 "Watch: Trump shares edited video hitting Springsteen with golf ball")
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday escalated his public feud with rockstar Bruce Springsteen by sharing a doctored video on his social media platform Truth Social.
The edited video shows Trump swinging a golf club and hitting a ball, followed by a cut to footage of Springsteen tripping and falling during a concert. The clip is edited to make it appear as though the golf ball caused the fall.
Watch the video here:
Trump has been critical of Springsteen after the rockstar made remarks about his administration during the opening night of his European tour.
“The America I love, the America I’ve written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration,” Springsteen said.
He went on to accuse the Trump administration of “abandoning the world’s poorest children to sickness and death ... taking sadistic pleasure in the pain that they inflict on loyal American workers", and rolling back civil rights in the US.
According to Variety, Springsteen plans to release an EP based on the concert, which will include his comments.
In response, the Trump administration issued a statement saying, “The 77 million Americans that elected President Trump disagree with elitist and out-of-touch celebrities like Bruce Springsteen.”
Trump later posted on Truth Social, calling Springsteen “overrated” and a “jerk".
“Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he’s not a talented guy — Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK, who fervently supported Crooked Joe Biden, a mentally incompetent FOOL, and our WORST EVER President, who came close to destroying our Country,” Trump wrote.
Springsteen is not the only musician Trump has criticised. He also targeted pop star Taylor Swift, who recently concluded a record-breaking two-year tour. Trump claimed Swift is no longer “hot” and wrote that he “HATE[s] TAYLOR SWIFT” after she endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.
Several musicians have also spoken out in support of Springsteen and Swift.
“Bruce and thousands of musicians think you are ruining America. You worry about that instead of the dyin’ kids in Gaza,” musician Neil Young wrote on his website. “That's your problem. I am not scared of you.”
Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder also addressed the issue during a concert in Pittsburgh on Sunday.
“All that we heard were personal attacks and threats that nobody else should try to use their microphones or voice in public or they’ll be shut down,” Vedder told the audience.
In a separate development this week, Trump accused Kamala Harris of "illegally paying millions" to Beyoncs for an endorsement, claiming it was done under the "veil of entertainment". He has also called for an investigation into the matter.