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FACT BRIEF

Was Joe Biden caught 'fake driving'?

By Dana Ford
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NO

Footage from various news organizations show the president in control, behind the wheel, on May 18, 2021, when he test-drove Ford's electric F-150 Lightning pickup.

Claims that the wheels didn't move when Biden turned the steering wheel and that the passenger in the president's car had his hand on a second set of controls are based on snippets of video taken out of context.

"This rumor is badly misguided," a spokesperson for Ford told Lead Stories referring to the claims. "There was only one steering wheel in the vehicle the President drove on Tuesday."

Video from news organizations showed what happened from different angles. Footage from The Associated Press showed what the passenger likely grabbed when the president accelerated: a camera. Video published by CNN showed Biden moving the steering wheel both left and right, before straightening out and accelerating.

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
CNN Biden takes the wheel of new F150 electric truck
CNN See Biden floor it in electric Ford pickup truck
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.