This video does not show Donald Trump being slapped by a protester

The context

A TikTok video showing former U.S. president and current Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump being slapped during a rally has garnered over one million views. The video shows a man running up to Trump on the stage and slapping his head from behind. The comments on the video criticize the Secret Service's delayed reaction, such as "His security is shocking" and "What do they pay security for?"

However, the video has been altered, and the man slapping Trump has been edited into the video.

What we found

Several factors indicate that the viral video is fake. We traced unaltered footage of the incident by searching for footage of a rally in Dayton, Ohio, which we determined as the location from the podium sign in the video. 

The original footage is from a Trump rally near Dayton, Ohio, on March 12, 2016. During this event, a man named Thomas Dimassimo, 32, attempted to rush the stage but was quickly intercepted by Secret Service agents. The authentic video shows no physical contact between the protester and Trump. Dimassimo was subsequently charged with disorderly conduct and inducing panic. The former president remarked after the incident, "I was ready for him, but it's much easier if the cops do it."

In the altered video, the audio features an added slapping sound, but it doesn't match the acoustics of a hand hitting a head. The effect appears artificial and out of place in the video's environment. Additionally, the man in the altered video slapping Trump and the actual protester arrested on March 12, 2016, are wearing different clothing.

The 2016 incident occurred just one day after Trump canceled a rally at the University of Illinois Chicago. The event was called off due to "growing safety concerns," as Trump's campaign cited large-scale protests both inside and outside the venue.

Logically Facts has previously checked multiple fake claims about Trump, like this altered video claiming to show a bullet hole in Trump's ear during his assassination attempt on July 14, 2024.

The verdict

The video in question has been altered. The original footage confirms that there was no direct contact between the protester and Donald Trump. Therefore, we have marked the claim as fake.