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When and where was the photograph of Donald Trump kneeling with Bill Clinton seated first published?
Executive summary
The photograph of Donald Trump and Bill Clinton that later became the basis for an AI-generated video was taken at the 2000 U.S. Open in Flushing, New York and first entered the public record when the Clinton Presidential Library released images from its collections in 2016 (PolitiFact, Poynter and Clinton Library finding aid) [1] [2] [3]. Journalists and fact-checkers say the specific still used as the opening frame of the viral clip is a legitimate outtake from that U.S. Open encounter, and the viral moving image that shows Trump kneeling or groping is an AI creation derived from that authentic photo [1] [3].
1. The photo’s origin: a White House photographer at the 2000 U.S. Open
Reporting identifies the picture as a still taken when then-President Bill Clinton and Donald Trump crossed paths at the 2000 U.S. Open in New York; White House photographer William Vasta captured a moment in which the two men are smiling side-by-side and Trump’s arm is extended in mid-motion (Poynter’s reconstruction and Vasta’s description) [1]. The Clinton Digital Library’s finding aid documents a collection of year‑2000 photographs that includes Clinton greeting Trump at U.S. Open events, confirming the image’s provenance in the presidential archive [2].
2. When the photo entered the public record: Clinton Library releases in 2016
The image — along with nearly two dozen photographs of Trump socializing with Bill and Hillary Clinton — was made public when the Clinton Presidential Library released photos in response to a records request; multiple outlets reported that those images were published in 2016 after the library’s release (Politico and archival listings) [4] [2]. Contemporary coverage in 2016 highlighted the photos as evidence of an earlier cordial relationship between Trump and the Clintons [4].
3. How the still was reused in 2025: AI video built from the frame
Fact-checkers say the six‑second viral clip that circulated in November 2025 is AI‑generated and uses the authentic 2000 still as its first frame; forensic analysts and AI specialists concluded the moving footage was synthesized from that photograph rather than recorded as actual video of the interaction (Poynter, PolitiFact, Snopes) [1] [3] [5]. Poynter quotes William Vasta saying the video is “clearly a derivative” and points to matching lighting and shadow details between the original photo and the AI clip [1].
4. What the photograph actually shows — contesting sensational claims
Fact-checkers emphasize the still is an “outtake between handshakes and gestures” and that other photos from the same event show friendly interactions; Snopes and Yahoo’s fact checks note Trump’s hand appears to hover and not make contact in authenticated frames, undercutting claims that the still documents any sexual misconduct [6] [7]. PolitiFact likewise labels the viral video — not the published 2000 still — as an AI fabrication and says the photographer described the still as taken out of context [3].
5. How reporting and institutions framed the release — motives and context
The Clinton Presidential Library released the photos in 2016 following an archival request (Politico and the Clinton Library finding aid), a routine transparency step that also fed political narratives about past relationships; outlets framed the photos as illustrating how “chummy” Trump once was with the Clintons [4] [2]. In 2025, interest in the same images was reignited not by the archive itself but by leaked/viral emails and social posts tied to Jeffrey Epstein‑related material, which motivated some parties to repackage the old still into sensational AI content [1] [3].
6. Limits of the available reporting and remaining questions
Available sources document the photograph’s origin (2000 U.S. Open), its release into the public record (2016 via the Clinton Library), and that the later viral video was AI-derived from that still, but they do not provide a single citation naming the first public outlet that published that exact frame in 2016 beyond general reporting of the library release (available sources do not mention a single “first publisher” of that exact frame in 2016) [4] [2]. Also not covered in current reporting: any contemporaneous captions or metadata that would show the precise moment the Clinton Library posted that particular file or which wire service first distributed that specific frame in 2016 (not found in current reporting).
7. Bottom line for readers evaluating viral claims
The underlying photograph is a genuine image from the 2000 U.S. Open that was released by the Clinton Presidential Library in 2016 and has been used in news stories since; the disturbing moving clip that circulated in 2025 is, according to multiple fact‑checking organizations and the photographer, an AI fabrication derived from that still [1] [3] [5]. When encountering sensational video, check whether outlets cite the original archival photo and a photographer’s statement before treating the moving image as authentic [1] [3].