TVs at government agency hacked—to play AI video of Trump licking Musk's feet

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‘Another waste of taxpayer dollars and resources,’ a HUD spokesperson told the Daily Dot.

Mikael Thalen

Posted on February 24 2025 10:36 am CST

A video likely generated with artificial intelligence (AI) that shows President Donald Trump kissing the feet of Elon Musk played on Monday inside the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

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The clip, shared to X by Vox journalist Rachel Cohen, reportedly ran inside the federal agency’s cafeteria. The phrase “LONG LIVE THE REAL KING,” a reference to Musk’s influence on the Trump administration, was also shown in the video.

A separate photo of the TV screen was also obtained by Washington Post journalist Jeff Stein, who described the video as being part of an apparent hack.

“Someone apparently hacked the televisions at HUD today,” Stein wrote.

Over on Bluesky, independent journalist Marisa Kabas shared footage as well, before stating, according to a source, that the AI clip had played on a loop on screens all over the building.

“Building staff couldn’t figure out how to turn it off so sent people to every floor to unplug TVs,” she wrote.

This morning at Dept of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) HQ in DC as mandatory return to office began, this video played on loop for ~5 mins on screens throughout the building, per agency source. Building staff couldn’t figure out how to turn it off so sent people to every floor to unplug TVs.
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— Marisa Kabas (@marisakabas.bsky.social) February 24, 2025 at 2:51 PM

The incident comes after the Trump administration proposed cutting half of the agency’s workforce, particularly those working on issues relating to disaster recovery, first-time homebuyers, discrimination, and rental subsidies, according to documents obtained by the Associated Press.

In a statement on the matter, HUD spokesperson Kasey Lovett did not provide details but suggested to the Daily Dot that those responsible, if found, would be reprimanded.

“Another waste of taxpayer dollars and resources,” Lovett said. “Appropriate action will be taken for all involved.”

The television takeover follows an email controversy from Saturday in which Musk asked over 2 million federal workers to list their accomplishments from the week prior or face potential firing.

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