Barack Obama

Is a photo that shows Melania Trump holding the President Jimmy Carter funeral program upside down authentic? No, that's not true: The image of President-elect Donald Trump's wife at the January 2025 funeral for Carter holding a program upside down is altered. Footage from the funeral by NBC, publicly available on the internet, shows that Melania Trump is holding the…

Does a video show Barack Obama "committing abhorrent acts while high" as a social media post imples? No, that's not true: The post does not offer any evidence that the former president was caught on camera getting high or "committing abhorrent acts." The video linked in the post does not show Obama doing drugs of any kind or doing anything…

Was former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper recorded in a 2021 videotaped deposition saying that Vice President Mike Pence and several others conspired in an attempt to remove President Donald Trump from office? No, that's not true: The recording is actually of a different person, Ryan Dark White, a failed U.S. Senate candidate who also used the name Jon…

Were there 15 million, 18 million or even 20 million fewer votes in 2024 versus the election numbers from 2020, disproving reports of record turnout or implying cheating in vote totals? No, that's not true: As of November 7, 2024, final vote numbers had not been reported in any state. An election expert told Lead Stories that count would take…

Does a photo on social media show people crowding the street outside Madison Square Garden in New York in 2024 for a Trump rally? No, that's not true: Images from the street scene first appeared in 2011, showing people in Dublin lined up for an event attended by then-President Barack Obama. Actual photos from Trump's Madison Square Garden rally in…

Does a video on social media show former President Barack Obama in a GITMO jail cell after being arrested in 2019? No, that's not true: It's authentic video, but it was taken in 2013 when Obama visited the jail cell where former South African president and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela was held for 18 years. There is no evidence that…

When former President Barack Obama described a metaphorical plan in 2022 to "flood" the public square with "raw sewage," did he present it as either his own or as that of the Democratic Party? No, that's not true: He was describing how propaganda works, not what he or the party was planning to do. He said this in a speech…

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…

Do memorandums by President Joe Biden prove he is transferring his presidential power to others in advance of his death? No, that's not true: The delegation of powers to lower-level officials is a common practice in the federal government. There are dozens of examples during the Biden, Trump and Obama administrations where each president delegated limited "functions and authorities" to…

Did Joe Biden say in June 2024 that he might resign the presidency for medical reasons? No, that's not true: There are no credible reports or official statements indicating that President Biden recently made such a remark. A video in which Biden said, "...I will develop some disease and say I have to resign," is from 2020 and referred to…