Does an abstract digital image from 2021 contain a hidden image showing the famous raised fist photo from the 2024 assassination attempt against President Donald Trump in Butler, Pa.? No, that's not true: The digital image was presented in 2026 with a transparent overlay so that both images were intermingled. It does not contain a hidden image of the 2024…
Is a photo that shows Donald Trump with no damage to his ear immediately after the Butler assassination attempt authentic? No, that's not true: An online AI detection tool rated the image as 100% likely AI-generated. The account that originally posted the photo posts multiple AI images. Published images from the day of the assassination attempt show Trump with blood…
Did conservative political commentator and podcaster Tucker Carlson say, "Trump faked his assassination attempt in Butler," Pa., in July 2024? No, that's not true: Carlson has asked questions about the Butler assassination plot. But there are no reliable reports to support the claim that he ever said the attack on then-candidate Donald Trump was staged. The claim appeared in a…
Did Rob Reiner say he wished the would-be Donald Trump assassin "hadn't missed"? No, that's not true: A source close to the family told Lead Stories the claim is "nonsense." Lead Stories found no evidence that Reiner ever said he wished the gunman had killed Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024. Social media posts claiming that "liberals are all butt…
Was a Secret Service agent standing with Donald Trump after he was shot in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, also standing close to Charlie Kirk when he was fatally shot in Orem, Utah, on September 10, 2025? No, that's not true: The male Secret Service agent holding Trump's left arm as Trump raised his right fist in the air…
Will President Trump's Address to the Joint Session of Congress on March 4, 2025, not be aired by CNN? No, that's not true: The CNN TV programming schedule shows the address will air live at 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The schedule has five additional time slots blocked out to rebroadcast the address through the overnight hours. The false claim…
Is Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro being charged with the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Butler on July 13, 2024? No, that's not true: The district attorney of Butler County told Lead Stories that Shapiro "HAS NOT been charged with anything connected to the assassination attempt." The DA added: "I do not believe the Governor was at all involved in…
Have investigators been unable to unlock the phone of Thomas Matthew Crooks, the gunman in the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, as of January 6, 2025? No, that's not true: The FBI announced in July 2024 that they had successfully unlocked his phone. Using advanced forensic tools, their experts bypassed the phone's security and accessed messages, data and other information…
Does a viral image authentically show Donald Trump sitting next to Thomas Matthew Crooks, who is accused of shooting at Trump during a presidential campaign rally on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: The image shows signs that are consistent with generative AI technology. The image did not appear in credible news coverage of that assassination…
Were explosive devices discovered at the site of a Donald Trump campaign event on September 18, 2024, on Long Island, New York? No, that's not true: Law enforcement denied the rumor. The police statement said that a person "training a bomb detection dog" near the event's location had made a false report. The claim about explosive devices appeared in a…
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