Trump statement saying Mark Meadows wore too much cologne is a fake

WASHINGTON (Reuters): Screenshots of what appears to be a statement by Donald Trump condemning former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, accusing Nancy Pelosi and the FBI of planting a fake phone, and recommending the movie Catch Me if You Can, are fabricated. There is no evidence that it ever appeared on an official Trump channel, and a Trump spokesperson called it “fake”.

The screenshot, shared on Twitter (here), shows a statement dated June 27 and written in the same format as official Trump releases, including his “Save America” letterhead. It reads:

“Tomorrow, the Very Unselect Committee, led by RINO Liz (who needs a better hair stylist!!) and her fellow radical Democrats, is holding another witch hunt on tv.

“Whatever is on John Eastman’s phone is totally FAKE (planted by Nancy Pelosi and The FBI!!), and Mark Meadows better not testify against me tomorrow, and if he does, it’s all a fat lie. He was a lousy Chief of Staff of [sic] always wore too much cologne, just like Mo Brooks and Ali Alexander.

“Instead of watching this ratings diasaster [sic], everyone should watch the movie “Catch Me If You Can” starring Leonardo DiCaprio. That’s a much better piece of fiction!

Remember, Trump is way smarter!”

Aside from the typos, there are multiple reasons to believe that this is not a real Trump statement.

“These aren’t even good parodies,” Liz Harrington, a spokesperson for Trump, told Reuters in response to a screenshot of the purported statement, which she called “fake”.

Reuters has previously debunked similar fabricated statements, see here) (here), and (here).

The statement does not appear on Trump’s website (www.donaldjtrump.com/news), nor on archived screenshots of the site (here). The statement also did not appear on media channels that usually share Trump’s statements (here).

Google searches did not provide any evidence that the statement was genuine or that it was reported or commented on by established media organizations or commentators.

VERDICT

False. Donald Trump did not release a statement on June 27 in which he said Mark Meadows wore too much cologne and recommended watching Catch Me If You Can instead of the January 6 U.S. Capitol riot hearings. Screenshots of the purported statement are fabricated.