The Poynter Institute Menu Donate State Editions * California * Florida * Iowa * Michigan * New Hampshire * New York * North Carolina * Pennsylvania * Texas * West Virginia * Wisconsin Issues * All Issues * Online hoaxes * Coronavirus * Health Care * Immigration * Extremism * Taxes * Marijuana * Environment * Crime * Guns * Foreign Policy * LGBTQ+ People * Joe Biden * Kamala Harris * Donald Trump * Mitch McConnell * Hakeem Jeffries * Ron DeSantis Media * PunditFact * Tucker Carlson * Sean Hannity * Rachel Maddow * Bloggers * PolitiFact Videos Campaigns * 2024 Elections Truth-o-Meter * True * Mostly True * Half True * Mostly False * False * Pants on Fire Promises * Biden Promise Tracker * Trump-O-Meter * Obameter * Latest Promises About Us * Our Process * Our Staff * En Español * Who pays for PolitiFact? * Advertise with Us * Suggest a Fact-check * Corrections and Updates * Newsletters Donate #### Follow us The Facts Newsletter Sign up English Español ### Get PolitiFact in your inbox. * Weekly Email Newsletter * Daily Email Newsletter Your Email Address Sign Up ![](\\" mugs-mug- independentgroup__________________3/98605b4996e42408507987c4affd735f.jpg\\") ![](\\" mugs-mug- independentgroup__________________3/d34069b2fffce57ddf492536b7c1e859.jpg\\") PuppetStringNews.com stated on November 26, 2017 in a headline: \"Tennessee GOP twitter taken down after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"pants- fire\\"](\\" * Fake news * PunditFact * PuppetStringNews.com ![\\"House](\\" House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in September 2017. (AP Photo) ![\\"Amy](\\" By Amy Sherman December 5, 2017 # Fake Russian Twitter account at center of fake tweet about Nancy Pelosi A fake Russian troll account suspended months ago is the subject of a fake news headline about House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and a sexual abuse scandal. \"Tennessee GOP Twitter taken down, after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia,\" stated the Nov. 26 headline on Puppet String News, a fake news website. Facebook users flagged the post as being potentially fabricated, as part of the social network’s efforts to combat fake news. The article showed an alleged tweet by @TEN_GOP: \"I’ve seen a check that has Nancy Pelosi’s signature because she authorized a payout for sexual abuse of a minor. The victim’s family has told me they’ve received threats when trying to take to MSM about the payout. #draintheswamp #Shushfund.\" (We assume that \"take\" is a typo and was supposed to say \"talk.\") We searched news accounts and found nothing about Pelosi authorizing such a payout. The tweet appears to be the only source of the information. According to RBC, a Russian media company with a history of independence, @TEN_GOP was a Russian troll account. It had posted 10,000 tweets by the time it was shut down in August 2017, two years after it launched. The fake account had nearly 150,000 followers -- far more than the real state party’s twitter account of about 13,000. The real Tennessee Republican Party contacted Twitter multiple times to report that @TEN_GOP was impersonating the party’s actual account. \"It was very misleading, pretending to be our office,\" Tennessee Republican Party communications director Candice Dawkins told PolitiFact #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 16, 2024 in an Instagram post The World Health Organization ordered governments to prepare for “mega lockdown” because of an mpox strain. ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Sofia Ahmed • August 20, 2024 Twitter’s press office didn’t respond to an email from PolitiFact. Before the election, @TEN_GOP tweeted a series of misinformation, according to the New York Times, such as \'\'Obama wants our children to be converted to Islam! Hillary will continue his mission.\'\' The Washington Post reported that the list of prominent people who tweeted out links from the account included political figures such as Michael Flynn and Roger Stone, celebrities such as Nicki Minaj and James Woods, and media personalities such as Ann Coulter and Chris Hayes. Twitter has said it had discovered that 2,752 accounts controlled by Russians. The headline on Puppet String News states, \"Tennessee GOP twitter taken down after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia.\" Actually, Twitter took down the fake Russian news account in August, and we found no evidence that Pelosi was involved in a payout related to pedophilia. The Puppet String News’ website states that it was created by a U.S. Navy veteran who \"decided to get into alternative news to tell the truth to best of ability.\" We attempted to contact the website via a Facebook message and did not get a reply. We rate this headline Pants on Fire. Share the Facts 2017-12-05 17:02:50 UTC PolitiFact ![\\"PolitiFact\\"](\\" logo-big.jpg\\"/) 1 1 7 ![\\"PolitiFact](\\" pof.png\\") PolitiFact Rating: Pants on Fire \"Tennessee GOP twitter taken down after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia.\" PuppetStringNews.com Fake News Website tweet-exposin-pelosi-involved-in-pedophilia ![](\\" independentgroup__________________3.jpg\\") in a headline Sunday, November 26, 2017 2017-11-26 Read More info #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Puppet String News, \"Tennessee GOP twitter taken down, after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia,\" Nov. 26, 2017 New York Times, \"Russia fanned flames with twitter, which faces blowback,\" Oct. 26, 2017 Washington Post, \"How did Russian trolls get into your Facebook feed? Silicon Valley made it easy,\" (Accessed in Nexis) Nov. 2, 2017 Washington Post, \"Michael Flynn, Nicki Minaj shared content from this Tennessee GOP account. But it wasn’t real. It was Russian,\" Oct. 18, 2017 Washington Post, \"Facebook, Google and Twitter testified on Capitol Hill. Here’s what they said,\" Oct. 31, 2017 The Hill, \"Pelosi: Conyers an \'icon\' who deserves \'due process,\'\" Nov. 26, 2017 International Business Times, \"Russian Trolls Ran Popular Far-Right Tennessee GOP Twitter Account,\" Oct. 18, 2017 The Tennessean, \"Twitter suspends fake Tennessee GOP account,\" Oct. 18, 2017 Interview Drew Hammill, spokesman for Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Dec. 4, 2017 Interview, Candice Dawkins, Tennessee Republican Party spokeswoman, Dec. 4, 2017 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Amy Sherman ![](\\" ![](\\" JD Vance stated on August 25, 2024 in an interview on NBC\'s \"Meet the Press\": A zero-tolerance policy during the Trump administration \"led to less family separation than under Kamala Harris\' border policies.