FACT CHECK: Does This Photo Show Trump Signing A $25 Million ‘Gun Control Research’ Bill?

Trevor Schakohl | Legal Reporter

UberFacts shared an image on Facebook that purportedly shows President Donald Trump signing a bill “to spend $25 million on gun control research.”

Verdict: False

While Trump did recently sign a spending package that includes $25 million for gun violence research, the photo actually shows him signing the National Quantum Initiative Act in December 2018.

Fact Check:

Trump signed a $1.4 trillion spending package Dec. 20 that will fund the federal government through Sept. 30, according to USA Today. Included in the spending package is $25 million earmarked for gun violence research. That earmark comes after a 20-year drought in federal funding for that purpose, according to The Verge.

UberFacts shared an image Dec. 21 that purportedly shows Trump presumably holding that recently-signed legislation, with his daughter Ivanka, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Chris Liddell and Chief Technology Officer Michael Kratsios standing around him. The image has been widely shared on Facebook.

“President Donald Trump has signed a bill to spend $25 million on gun control research,” claims the post. “The government will be funding studies related to the issue for the first time in over 20 years.” (RELATED: Do Tighter Gun Control Laws Lead To Fewer Gun-Related Deaths?)

The photo does not, however, show Trump holding up the $1.4 trillion spending package or any other legislation funding “gun control research.” It actually shows Trump presenting the National Quantum Initiative Act shortly after he signed it Dec. 21, 2018. The law directs the federal government to spend more than $1.2 billion over five years to advance quantum information science technology.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy posted the picture, found through a reverse image search, on its Twitter the same day Trump signed it.

Trump signed the $1.4 trillion spending package Dec. 20 aboard Air Force One as he flew to Palm Beach, Florida, where he spent Christmas with his family at his Mar-a-Lago resort, according to USA Today.

Trevor Schakohl

Legal Reporter
Follow Trevor on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/tschakohl

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