FACT CHECK: Did Nancy Pelosi Say, ‘If You Accept A Check From Trump, You Might As Well Vote For Him’?

Jonathan Fonti | Fact Check Reporter

An image shared on Facebook more than 10,000 times claims House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, “If you accept a check from Trump, you might as well vote for him.”

Verdict: False

There is no evidence that Nancy Pelosi ever said the statement.

Fact Check:

President Donald Trump signed into law on March 27 a $2.2 trillion stimulus package aimed at softening the economic blow of the coronavirus pandemic.

The bill included “economic impact payments” that amount to $1,200 payments for single adults that have an adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less and $2,400 payments for married couples that earn $150,000 or less, as well as $500 payments for qualifying dependents under the age of 17, according to The New York Times. Many Americans have already received their electronic coronavirus stimulus payments.

A viral Facebook post falsely alleges in an image that Pelosi said, “If you accept a check from Trump, you might as well vote for him,” despite no record of her ever saying the statement. (RELATED: No, Coronavirus Stimulus Payments Are Not Tied To The 2020 Census)

Searching Pelosi’s verified social media accounts and ProPublica’s archive of her deleted tweets turned up no matches. It also does not appear in any press releases put out by the House speaker’s office.

In mid-April, Pelosi criticized Trump after media reports said the payments could be delayed to add his name to the checks, saying, “Delaying direct payments to vulnerable families just to print his name on the check is another shameful example of President Trump’s catastrophic failure to treat this crisis with the urgency it demands.”

The Treasury Department denied that printing Trump’s name was causing a delay, according to The Hill.

Jonathan Fonti

Fact Check Reporter
Follow Jonathan on Twitter Have a fact check suggestion? Send ideas to [email protected].

Trending