WASHINGTON, DC: Following a social media post by President Donald Trump that simply read “The moon is ours,” a fabricated image began making the rounds online. The fake post falsely claimed the president had declared the Moon a sovereign US territory and mandated that international travelers obtain a US visa before landing on the lunar surface.
The Viral Rumor: Declaring Sovereignty Over the Moon
The viral hoax spread as a screenshot purporting to show a genuine statement published by Trump on Truth Social.
According to the fabricated text, the post read, “I have just officially signed EXECUTIVE ORDER 25-8647, which officially declares the MOON a territory of the U.S.A. We got there first!”
“We put our beautiful American flag right in the dirt, and nobody else can touch it! The Moon is packed with incredible RARE MOON METALS which no one else will have!”
“Total superiority, amazing quality-nobody else has them, and nobody else is allowed to touch them!”
“And starting immediately, any foreign space travelers-whether they call them astronauts, cosmonauts, or whatever they call them over in China and India, like Chinanuts or Indianuts-they are going to need a full, high-security U.S. VISA just to set foot on our Moon!”
“No VISA, no Moon! If they try to land on U.S. Lunar Soil without proper border clearance, our SPACE FORCE will deal with them very strongly and quickly! We are securing our border on Earth, and now we are securing our border in SPACE! AMERICA FIRST! MOON FIRST! MAGA!”
The Truth: The Post is Satire
In reality, the widely shared screenshot is completely doctored. President Trump never published such a statement on any of his official platforms.
A comprehensive search of his Truth Social profile, along with archived records of his social media history and active accounts on X and Facebook, confirms that no such announcement was ever made.
A closer inspection of the viral graphic uncovers a watermark reading “@Mrs Putin Satire,” revealing that the image originated from a parody account known for generating fabricated social media posts.
Context Behind the Rumor: Recent Geographic Renaming Initiatives
The satirical post gained traction against the backdrop of several recent administration initiatives involving geographic renamings. These included an executive order instructing federal agencies to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America” and proposals involving other landmarks.
While the visa mandate and territorial claims are entirely fictional, the rumor was fueled by a real image shared by the president that featured the Moon alongside the text, “The moon is ours.”