump Twitter users.
“You can tell a lot about a candidate by what opposition party leaders say about them…” the user Ramble_Rants wrote.
The video, which has Clinton praising DeSantis as a candidate who “does what he’s told,” comes amid a standoff between conservatives over who to endorse for president in 2024. DeSantis, the Republican governor of Florida, remains popular but still trails significantly behind the former president.
Although numerous Twitter users were quick to point out that the video was clearly developed with artificial intelligence, others appeared to believe that the former Secretary of State had actually thrown her support behind DeSantis.
“Ron does what he is told!” one user responded. “This comment coming from hildebeast is not a good look for mr. DeSantis.”
The video closes out with Clinton proclaiming “Hail Hydra,” a catchphrase from the Captain America comic book meant to resemble a slogan from Nazi Germany, at least signifying that it might not be real.
Some were still duped.
“When Ron DESANTIS is Installed, When Push comes to Shove he does what he’s told!” another user wrote. “What Does Hail Hydra Mean??”
Others argued that the video proved DeSantis was “compromised,” while some thought that the next election would be rigged in favor of the Florida governor, given the far-right’s belief that the Clintons work in nefarious ways.
The footage even appeared to confuse Juanita Broaddrick, leaving the pro-Trump woman who accused Bill Clinton of rape in 1978 scratching her head.
The Twitter user who originally shared the video later said in response to the popular conservative duo known as the Hodgetwins that the video was in fact fake.
“I know, I made it w @C3PMeme,” they wrote. “Hail Hydra!!”
Although a quick glance at both users’ profiles shows that they regularly promote manipulated content, the deepfake video still fooled many users online.
As noted by AFP journalist Bill McCarthy, the deepfake was developed using legitimate footage from a 2021 interview Clinton gave to NBC News.
In comments to the Daily Dot, C3PMeme argued that making Clinton say “Hail Hydra” at the end of the video was a suitable disclaimer for highlighting the video’s fabricated nature.
“We are getting better and better at this every day. Like any tool, these deepfakes can definitely be used for really bad purposes,” the meme creator said. “Ramble_Rants and I are going to need to be careful and use our discernment when making these.”
C3PMeme also claimed that he and Ramble_Rants hope the video serves “as a lesson not to trust everything you see and hear on a screen or on the internet.”
“The way we see it, the entire media complex is a deepfake,” he added
