In May 2025, Barron Trump, the son of U.S. President Donald Trump, debated Rep. Jasmine Crockett on live TV.
In May 2025, videos surfaced on social media alleging that Barron Trump, the son of U.S. President Donald Trump, had debated U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett on live TV without any evidence to corroborate the claim. Snopes readers wrote in asking us if such a debate had actually taken place. However, no such debate occurred.
Searching YouTube for the rumor revealed several videos dating back as early as May 16 with captions like, "Barron Trump MOCKED Jasmine Crockett -- She Took the Mic and ENDED Him," and thumbnails of the two pushing the idea that Crockett had won the debate. Artificial intelligence (AI) video-creation tools like ElevenLabs' voice models helped create the videos.
Without naming a source for its information, one video's narrator said:
When Barron Trump attempted to humiliate Jasmine Crockett on live television, he was trying to prove his significance. But no one was ready for what happened just a few minutes later. The scene was electric -- a high stakes televised panel discussion on political ethics, broadcast nationwide. Studio lights blazed, cameras rolled and a live audience of students, pundits and media insiders leaned in, feeling the palpable tension.
On one side stood Jasmine Crockett, composed and focused, defending not just her name, but every woman who has been belittled. Opposite her was Barron Trump, stepping boldly into the arena, trying to carve out his identity in the shadow of his father's legacy -- confident yet untested. The topic was integrity in modern politics, and the challenge was a verbal showdown that could make or break reputations.
That YouTube video had been viewed more than 400,000 times, as of this writing, since its upload on May 22. Other YouTube videos sharing the same false claim collectively gained more than 200,000 views.
There was no evidence to support the assertion that Crockett and Trump had debated on live TV. If, hypothetically speaking, there were even a sliver of truth to the claim -- for instance, if one had even challenged the other to a debate -- reputable media outlets would have interviewed parties involved and documented the ordeal. That had not happened.
In short, the claim appeared to be made up from whole cloth for the purpose of gaining clicks, or views, online. Several videos featured disclaimers in the YouTube video's caption, or on screen. One on-screen disclaimer read:
The content in this video is crafted solely for entertainment purposes only. This content is not intended to offend or harm anyone.
This story is not intended to depict, reference, or represent any actual occurrences, persons, or entities.
Any resemblance to real events, individuals, or situations is purely coincidental and unintentional.
Everything discussed in this video is considered "alleged" and should not be taken as fact.
We encourage viewers to independently verify the facts and form their own opinion. Thank you!
Despite the fact that the video's underlying claim was false, basing such a claim on a tiny piece of truth -- for instance, that Crockett has publicly criticized the Trump administration -- helps those videos generate hundreds or even thousands of comments from YouTube users. Some of those comments indicate that people interpret the videos to be real news.
This was not the first misleading rumor about Crockett supposedly debating a political opponent that captured social media users' attention. For example, we previously debunked the false claim that she "stunned" Bill Maher during an interview on his show "Real Time," and a false claim that she was "challenged" by Vice President JD Vance during a congressional hearing. Both rumors originated with similar AI-narrated YouTube videos.