Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on January 20, 2025. A few days later, a claim surfaced on social media that lightning had struck the White House as the president entered the Oval Office. Images and videos of the lightning were also posted on social media and widely shared. However, verification found that the claim was false.
SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIM
Nearly two weeks ago, a social media claim suggested that lightning illuminated the sky as Donald Trump returned to the White House to assume leadership of the United States.
The claim was accompanied by a photo showing lightning flashing in the sky above the White House, with numerous people in red hats capturing the scene.
This claim has been widely shared on social media, eliciting various reactions and comments.
Below is a screenshot of a social media claim posted on January 25, 2025, stating, “As Donald Trump walked into the White House, lightning struck from the sky. Is this true? Source: Facebook.”
In addition to the above claims, a video clip showing lightning flashing brightly above the White House was posted on the social network X (formerly Twitter) nearly two weeks ago.
“Below is a video clip posted on the social network X on January 25, 2025, accompanied by a caption in English: “A storm brews as a new era begins. The air crackles with uncertainty, and the skies seem to echo the tension of the moment. As Trump steps into the Oval Office, the lightening feels like nature’s own commentary, ominous, powerful, and not easy to ignore.”
This video clip received praise from many users on the social network X, who believed in the content posted.
In addition, the 7-second video clip was posted on the TikTok social network yesterday, with a caption stating that lightning striking the White House is not a bad sign.
Below is the video of lightning striking the White House, posted on TikTok with the caption, “That doesn’t look good.”
https://www.tiktok.com/@dr_graysghost_420/video/7467830191881129262
Below is the same video, posted on YouTube on February 3, 2025, with a caption in English that reads “A storm rages as a new era begins.”
YouTube’s Video | Archived Link
FACT CHECK
Fact Crescendo checked and verified the above-mentioned claims by conducting a Google Reverse Image Search, which led to the following findings.
Through a Google Reverse Image Search, we found that the image originated from a video clip posted on social media on January 25, 2025, by an account named stat.us.ai, which frequently shares images and videos generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
Below is the full video posted on Instagram with a caption in English: “A storm brews as a new era begins… the air crackles with uncertainty, and the skies seem to echo the tension of the moment. As Trump steps into the Oval Office, the lightning feels like nature’s own commentary—ominous, powerful, and impossible to ignore.”
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFOhc-KyLGS
Instagram Post | Archived Link
From this Instagram account, it’s evident that the video was created using artificial intelligence technology, as the account frequently posts images and videos generated by AI.
The stat.us.ai account is managed and owned by Status Marketing AI, a website that describes itself as utilizing the latest AI technology to provide the most unique advertising in the industry.
Below is a screenshot from the Status Marketing AI website, which states that the company uses AI to create unique images and videos for social media.
Status Marketing AI | Archived Link
A lightning strike near the White House in April 2022 resulted in the deaths of three people. The incident was widely reported by various media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal.
Wall Street Journal Report | Archived Link
However, since Donald Trump officially took office as the 47th President of the United States, there have been no reports of lightning or thunder striking the White House.
Below is a snapshot from the latest search results mentioning lightning strikes near the White House, but there are no recent reports from January.
CONCLUSION
Fact Crescendo found that the above-mentioned claims are false. The image of lightning striking the White House is not a real event. The image or video was generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
