Inauguration

Did unauthorized drones fly over the White House on January 13, 2025? No, that's not true: There's no proof to back up that claim. The Civil Air Patrol, which was running drone exercises in the Washington area from January 13 to 15, 2025, told Lead Stories, "There were no unauthorized drone flights over the White House at any time on…

Is it unusual that U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer was not invited to President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration? No, that's missing context: A social media post's assertion that usually the British prime minister "would be the first name on the list" is untrue. Traditionally, foreign leaders were not invited to U.S. presidential inaugurations, a presidential historian told Lead Stories. The claim…

Did the U.S. government announce a new cost-of-living stimulus, offering a $1,000 "emergency relief card" to every citizen as of January 6, 2025? No, that's not true: This post included a link to a non-government website that asked for personal information for entry into a "sweepstakes," a tactic used in scams. A video in the post included clips of President-elect…

Did journalists report President-elect Donald Trump responded negatively to TikTok trends urging people "to bring kazoos, recorders, and vuvuzelas to interrupt his speech" at the January 20, 2025, inauguration? No, that's not true: The story originated from an account on X with a satire label stating that it doesn't "report the facts." No information about this supposed post has been…

Did President Joe Biden deviate from standard protocol following the death of former President Jimmy Carter on December 29, 2024, by ordering flags to be set at half-staff during President-elect Donald Trump's second inauguration? No, that's not true: Federal law requires flags to be flown at half-staff for 30 days after the death of a president or former president. This…

Are the drones reportedly seen over New Jersey and New York being used to track nuclear material in the country? No, that's not true: The National Nuclear Security Administration's emergency team told Lead Stories it doesn't use drones to detect nuclear or radiological materials. In a joint statement on December 16, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, Federal Aviation…

Did Canada ban President-elect Donald Trump from entering the country as of November 2024 because of his felony conviction? No, that's not true: A person is only declared inadmissible when they try to cross into the country, and no credible source reported that Trump tried to enter Canada before Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited him in Florida. Contrary to…

Did the president of Mexico say she won't recognize Donald Trump as president as of November 7, 2024? No, that's not true: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum did acknowledge Trump's victory on her official X account on November 6, 2024. She said, "my most sincere congratulations to Donald Trump, who won the presidential election of the United States of America." The…

Did Vice President Kamala Harris announce that she would not attend "the presidential induction ceremony" after Donald Trump won the November 5, 2024, election? No, that's not true: In a concession speech on November 6, 2024, Harris stated that she would "help" Trump transition to the White House and "engage in a peaceful transfer of power." As of this writing,…

Was the Sheriff's Office in Gwinnett County, Georgia, told about a threat from white supremacists or Ku Klux Klan members against Black women up to the inauguration? No, that's not true: The Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office issued a statement on their Facebook page that they "have not received any information indicating threats to any group(s) on or after election day."…