There’s bipartisan support for a proposal to send American adults a check for $1,000 as part of an economic stimulus package to stave off a recession during the coronavirus pandemic. So it seems unlikely that Democrats would sign onto a deal that discriminates against, well, Democrats.
But an image being shared on social media makes it look like President Donald Trump is threatening just that.
"Yes, I ordered the Treasury secretary to send checks to Americans!" reads what looks like a tweet sent from Trump’s account on March 17. "First however, we will go through your social media history from the last 4 years and search for any post with #NotMyPresident in it. I wouldn’t think of offending you with a check if I’m not your president! #MAGA"
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
Trump has tweeted a lot in the past few days, but he tweeted no such thing as the statement appearing in the Instagram post. The tweet also doesn’t appear in this database of tweets Trump deleted.
We rate it Pants on Fire.
Instagram post, March 17, 2020
The Washington Post, Americans are very likely to get $1,000 (or more) checks. Here’s what you need to know, March 17, 2020
Donald Trump Twitter account, visited March 18, 2020
Factbase, Donald Trump - deleted tweets, visited March 19, 2020
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.
