Fact Check: Examining Five Major Conspiracy Claims From Trump’s Late-Night Social Media Posts

Former President Trump shared a flurry of unsubstantiated conspiracy theories in a late-night social media spree Monday, posting over 150 times on his Truth Social platform within just three hours.

Between 9 p.m. and midnight, Trump amplified numerous baseless claims to his more than 11 million followers, ranging from manufactured stories about Michelle Obama illegally issuing pardons to recycled falsehoods about the 2020 election.

Among the most outlandish shares was a post from conspiracy theorist Alex Jones alleging that former First Lady Michelle Obama had somehow accessed President Biden’s autopen to issue unauthorized pardons. This claim, featuring businessman Patrick Byrne stating “I think there were four or five pardons she gave,” has no factual basis. The scenario described—Michelle Obama sneaking into the Oval Office to use an autopen—is entirely fictional and unsupported by any evidence.

Trump also promoted a misleading clip of White House Chief of Staff Jeffrey Zients’ congressional testimony, suggesting forgery of approval documents for Biden’s end-of-term pardons. The 14-second video Trump shared deliberately omitted critical context from Zients’ testimony, where he explained that he had authorized his chief of staff Rosa Po to send the email on his behalf while he was at home.

“Rosa asked me if I approve everything, and I said yes, and then she did what she did on occasion, which was to send the email,” Zients testified, making it clear there was no forgery involved.

In another post, Trump amplified QAnon conspiracy rhetoric by sharing content suggesting former President Obama would face a “military tribunal” for treason. While Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has made controversial claims about the Obama administration’s handling of intelligence related to Russia’s 2016 election interference, there is no evidence of criminal activity. Moreover, as a civilian, a former president would never be subject to military justice even if accused of wrongdoing.

The former president continued his long-running effort to deflect responsibility for the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot by sharing a deceptively edited clip of Nancy Pelosi’s former communications director Ashley Etienne. The 14-second video featured Etienne saying, “We were planning… for a January 6th-type of an event two years before it happened.”

This selectively edited quote deliberately misrepresented Etienne’s full statement, which made clear she was discussing how Pelosi’s office had prepared contingency plans to address potential unrest, not that Pelosi had orchestrated the attack. In the complete interview, Etienne explicitly attributed the Capitol riot to Trump, saying they were “just understanding the mentality of the president.”

Trump’s late-night posting barrage also included debunked claims about the 2020 election, sharing content alleging that voting machines were programmed to produce 51%-to-49% margins of victory. Election security experts have repeatedly dismissed such allegations, noting that close results are common in a politically divided country with two major parties.

The stream of unfounded conspiracy theories comes as Trump prepares to return to the White House following his November election victory. His continued promotion of discredited narratives raises concerns about how misinformation might influence his second administration’s policies and messaging.

Critics worry that amplifying such theories to millions of followers could further erode public trust in democratic institutions, while supporters view his social media presence as a way to bypass traditional media filters.