Fact Check: Did Malia Obama really receive more than $2.2M from USAID?

WASHINGTON, DC: If you've been scrolling through social media lately, you might have come across a claim about Malia Obama allegedly pocketing a cool $2.2 million from USAID.

According to the rumor, the oldest daughter of Barack and Michelle Obama not only received the hefty sum but also declared that she "deserved every penny" of it.

Did Malia Obama receive over $2.2M from USAID?

Despite the viral claim, it’s completely false—nothing more than a work of satire that somehow got accepted as fact. The rumor originated from a known parody network and has zero basis in reality, yet it has racked up millions of views online.

The claim started making the rounds earlier this month when an X (formerly Twitter) user posted a meme featuring a picture of Malia Obama alongside the words: "Can someone explain why Malia Obama received $2.2 million in funds from USAID? Inquiring, taxpaying minds want to know."

Accompanied by an eyebrow-raising emoji and little else, the post racked up over 1.1 million views. The same claim quickly spread on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads — with countless users sharing and resharing the allegation.

Some people took it as an innocent joke, while others genuinely believed that the government had funneled taxpayer money into Barack Obama’s eldest daughter’s bank account.

But it's worth noting that Malia Obama never said anything of the sort.

A deep dive into usafunding.gov — a public database tracking US government spending — shows no record of USAID issuing any grants, contracts, or payments to Malia Obama.

The only time her name even appears in government records relates to Secret Service protection for travel in 2016 when her father was still in the White House.

How the fake story about Malia Obama took off

So, where did this bizarre accusation come from? Turns out it was all part of a satirical post from America’s Last Line of Defense—a network of parody websites and Facebook pages known for pushing fake but outrageous political stories. The network’s owner has repeatedly admitted their content is nothing more than “parody, satire, and tomfoolery.” 

Lead Stories and USA Today also fact-checked the claim. However, it didn’t stop thousands of people from falling for it anyway.

The fabricated claim first appeared on February 9, when a manager for America’s Last Line of Defense Facebook page posted the now-viral meme along with the caption, "She received it because they thought nobody would ever find out."

The page featured a disclaimer, "The flagship of the ALLOD network of trollery and propaganda for cash. Nothing on this page is real."

One would think a page that literally describes itself as "trollery and propaganda for cash" would be a dead giveaway, but the post took on a life of its own as readers shared and reacted as if it were real news.

Then, on February 10, the page doubled down and posted an even more ridiculous claim, "Malia Obama says she deserved every penny of the $2.3 million she got from USAID: 'I provided penpal services for dozens of lonely kids in impoverished countries.' She wrote letters. To 'dozens' of kids. For $2.3 million. She needs to pay that money back."

Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and USAID

This comes as the second Donald Trump administration has already begun cracking down on USAID, with billionaire Elon Musk leading the charge.

The SpaceX and Tesla boss is currently serving as President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the brand-new Department of Government Efficiency, where he’s been tasked with implementing budget cuts and possibly dismantling USAID altogether.

Given this backdrop, the timing of the Malia Obama hoax couldn’t have been more perfect. Social media was already lighting up with Trump supporters calling for USAID to be scrutinized, and some users saw this fake story as “proof” of government corruption.

Also, it didn’t help that just days before, Trump’s White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt falsely claimed USAID had spent $32,000 on a “transgender comic book” in Peru—a claim that Snopes had already debunked. It later emerged that payment was made by the Department of State's Diplomatic and Consular Programs.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.