On Sept. 3, 2025, shortly after survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse spoke at a news conference on the U.S. Capitol lawn, a rumor spread that President Donald Trump had ordered a loud military flyover to drown out the victims' comments.
For example, a post on X claimed Trump had spent "oodles" of money to "silence" the speakers (archived):
The post had gained 445,200 views and 11,000 likes as of this writing. The claim spread with other posts on X, as well. Further, Snopes readers both searched the website and sent emails about the rumor.
At the news conference, survivors of Epstein's abuse called on officials to release
It was true that, as speakers stood at the podium, loud jet noises briefly interrupted their comments, as seen in the video by The Associated Press below (beginning around 35:48.)
However, the event carried on. The White House said Trump had ordered the military flyover to mark a visit by Poland President Karol Nawrocki, which was occurring at the same time as the news conference.
It was Nawrocki's first trip overseas since taking office in August. Several photographs in Getty Image's database of photojournalism show his Sept. 3 visit with Trump, including images of the two men standing on the White House lawn to watch the military flyover.
A White House official told Snopes in an email that Trump had ordered the ceremonial flyover to mark Nawrocki's visit.
The day before, the X account AlertDC alerted followers of the upcoming event in the sky (archived):
Trump favored Nawrocki in the 2025 Polish elections, per The Associated Press. As the White House's video of the Sept. 3 visit showed, Trump lavished Nawrocki with