close
close

The video in which Kamala Harris says: “Today is today and yesterday was today yesterday” is a fake

Claim:

In a video, Kamala Harris can be seen authentically saying during a speech: “Today is today and yesterday was today yesterday. Tomorrow will be today tomorrow. So live today so that the future today will be as the past is today and tomorrow.”

Evaluation:

Rating: Fake

Rating: Fake

In July 2024, a video from 2023 resurfaced on social media showing Vice President Kamala Harris speaking seemingly incoherently during a speech. In an X-post (archived) dated July 15, Harris appears to slur her words, saying:

Today is today and yesterday was today yesterday. Tomorrow will be today tomorrow. So live today so that the future will be today as the past is today and tomorrow.

The X-post has been viewed more than 3.3 million times and reposted 6,400 times at the time of this writing. “Please tell me this is fake. Tell me it's real so I can laugh even harder,” wrote the user who shared the video. The footage was also shared on Instagram and TikTok.

However, this video was digitally altered. It was debunked in 2023 when it was originally shared on social media platforms such as X.

In a TikTok video, fact-checking portal Politifact noted that the video of Harris' speech was clearly altered, as her mouth does not move in sync with the words she is supposedly saying:

Reuters spoke to an expert who said the audio recording clearly shows it was a fake:

Dr Dominic Lees, associate professor of film production at the University of Reading, said the audio quality showed the video was not authentic.

“Attentive observers will detect 'noises' around the mouth in the video,” he said, adding that the lack of background noise indicates the voice was not recorded at that location.

The original footage used in the fake viral video was shown alongside a New York Post article about a speech Harris gave at Howard University in Washington, DC on April 25, 2023:

Harris wears the same suit in both videos and the people in the background are the same, showing that this is the original, unaltered version of the viral video. A transcript of this speech was released and quotes Harris as saying:

So I think it is very important – as you have heard from so many great leaders – that at any moment, and particularly at this moment, we recognise the moment in which we exist and are present, and that we are able to put it in context to understand where we are in history and at the moment, not just in terms of the past but also in terms of the future.

Other news agencies, such as the Associated Press and KXTV, also noted that Harris never uttered the quote in question during her speech.

Because the viral video was digitally altered with a voice overlay, we call this claim “fake.”

Sources:

Archive, view author, and get author's RSS feed. Vice President Harris experiences a confusing ‘moment’ during a rally for abortion. April 26, 2023, https://nypost.com/2023/04/26/vp-harris-has-head-scratching-moment-during-abortion-rally/.

House, The White. “Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Political Event on Reproductive Rights.” The White HouseApril 25, 2023, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/04/25/remarks-by-vice-president-harris-at-a-political-event-on-reproductive -rights/.

^ “New York Post: The New York Post”. Critics condemn Kamala Harris' word salad speech at pro-abortion rally | New York Post. 2023. YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Jc-kL22fQU.

TikTok – Have a nice dayAccessed July 19, 2024.

“The video of Kamala Harris being boring during her speech at Howard University was created digitally.” ReutersMay 4, 2023. reuters.comhttps://www.reuters.com/article/fact-check/video-of-kamala-harris-rambling-her-speech-at-howard-university-is-digitally-cre-idUSL1N3712OM/.

“The video of Kamala Harris saying 'Today is today' has been altered.” AP NewsMay 2, 2023, https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-kamala-harris-video-altered-today-quote-234791603419.

“Viral video of Vice President Kamala Harris saying 'Today is today' has been altered.” Abc10.ComMay 4, 2023,

You may also like...