U.S. President Donald Trump has once again escalated his feud with legendary rock star Bruce Springsteen, this time in the form of a digitally altered video.
Last week, the president called for an investigation into Springsteen after the singer condemned the actions of the U.S. administration during a concert in the U.K. a few days prior, where he accused the American government of being “corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous.”
On Thursday, following numerous social media-driven jabs at Springsteen and other outspoken celebrity Democrats, Trump retaliated further by sharing a doctored video of himself hitting Springsteen with a golf ball on his X and Truth Social accounts.
The clip shows Trump, a golf enthusiast, on a golf course teeing up. After hitting a shot, the footage cuts to Springsteen on a stage, his back to the camera, being struck on the back with a digitally-imposed golf ball, and tripping over.
There was no caption accompanying the video.
Trump’s latest dressing down of the storied musician came days after a late-night spout from America’s commander-in-chief.
On Monday, ahead of a meeting with Vladimir Putin, Trump took to Truth Social to share a rambling tirade directed at Springsteen and other Hollywood A-listers who endorsed his presidential opponent Kamala Harris.
“HOW MUCH DID KAMALA HARRIS PAY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN FOR HIS POOR PERFORMANCE DURING HER CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT?” Trump wrote, “WHY DID HE ACCEPT THAT MONEY IF HE IS SUCH A FAN OF HERS? ISN’T THAT A MAJOR AND ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION? WHAT ABOUT BEYONCÉ? … AND HOW MUCH WENT TO OPRAH, AND BONO???, ” he continued.
“I am going to call for a major investigation into this matter. Candidates aren’t allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS, which is what Kamala did, under the guise of paying for entertainment,” he went on.
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“In addition, this was a very expensive and desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds. IT’S NOT LEGAL! For these unpatriotic ‘entertainers,’ this was just a CORRUPT & UNLAWFUL way to capitalize on a broken system,” the president concluded.
About eight hours later, he took to social media again.
“According to news reports, Beyoncé was paid $11,000,000 to walk onto a stage, quickly ENDORSE KAMALA, and walk off to loud booing for never having performed, NOT EVEN ONE SONG!” Trump wrote.
“Remember, the Democrats and Kamala illegally paid her millions of Dollars for doing nothing other than giving Kamala a full throated ENDORSEMENT.”
Transitioning to full caps, the president rounded off his hours-long rant.
“THIS IS AN ILLEGAL ELECTION SCAM AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL! IT IS AN ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION! BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, OPRAH, BONO AND, PERHAPS, MANY OTHERS, HAVE A LOT OF EXPLAINING TO DO!!!,” he wrote.
Springsteen is one of Trump’s most high-profile and longstanding critics and was a vocal proponent of Kamal Harris during last year’s election campaign.
During his concert on May 14, the all-American rock star said the president was ‘unfit‘ for office before galvanizing the crowd to stand up and fight for democracy.
Trump fired back on Friday by hurling insults at Springsteen, saying he was “Highly Overrated” and “not a talented guy.”
“I see that Highly Overrated Bruce Springsteen goes to a Foreign Country to speak badly about the President of the United States,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he’s not a talented guy,” the president wrote.
He accused Springsteen of being a “pushy, obnoxious JERK” and “dumb as a rock,” before fixating on his looks.
“This dried out ‘prune’ of a rocker (his skin is all atrophied!) ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back into the Country,” the president wrote, appearing to threaten Springsteen with punishment upon his return to the U.S. after his tour.
On Tuesday, Canadian singer Neil Young chimed in on the feud, telling Trump to focus on “saving America from the mess you made” instead of feuding with celebrities who have criticized him.
During his career, Springsteen has challenged his audience politically beyond presidential endorsements. The 1995 album The Ghost of Tom Joad bluntly documented the lives of struggling immigrants — Mexican and Vietnamese among them. And his 2001 song American Skin (41 Shots), criticized the shooting by New York City police officers of an unarmed Guinean immigrant named Amadou Diallo, angering some of the blue-collar segments of his fan base.
— with files from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield, Katie Scott and The Associated Press
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