Image of Trump post about 'hate' for Hitler is fabricated | Fact check

The claim: Image shows Trump post saying 'I hate Adolf Hitler'

An Oct. 23 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) shows a screenshot of a Truth Social post purportedly shared by former President Donald Trump.

"I HATE ADOLF HITLER!" the supposed post from Trump reads.

The Instagram post was liked more than 300 times in five days.

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Our rating: Altered

The image is a fabrication. The post details are consistent with an online meme generator, and there is no record of the post on Trump's Truth Social profile or in reputable media reports.

Altered image matches meme generator template

The Instagram post was shared in the wake of an Oct. 22 article by The New York Times about Trump allegedly making positive comments about Hitler during his presidency. Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly told the Times that Trump, on multiple occasions said, "You know, Hitler did some good things, too." The article included a response from Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung, who dismissed Kelly's descriptions from his time in the White House as "debunked stories."

The Atlantic also published an article Oct. 22 making similar assertions about Trump.

While Trump has made social media posts rejecting comparisons between him and Hitler, there is no credible evidence he shared the Truth Social post shown in the Instagram post. The image is digitally altered.

The supposed post from Trump does not appear on his Truth Social profile. It also does not appear in a continually updated and searchable archive of Trump's Truth Social posts. Nor are there any reports from reputable news organizations about Trump writing a Truth Social post that declared, "I hate Adolf Hitler!"

USA TODAY reached out to a Trump campaign spokesperson for comment but didn't immediately receive a response.

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Elements of the fabricated Trump post match similarly fraudulent Trump posts created with the TrumpHates.Me meme generator, including a "12m" time marker and identical numbers of comments, reposts and likes. The images created with the meme generator have a "parody" tag that is not present on the image in the Instagram post, however.

The fabricated Trump post and meme generator appear inspired by a highly publicized Truth Social post shared by Trump on Sept. 15 that read, "I hate Taylor Swift!" Trump made the post after Swift endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

USA TODAY has debunked numerous social media posts claiming to show authentic Truth Social posts from Trump, including fabricated posts of Trump proposing U.S. retaliation against Israel, saying "0-2" in reference to attempts on his life, and attacking special counsel Jack Smith by calling him a "loony leftist."

USA TODAY reached out to the Instagram user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

• Truth Social, accessed Oct. 28, @realDonaldTrump

• Trump's Truth, accessed Oct. 28, Search

• TrumpHates.Me, accessed Oct. 28, Meme generator

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Altered image shows Trump post about 'hate' for Hitler | Fact check