Kamala Harris post suggesting debate at Epstein townhouse is fake
- Published on August 2, 2024 at 18:35
- 2 min read
- By Bill MCCARTHY, AFP USA
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"I propose we have the next debate at a venue Donald Trump feels more comfortable: Jeffrey Epstein's townhouse," says what appears to be a post from Harris, shared amid her push for a debate with the Republican former president.
The apparent screenshot spread across X and Threads after Harris emerged as the frontrunner to secure the Democratic nomination in the 2024 race against Trump, following President Joe Biden's decision to suspend his reelection campaign.
Trump has hedged on whether he will debate Harris since her sudden injection into the race, with his campaign saying in a July 25 statement that it would be "inappropriate" to pencil in a face-off before Democrats officially name their nominee.
Harris has accused the Republican nominee on X of "backpedaling" on a September debate he agreed to with Biden, saying: "What happened to 'any time, any place'?"
"Well Donald, I do hope you'll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage because as the saying goes, 'If you got something to say, say it to my face,'" she added during a July 30, 2024 campaign rally in the state of Georgia.
But the purported X post referencing Epstein -- a convicted sex offender who had a bevy of celebrity friends -- is a fabrication.
Ammar Moussa, the Harris campaign's director of rapid response, told AFP in an August 2 email the post is "obviously fake."
No such message appears on Harris's personal account, "@KamalaHarris," or her official government account, "@VP."
Rather, the fictional screenshot spreading online uses the handle "@KamalarHarris," with a stray "r" inserted between the vice president's first and last names.
A reverse image search revealed the image originated with "Faith Back Rub," an X user whose bio says "most of the images we share are parodies."
The "Faith Back Rub" version was clearly marked as "Parody" and dated "Jul 233, 2024" -- details that were cropped out of many of the posts spreading the fake online.
Trump has been photographed with Epstein and is mentioned in Epstein-related court documents, but he has not been accused of wrongdoing in the high-profile sex abuse scandal.
AFP has debunked other misinformation about US politics here.
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