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Wednesday, November 11, 2026

Popular Alien

Stories, checked. Grounded in the record.

Latest verdicts

Contradicted"Power in America will be down for 90 days. The only Americans who will have electricity during that time will be those who hold the United States Asset Reserve." — words put in Trump's mouth in an AI-altered video posted Nov. 6, 2026, by the Facebook and Instagram account Shythechosen under the caption "TRUMP CONFIRMS NO POWER FOR 90 DAYS"Matches record"Three suspected Iran-backed terrorists plotted an attack on a British air base housing American troops using vans carrying barrels of fuel, according to a federal indictment unsealed Tuesday by the Justice Department (DOJ)." — Fox News, Brittany Miller, Nov. 10, 2026Matches record"In a review released by the National Park Service in August, the administration acknowledged that the arch would have 'adverse' effects on as many as 42 historic sites." — CNN, Aleena Fayaz, "Kennedy family sues to block Trump's arch," Nov. 10, 2026Contradicted"So it can't be a Learjet. A Learjet would take up half the bloody road. That's not taking up half the road. It is a drone or a missile." — unnamed Facebook user in a Nov. 2, 2026 video, as quoted by AAP FactCheck; the post had been viewed more than 920,000 timesMatches record"In Trump v. United States, the case in question, the court ruled that former presidents have absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within their core constitutional powers and at least presumptive immunity for other official acts. The justices ruled that former presidents have no immunity from prosecution for unofficial conduct." — Robert Schmad, Fox News, Nov. 10, 2026, reporting Justice Sonia Sotomayor's wish to see the ruling overturnedMissing context"He failed to win the speakership when he topped out at 200 votes – shy of the 218 required – and the conference removed him as its nominee, eventually landing on now-Speaker Mike Johnson." — Aaron Blake, CNN analysis, "Jim Jordan's long, fraught path to lead the House GOP," live updates, Nov. 10, 2026Contradicted"Abdul El Sayed has failed the background check required for classified Senate briefings. The denial blocks him from any session that involves sensitive national security information." — X account @TrumpNews_Baby (posting as "Jonathan Gregory"), Nov. 8, 2026, in a wire-style post viewed about 2.7 million timesMatches record"Following investigations, France is now in a position to attribute these destructive actions to Iran: they were carried out by SHAHID KAVEH, an offensive cyber unit affiliated with the Electronic Warfare and Cyber Defense Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps," the ministry continued. — Greg Norman-Diamond, Fox News Digital live updates, Nov. 10, 2026, reporting that France's foreign ministry said Oct. 11-12 attacks hit the refrigeration controls of more than 700 retail sites

““The pool is now better and more beautiful than it’s ever been before, and we’re very proud of it. … We went through a lot with vandalism.” — President Donald Trump, remarks at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Nov. 2, 2026, as quoted by Axios”

Missing context

The claim: ““The pool is now better and more beautiful than it’s ever been before, and we’re very proud of it. … We went through a lot with vandalism.” — President Donald Trump, remarks at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Nov. 2, 2026, as quoted by Axios”

Why we rated it this way: The U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C. told the court that Interior Department documents showed the June 2026 damage to the pool was “the result of flawed installation by the contractor” and a rush to finish before the America 250 events, “and not vandalism as initially represented,” and it moved to dismiss the felony vandalism case. Prosecutors also dropped the misdemeanor vandalism charges against three other people. Trump did show a photo of “8647” sprayed on the drained pool, so the record doesn't rule out every act of graffiti, but the main damage he has blamed on vandals is attributed by his own Justice Department to the installation.

See the evidence

What would change our rating: Interior Department, Park Police, or court records showing that vandals caused a substantial share of the pool's damage would move this toward Matches record.

Axios, Avery Lotz, “Trump pre-election pitch: Reflecting Pool, pipes and a new promenade,” November 2, 2026

Our read

The U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C. told the court that Interior Department documents showed the June 2026 damage to the pool was “the result of flawed installation by the contractor” and a rush to finish before the America 250 events, “and not vandalism as initially represented,” and it moved to dismiss the felony vandalism case. Prosecutors also dropped the misdemeanor vandalism charges against three other people. Trump did show a photo of “8647” sprayed on the drained pool, so the record doesn't rule out every act of graffiti, but the main damage he has blamed on vandals is attributed by his own Justice Department to the installation.

Broadcast

Picture to come

Nov 3, 2026, 6:50 AM CST

Sources

Script

Narration script. If a face or a voice delivers this, the anchor is synthetic.

Morning Check. In his final pre-election speech at the Reflecting Pool, President Trump said, we went through a lot with vandalism. His own Justice Department told a court in July that the pool's damage came from a rushed, flawed installation, not vandalism, and dropped the vandalism cases. Verdict: missing context.

Corrections

None on file.