An anti-Donald Trump website has slammed a statement from the former president that appeared to condemn the death of internet celebrity squirrel Peanut — only for those close to the Republican candidate to confirm that the inflammatory post was actually fake.
The liberal news site Mediaite published a now-deleted article on Saturday based on the strangely fake press release that appeared to be from the Trump campaign that was first posted on X by Gentry Genvers.
“It’s a false statement,” Karoline Leavitt, of the Trump team, told The Post on Saturday afternoon.
“He didn’t actually say that,” Leavitt clarified of the statement in question, which described Peanut – who was euthanized after being captured by his owners in New York this week – as “innocent on all counts” and compared the creature to a migrant.
“Mediaite is fake news,” Leavitt scoffed.
Mediaite later issued a correction saying it “erroneously reported on a false statement attributed to Donald Trump.”
“Trump did not comment on the story in question, and neither he nor his campaign issued a statement about it. We regret the post and have removed it from our platforms,” the correction added.
Mediaite did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment on the misprint.
Gevers’ original X post was shared as a response to Elon Musk, who wrote that, as president, Trump will “save the squirrels.”
Follow along for The Post’s latest coverage of the P’Nut Squirrel saga
In the fake comment, Trump apparently complained that Peanut and Fred Raccoon were taken from their owner, Mark Longo, and “executed by New York State” thanks to their “terrible governor,” Democrat Kathy Hochul.
“If Peanut had told them he was from Mexico, they would have sent him on his way and given him a hotel room and a $500 gift card to Buddy Squirrel,” the gossip added.
Trump, 78, is known for his tough stance against illegal immigration — and has repeatedly publicly blamed the influx of new arrivals for violent crime in the US.
Peanut, 7, was a gray squirrel rescue who amassed a devoted following on social media.
He and Fred Rakun were put to death so they could be tested for rabies, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation.
The DEC alleged that Peanut, who was known to be very docile, bit one of the investigators on the hand when he was confiscated from Longo’s Elmira home on Wednesday.
Investigators were reportedly responding to anonymous complaints about wild animals living in the home.
Longo memorialized the squirrel in an emotional online tribute.
“Peanut was the best thing that ever happened to us,” a tearful Longo said in the video, with his girlfriend by his side.
“RIP BEST FRIEND. Thank you for the best 7 years of my life. Thank you for bringing so much joy to us and the world. I’m sorry I failed you, but thank you for everything,” he wrote in the post’s caption.
Longo rescued Peanut after seeing the squirrel’s mother get hit and killed by a car.
The couple’s close bond inspired Longo to move to New York, where he founded P’Nut’s Freedom Farm, an animal shelter and rescue operation.
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Image Source : nypost.com