Fact Check: Did Barack Obama authorize an assassination attempt on Donald Trump?

WASHINGTON, DC: During the 2024 presidential campaign, the then Republican nominee and current President, Donald Trump, survived an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a bullet grazed his right ear and missed his skull by inches.

Recently, a rumor circulated claiming that former President Barack Obama authorized an assassination attempt on Donald Trump just before he first assumed office in 2016. But is there any truth to this? Let's find out below.

Claim: Barack Obama authorized an assassination attempt on Donald Trump

In July, a rumor circulated online claiming that the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, announced declassified documents indicating former President Barack Obama authorized an assassination attempt on Donald Trump just before he assumed office for the first time in 2016.

The rumor mainly circulated across social media platforms X, and Facebook.

A user wrote on X, "BREAKING: DNI Tulsi Gabbard Confirms Former President Obama Authorized Assassination Attempt on Trump."

The post also mentioned, "The files, set to be publicly released, detail a sprawling, top-secret program initiated in the final 30 days of Obama’s presidency, with the explicit goal of preventing Trump from ever taking office."

Meanwhile, a Facebook post also made the same claim.

The claims made were that Gabbard said declassified documents (set to be released) revealed an assassination attempt that Obama authorized. 

It added that a task force made up of senior intelligence officials and military advisers planned the crime in the last 30 days of Obama's presidency. 

The claim also mentioned that the explicit goal was to prevent Trump from assuming office, and one document read, "The threat Trump poses to institutional stability cannot be overstated. Removal, if necessary, is justified."

False: No credible evidence to back the viral claim

The claims made in the viral rumor are false, as there is no proper evidence to prove that Barack Obama authorized an assassination attempt on Donald Trump just before he assumed office for the first time in 2016.

Moreover, no credible news outlet reported on any such update. If it were true, considering its impact, it would have been covered by several big media houses, but nothing such happened.

Furthermore, the post mentioned "National Security Command Center", which does not exist as a federal agency, although the National Security Operations Center does.

Additionally, a search on search engines, such as Google and Bing, did not show any such results.

Donald Trump shares AI video of Barack Obama being arrested by FBI

President Trump reshared an AI-generated video of Barack Obama on July 20, which showed the former POTUS being arrested by the FBI and tossed into prison in an orange jumpsuit.

The video, made by a pro-MAGA TikTok user, opens with a supercut of Obama and other top Democrats proclaiming that "no one is above the law". The scene then enters the internet’s alt-right mascot, Pepe the Frog, dressed as a clown and honking its nose.

Meanwhile, the subsequent part is an AI-generated animation showing Obama being arrested in the Oval Office during his November 2016 sit-down with then-president-elect Trump.

Interestingly, the complete sequence is bizarrely soundtracked to Trump’s rally theme, the Village People's 'YMCA'.