Fact Check

Harris Posted Tweet Thanking Diddy for Hosting Town Hall?

Following the rapper's arrest on charges of sex trafficking, users on social media investigated his connections.

by Jack Izzo, Published Sept. 20, 2024


Image courtesy of Getty Images


Claim:
On April 10, 2020, Kamala Harris posted to X thanking the rapper Diddy for hosting a town hall about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rating:
True

About this rating


On Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, a grand jury indicted the rapper and music magnate Sean "Diddy" Combs on charges of sex trafficking. The following day, the full indictment against Combs was publicly unsealed, and revealed the full extent of his alleged, decades-long criminal enterprise. 

In the wake of the indictment, users on social media began looking for evidence that any prominent figures had connections to Combs, similarly to how the internet reacted when charges of sex trafficking led to the arrest of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Later the same day, posts began appearing alleging that U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris had posted to X (then Twitter) in April 2020, thanking Combs for hosting a town hall about the COVID-19 pandemic. These posts were echoed in an article by the conservative tabloid the New York Post

The post was real. It was tweeted by Harris' X account on April 10, 2020, about one month into the COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to the New York Post, Combs had "hosted a town hall on racial inequality for her campaign," but this was not true, since the town hall was not hosted on behalf of Harris' campaign. 

According to Complex Magazine, the town hall was hosted by Revolt TV, which was founded by Combs in 2013. However, Harris had already suspended her 2020 presidential campaign by the time the town hall took place in April 2020.

Beyond the town hall, we could not find any other public evidence of Harris and Combs interacting.


By Jack Izzo

Jack Izzo is a Chicago-based journalist and two-time "Jeopardy!" alumnus.


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