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The X account belonging to Elmo appeared to be hacked on Sunday, leading to a period of about an hour in which a string of antisemitic and other posts were posted to the beloved Sesame Street Muppet’s page before being taken down.
One post, written in the third-person style characteristic of the children’s entertainment icon, issued violent threats against all Jewish people before referring to President Donald Trump as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “puppet” because “he is in the Epstein files.”
Another post — out of six total apparently by the hacker — addressed the U.S. President directly on the subject of the controversial, alleged client list belonging to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “RELEASE THE FILES @realDonaldTrump CHILD F—ER,” it read.
Elmo/x
Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for Disney, the Sesame Workshop, and the White House for comment.
The series of now-deleted posts come in the wake of Trump, who previously stated he would release files related to Epstein’s alleged criminal exploits, reversing course after Attorney General Pam Bondi circulated a memo on July 7 that claimed the so-called “Epstein files” revealed “no incriminating ‘client list'” and prompted no further investigation.
“Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy’s been talked about for years,” Trump said in a Cabinet meeting the day after the release of the Department of Justice memo. “I can’t believe you’re asking questions about Epstein at a time like this, where we’re having some of the greatest success, and also tragedy with what happened in Texas… It just seems like a desecration.”
The response also followed former Trump ally and DOGE head Elon Musk accusing Trump of appearing in Epstein’s files.
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Trump’s pivot has angered many in his party, including some of his most loyal supporters. Roseanne Barr wrote in a July 8 social media post“Mr. President – Yes, we still care about Epstein. Is there a time to not care about child sex trafficking? Read the damn room.”
Podcaster and Trump supporter Andrew Schulz similarly stated on a recent episode of his Flagrant podcast that the move confirms Trump is “doing the exact opposite of everything I voted for.”
As of Sunday evening, the most recent post on Elmo’s X account featured a picture of the red, fuzzy muppet with his newly-adopted puppy, Tango. “Happy Gotcha Day Tango! Elmo is so lucky to have a furry friend like you!”
