The week ended with fallout from a deleted post, expanded immigration detention proposals, and limits on bipartisan engagement.
Dante Belcher
Feb 9, 2026
Trump’s 55th week ended with a political scandal, bipartisan tension, immigration developments, and the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. This followed the deletion of a racist Truth Social post depicting the Obamas as apes and monkeys, with both Democrats and Republicans calling the post “offensive” and “unacceptable.” At the same time, the White House announced that its annual National Governors Association (NGA) meeting would include only Republicans, raising implications as the conference is traditionally bipartisan.
Meanwhile, following previous reporting from The Introspective detailing California and Illinois joining the World Health Organization’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, the Trump administration directed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to claw back $602 million in funding from those states, as well as Colorado and Minnesota.
As anti-immigrant sentiment continues, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed detention centers that could hold as many as 8,000 detainees at once, more than most federal prisons in the U.S. At the same time, the Department of Justice (DOJ) will begin allowing lawmakers to review unredacted versions of the Jeffrey Epstein files, raising further implications after notable figures such as Bill Gates and former President Bill Clinton were named in the documents.
Obama Post, White House, and CDC
Trump faced backlash after deleting a racist Truth Social post that depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes and monkeys in a video alleging fraud in the 2020 election.
“Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, dismissing the post.
South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott criticized the post on X, saying, “The president should remove it.”
“Praying it was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House,” he wrote.
New York Rep. Mike Lawler called the post “wrong and offensive.”
“The president’s post is wrong and incredibly offensive—whether intentional or a mistake—and should be deleted immediately with an apology offered,” he wrote on X.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries acknowledged the scandal in an X post, calling the Obamas “brilliant, compassionate and patriotic Americans.”
“They represent the best of this country. Donald Trump is a vile, unhinged and malignant bottom feeder,” he wrote.
“Every single Republican must immediately denounce Donald Trump’s disgusting bigotry.”
Trump dismissed the backlash, saying that he “looked at the beginning” of the video and said “it was fine,” referring to the portion alleging voter fraud.
“It was a very strong post in terms of voter fraud,” he said, later blaming a staffer for the post.
“Nobody knew that that was in the end. If they would have looked, they would have seen it, and probably they would have had the sense to take it down.”
He refused to apologize for the video, saying, “I didn’t make a mistake,” but told reporters that he condemned the racist portion of the post.
“I am, by the way, the least racist president you’ve had in a long time,” he said.
The Obamas ignored the scandal, with Barack Obama congratulating Team USA at the Winter Olympics.
“To all the athletes representing @TeamUSA: I’m so proud of you,” he wrote on X.
“Your talent and perseverance have brought you to this moment, and Michelle and I will be joining Americans from across the country cheering you on.”
At the same time, the White House announced that its annual National Governors Association meeting would include only Republicans, raising implications as the conference is traditionally bipartisan.
“The bipartisan White House governors meeting is an important tradition, and we are disappointed in the administration’s decision to make it a partisan occasion this year,” the NGA acting executive director and CEO said in a statement obtained by The Introspective.
“To disinvite individual governors to the White House sessions undermines an important opportunity for federal-state collaboration.”
The Trump administration later rescinded $602 million in CDC funding for Colorado, Illinois, California and Minnesota, along with $943 million in transportation funding.
Immigration and Jeffery Epstein
As anti-immigrant sentiment continues, the DHS proposed detention centers that could hold as many as 8,000 detainees at once, more than most federal prisons in the U.S.
“I am all for immigration enforcement, but this site was meant for economic development and job creation,” Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker wrote on X, referring to a planned center in Byhalia, Mississippi.
“We cannot suddenly flood Byhalia with an influx of up to 10,000 detainees.”
DHS later purchased a warehouse in Berks County, Pennsylvania—a suburb of Philadelphia—for $87 million.
“Upper Bern Township learned yesterday that the United States of America, with an address of U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement Agency in Washington, D.C., purchased the GACSD warehouse located at 3501 Mountain Road, Hamburg, Berks County, Pa.,” a county official said to NBC Philadelphia.
“The township was not involved in this transfer and has not received any applications from either the prior or new owners regarding the future use of the property. The township has no further comment on this matter at this time.
DHS also purchased a warehouse in Surprise, Arizona—a suburb of Phoenix—for $70 million, with city officials saying they were not aware of the purchase.
“The city was not aware that there were efforts underway to purchase the building, was not notified of the transaction by any of the parties involved and has not been contacted by DHS or any federal agency about the intended use of the building,” the city said in a press release.
“While we do not participate in ICE operations, we also cannot interrupt or prevent their operations.”
In Maryland, Howard County—a suburb of Baltimore—revoked a building permit for an immigration center near Elkridge.
“This is simply unacceptable today, tomorrow and forever,” Howard County Council Chair Opel Jones said, calling the proposed center “unfit and unwelcome.”
Meanwhile, as the Jeffrey Epstein scandal continues, the Department of Justice is allowing lawmakers to access the unredacted Epstein files.
“I am writing to confirm that the department is making unredacted versions of the more than 3 million pages of publicly released documents available for review by both houses of Congress starting Monday,” Assistant Attorney General Patrick Davis wrote in a letter obtained by The Introspective.
This comes after recent files detailed the late child sex offender being involved with President Trump, former President Bill Clinton and Elon Musk, with no allegations against the three currently.
The Introspective 
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