Politics

Did The Daily Telegraph publish an article by Fiona Parker reporting that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is considering "emergency detainment camps" on the Falkland Islands? No, that's not true: The publication said, "No such article has ever been published by the Telegraph." There is no publicly available information showing Starmer is planning such camps. The claim appeared in a…

Did Tim Walz, Minnesota governor and Democratic Party vice presidential pick, overstate his rank in the Army National Guard and abandon his unit before it was about to deploy to Iraq? No, neither is true: The Minnesota National Guard told Lead Stories that Walz held the rank of command sergeant major when he left the Guard in 2005. He retired…

Does Minnesota mark voters' party affiliation on the outside of mail-in ballots? No, that's not true: Political party affiliation is not included in the state's voter registration. A spokesperson for Minnesota's secretary of state office told Lead Stories that an "R" on the envelope just indicates a "registered" absentee voter, not "Republican." The claim appeared in a post (archived here)…

Did The Associated Press fact check a story that said Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz had his stomach pumped because he consumed "a gallon of ... semen" from a horse or a human? No, that's not true: AP's media relations manager denied that the outlet fact checked the claim. Lead Stories could not find any evidence that Walz has…

Is it true that there was "not an American flag in sight" at a Philadelphia rally with Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on August 6, 2024, as a post on X stated? No, that's not true: A Lead Stories journalist covered the rally and saw flags first-hand, and American flags were also seen in a video…

Did the Academy of Country Music place a lifetime ban on entertainer Jack Black after his bandmate made comments about the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump? No, that's not true: The false report was posted on a self-proclaimed "fake news" website. There also is no evidence that the Academy of Country Music proclaimed that Black was banned. The…

Does Project 2025 say, "The only valid family is a working father married to a stay-at-home mother and their children"? No, that's not true: Nowhere in Project 2025's book "Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise" does it say that. Instead, it states, "Families comprised of a married mother, father, and their children are the foundation of a well-ordered nation and…

Is there leaked footage showing BlackRock CEO Larry Fink carrying a gun as he walks with Thomas Matthew Crooks, the gunman who tried to assassinate Donald Trump? No, that's not true: The still photo that's a thumbnail preview to a YouTube video is a fake AI-generated image. The scene in the photo does not appear in the YouTube video at…

Is Joe Rogan suing MSNBC for $30 million over a deceptive video edit that made him look like he was pro-Kamala Harris? No, that's not true: There is no publicly available evidence as of this writing that Rogan has filed a lawsuit or taken any legal action against MSNBC. The social media posts reporting it happened did not offer any…

Does an authentic photograph show supporters at the Republican National Convention wearing diapers for Donald Trump in July 2024? No, that's not true: A reverse image search revealed that the image originated on satire website The Shovel. Lead Stories ran the image through a detection tool which found "substantial evidence" that the image was generated using AI. The claim appeared…

Does a meme comparing raised-fist images of Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler use a real photo of Hitler to make its point? No, that's not true: While the photo of Trump is authentic, an AI-detection tool shows the image of Hitler has been digitally manipulated to closely match photographs taken of Trump right after a gunman fired at him in…

Did President Joe Biden board the wrong, empty plane at Joint Base Andrews, where he arrived to meet three Americans freed from a prisoner swap with Russia on August 1, 2024? No, that's not true: White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told journalists that Biden walked inside the plane that had carried the released prisoners to the United States to thank…

Did Kamala Harris tweet "My father is black. Trump's father was KKK"? No, that's not true: This fabricated quote is attributed to an account in an image labeled "Parody" that misspells the vice president's name. There is no record of her making such a statement on X or any other platform. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on…

Did Vice President Kamala Harris say "a problem is not a problem" as part of a longer quote in a meme circulating on social media? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for the vice president's office answered "no" by email when Lead Stories asked if the quote was real. Lead Stories could find no video or news articles indicating Harris…

Did President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris personally oversee the plea deal with accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two other defendants? No, that's not true: Both the U.S. National Security Adviser and the U.S. Office of Military Commissions stated that the White House was not involved in any way. There is no evidence that either the…

Did Michelle Obama wear a gold necklace with the letters "MIKE" in 2020? No, that's not true: The former first lady's gold necklace had the four letters "VOTE" on it at the 2020 Democratic National Convention. Publicly available images of Obama wearing the VOTE necklace are easily found on the internet. Multiple news outlets covered the necklace she wore and…

Did Vice President Kamala Harris suggest that young people "should not have children due to climate change," as implied by a post on X? No, that's not true: In the clip, she described how "young leaders" define climate anxiety. She did not suggest that young people "should not have children." A version of the claim appeared in a post on…

Did American billionaire Warren Buffett criticize former President Donald Trump for "begging for money" on X? No, that's not true: What appeared to be a screenshot of Buffett's account was a 2022 recycled meme. It was first published by a parody account. The claim resurfaced in a post (archived here) published on Threads on July 30, 2024. It said: Everyone's…

Does the Georgia Voter Registration Cancellation Portal automatically cancel voter registration based solely on entry of a voter's first initial, last name, county and date of birth? No, that's not true: These data points are only the first step in the process. A spokesperson for Georgia's Secretary of State, which oversees elections, told Lead Stories the system asks for more…

Did Donald Trump shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks have three offshore bank accounts totaling $1.5 million? No, that's not true: The FBI National Press Office told Lead Stories that, as of July 30, 2024, their investigation had "not uncovered any evidence" of "overseas bank accounts." Secret Service and FBI officials had briefed members of Congress that Crooks had three foreign encrypted…