Immigration

Does an authentic video show President Trump saying "Lopping off someone's ding-a-long doesn't make them a woman, it makes them a eunuch?" No, that's not true: A disclaimer saying the video is "a deepfake, quite obviously" appears in the last second of the clip. The video was posted on an X account that has previously shared videos that replaced Trump's…

Was there a WhatsApp leak in France that revealed the imminent arrest on May 6, 2025 of right-wing politicians Marine Le Pen, Marion Maréchal, Sarah Knafo and Florian Philippot as reported in a video from the "FP+" channel ? No, that's not true: That channel is part of the website of French magazine Front Populaire, which did not publish any…

Does a social media post include an authentic photo of former New Mexico Magistrate Judge Joel Cano standing pantsless in flip-flops with Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, the Venezuelan man he is accused of hiding from U.S. immigration officials? No, that's not true: The original image, in which Cano is fully clothed, was included with documents filed March 28, 2025, in federal court…

Did the New York Times fail to mention Nascimento Blair's kidnapping conviction and prison sentence in an April 2025 article about his deportation from the United States to Jamaica? No, that's not true: the authors mentioned the conviction and 15-year sentence in detail, and in several different parts of the article. Blair was convicted of first-degree kidnapping in 2006, released…

Did U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi threaten that anyone saying "Fuck Trump" may get "15 years in El Salvador" for doing that? No, that's not true: The viral image with the supposed quote was not an authentic screenshot of Bondi's interview. In the picture circulating on social media, the contents of the lower banner were digitally replaced with a made-up…

Did U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement post on X about ideas crossing the border illegally, along with people, money and products? Yes, that's true: Screenshots of the post were shared widely, amid a backlash around what critics described as the concept of "illegal ideas." ICE later deleted the post, but archived versions of it prove its authenticity. A screenshot of…

Does a "loophole in U.S. law" legally grant permission to noncitizens to vote in federal elections if they believe they are U.S. citizens? No, that's not true: A professor specializing in election law told Lead Stories that what was referred to on social media as a "loophole" described such a narrow exception that "it's hard to imagine whom it might…

Was a man named Jerce Reyes Barrios, described as a soccer player from Venezuela on social media, deported from the U.S. to El Salvador? The story was reported by ABC News, citing the man's attorney. Filings in U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. spell out Barrios' account. Here is what we know so far. The story appeared in a post…

Did ICE detain British national Becky Burke on the Canadian border? Yes, that's true: A spokesperson for the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, asked by Lead Stories specifically about Burke, confirmed a "British national" was being detained in the United States. The tourist had spent at least 10 days in detention as of March 9, 2025, according to her…

Did Congress vote to deport Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), a naturalized citizen, as of February 28, 2025? No, that's not true: An immigration expert told Lead Stories that a naturalized citizen cannot be deported. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services writes that revocation of naturalized citizenship can only occur in federal court for limited circumstances "either by civil proceeding or pursuant…