Watch Donald Trump pay tribute to Cory Comperatore
After accepting the Republican nomination, former President Donald Trump offered condolences to Corey Comperatore, a supporter who was killed at one of his rallies.
Claim: A spelling mistake in the name proves the jacket onstage at the Republican National Convention doesn’t belong to Corey Comperatore
A July 18 thread post (direct link) features a photo of former President Donald Trump standing on stage at the Republican National Convention next to a firefighter’s jacket with the word “Compertore” written on the back.
“The firefighter’s gear is fake… and his name is spelled wrong,” the post said, a reference to Corey Comperatore, the 50-year-old firefighter who was killed during the July 13 assassination attempt on President Trump.
Similar claims were also shared on Threads and X (formerly Twitter).
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Fact Check Roundup: False claims about Trump rally shooting spread online
Our rating: False
Comperatore’s fire department confirmed that a misspelled jacket seen on stage at the Republican National Convention belonged to the slain firefighter. The department said the mistake occurred several years before the shooting and that Comperatore did not correct it. A photo of the jacket taken before Trump’s speech also had “Comperatore” written on it.
Comperatore chose not to correct the spelling mistake, officials said.
During Trump’s hour-and-a-half speech accepting the Republican presidential nomination, he approached a display honoring Comperatore and kissed a firefighter’s helmet that rested on a jacket with “Comperatore” written on it.
While it’s true that “Compertore” isn’t the correct spelling, the deceased fire marshal said the jacket was indeed his.
“The spelling on his jacket was incorrect several years ago, but Corey left it as is,” the Buffalo Township Fire Department in Pennsylvania, where Comperatore worked, said in response to a Facebook comment pointing out the misspelling. “Corey has not changed it and will leave it as is. It may cause confusion, but it was Corey’s choice to change it and he did not change it.”
Fact check: Falsely posted that no one was injured in shooting at Trump rally
The department published a photo of a jacket with “Competore” written on it in its obituary on July 14. The misspelling also appears in a photo of a memorial that was erected at Competore’s fire station a few days after the shooting.
USA Today denied a series of claims related to the shooting at the Trump rally, including footage of a gunman yelling “slit the throats of Republicans,” footage of Trump golfing after the assassination attempt, and false claims that Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had refused requests for increased security at the rally.
Fact Check Sources:
USA TODAY, July 17, A hero, a firefighter, a Trump supporter. What does the death of Corey Comperatore mean? The New York Times, July 16, Widow of slain rally-goer says she received a call from Trump Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Department, July 15, Facebook post Butler Eagle, July 15, Community mourns slain Buffalo Township firefighter Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Department, July 14, Facebook post
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