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • September 4, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 26, 2024 in an interview with a podcaster: Vice President Kamala Harris “is a communist. … She is really a Marxist.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • September 4, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Rick Scott stated on August 28, 2024 in a post on X: “This month alone, more than 16,000 non-citizens have been removed from the voter rolls in 3 states.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Samantha Putterman • August 29, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 23, 2024 in a speech in Las Vegas: “Kamala cast the tiebreaking vote to hire 87,000 new IRS agents to go after your tip income.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • August 28, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on August 14, 2024 in a speech in California: Former President Donald Trump “cut overtime benefits for millions of workers.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 20, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Pete Buttigieg stated on August 11, 2024 in an interview on CNN State of the Union: Gov. Tim Walz delivered paid family leave in Minnesota but “Republicans are blocking” a Biden-Harris proposal. ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 16, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 8, 2024 in a press conference: Says his Jan. 6, 2021, speech on the White House Ellipse drew the “same number of people,” as the 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 9, 2024 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on August 2, 2024 in a video: In Pompano Beach, Florida, Somali immigrants illegally in the U.S. were in line to get driver’s licenses and “all you need to vote is a driver\'s license.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 27, 2024 in a rally in St. Cloud, Minnesota: During the 2020 Minnesota riots after George Floyd’s murder, Gov. Tim Walz didn’t call in the National Guard, “so, I sent in the National Guard to save Minneapolis.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 3, 2024 in a rally in Atlanta: Kamala Harris “supports mandatory gun confiscation.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 24, 2024 in a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina: Kamala Harris “wants to defund the police.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 30, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 24, 2024 in a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina: Kamala Harris “supported abolishing ICE.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • July 29, 2024 ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/322c808c00e73c217d17772ddd5a0eb5.jpg\\") ![](\\" Instagram_logo_2016.svg/8b142c91ebe468a84a192e6df2b7b994.jpg\\") Instagram posts stated on July 22, 2024 in an Instagram post: There are nine states “where Biden’s name can’t be removed and no one can be added. That’s over 130 electoral votes in the toilet.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ranjan Jindal • July 23, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 17, 2024 in a campaign video: \"Unlike Mike Pence, (JD) Vance said he would have carried out Trump\'s plan to overturn the 2020 election.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Amy Sherman • July 18, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kari Lake stated on July 16, 2024 in in a speech at RNC in Milwaukee: “Just last week, Ruben Gallego voted to let the millions of people who poured into our country illegally cast a ballot in this upcoming election.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Amy Sherman • July 17, 2024 ### Fake Russian Twitter account at center of fake tweet about Nancy Pelosi * ![](\\" ![](\\" Sam Brown stated on August 28, 2024 in a campaign appearance: Proposed Nevada constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights would put “essentially no limit on access to abortion.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • September 13, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Jon Tester stated on September 8, 2024 in a Facebook ad: Tim Sheehy “would let politicians like him ban abortion, with no exceptions for rape or to save a woman’s life, and criminalize women.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 8, 2024 in a Threads post: “Elon Musk is going to expose Bill Gates soon, says ‘he’s evil.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 6, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Gordon Ramsay calls Tim Walz a ‘woke creep,’ throws him out of Hell’s Kitchen.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 11, 2024 in una publicación en Facebook: \"ÚLTIMA HORA Río Nilo se pinta de rojo sangre\". ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Marta Campabadal Graus • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 7, 2024 in a Threads post: Photo shows Elton John wearing a “MAGA” jacket. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 11, 2024 in a photo: The Minnesota Vikings have denounced Tim Walz: “We don’t suppᴏrt his values.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in Instagram posts: Immigrants get $2,000 each time they cross the border illegally. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sofia Ahmed • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 30, 2024 in a Facebook post: Video shows tornadoes in Canada. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 8, 2024 in an Instagram post: Video shows a Ku Klux Klan member at a rally for former President Donald Trump. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 12, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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Tennessee GOP twitter taken down after tweet exposing Pelosi involved in pedophilia