Military

Is the Pentagon spending $86 billion on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives? No, that's not true: The most recent budget request in April 2024 asked for $162 million. The Fox News guest who originally suggested the much higher number has since retracted her statement. The claim appeared in a post on X (archived here) on November 18, 2024. It said:…

Can people in the state of Washington vote using a fake name by using a website set up for visually impaired voters to print out a ballot and sending it in? No, that's not true: Registered voters with impaired vision in King County, Washington, can mark and print their ballots from their home computer. Other counties in the state allow…

Did Hamas announce that it was ending its role in the conflict with Israel in response to Donald Trump's election win, as implied in a social media post? No, that's not true: In the Newsweek article included in the post, a Hamas spokesperson called for "an immediate cessation of the aggression against our people, especially in Gaza" by Israel. Hamas…

Did "White Hats" stop "three busses" full of "Harris supporters" who had voted in New York, then boarded a bus to vote again in Pennsylvania, with 150 of these people detained? No, that's not true: This claim was made from an account connected to a website with a disclaimer that it publishes made-up content. A search on Google News brought…

Did the Pentagon fail to provide enough absentee ballots for service members overseas? No, that's not true: If a member of the military requests an absentee ballot from their state but it does not arrive in time, they can print a ballot from a special website designed to assist any overseas American voter. More than 3,000 voting assistance officers are…

Does a photo of a ballot prove that a Canadian citizen was able to cast a vote for Donald Trump because there is no voter ID law in the United States? No, that's not true: The absentee ballot in the photo showing a vote for Trump was copied from a Florida voter's social media post. The post from a person…

Have rigged voting machines in Fulton County, Georgia, and North Carolina been seized or destroyed by "white hats," as an article by Real Raw News said? No, that's not true: State election boards in North Carolina and Georgia told Lead Stories that no machines have been seized or destroyed as of this writing, and there is no evidence of rigging.…

Did South Korea announce it will deploy troops in Ukraine to engage in active combat against North Korean troops supporting Russia? No, that's not true: On October 30, 2024, neither U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin nor his South Korean counterpart Kim Yong-hyun said anything about it during a joint press conference about the potential engagement of North Korean troops…

Are armed militias hunting Federal Emergency Management Agency employees in North Carolina? No, that's not true: Although federal and local authorities acknowledged rumors about armed militias in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene, no confirmed reports about such groups targeting FEMA employees exist. After pausing for what it termed a "potential threat" to its North Carolina staff, FEMA has resumed door-to-door…

Does a recently updated Pentagon directive now authorize the military to kill American protesters? No, that's not true: The Pentagon told Lead Stories the new policies "do not authorize the DOD to use lethal force against U.S. citizens ..." The online text of Department of Defense Directive 5240.01 does not allow the military "to kill Americans who engage in political…