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Facebook posts
Facebook posts
stated on December 1, 2020 in a Facebook post:

Says Joe Biden is wearing a foot boot to hide an ankle monitor.

Pants on Fire!

No, Biden isn’t wearing a boot to hide an ankle monitor

If your time is short

  • Joe Biden injured his foot while playing with his dog. 
     
  • There’s no evidence to support the claim that he has an ankle monitor. 
 
See the sources for this fact-check

President-elect Joe Biden injured his right foot after he slipped while playing with his German shepherd, Major, on Nov. 28. 

His doctor said in a statement that a CT scan confirmed small hairline fractures in Biden’s foot and that “he will likely require a walking boot for several weeks.”

But an unfounded conspiracy theory is spreading on social media as some people claim that the boot is for another purpose: hiding a new ankle monitor. 

“Our Chinese fren has confirmed that Biden has flipped,” one post said, using a slang term for “friend.” “His information has been spot on since day one. Biden is willing to sing and concede in exchange for immunity for him and his family. He’s being fitted for an ankle monitor and will soon be wearing a standard FED issued walking boot to hide it. The official cover story is that he sprained his ankle while playing w his dog.”

“Well, there it is. #AnkleMonitor,” said another post after video footage showed Biden walking in his new boot. 

These posts were flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) 

Newsweek reported that the claim is being amplified by believers in the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory, which maintains that President Donald Trump is fighting a deep state coup and that Democrats and celebrities are running a child sex-trafficking ring. 

We’ve previously debunked claims that actor Tom Hanks was photographed wearing an ankle monitor because he was purportedly arrested in Australia for pedophilia and that former President Barack Obama and talk show hosts Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres were wearing ankle monitors because they were under house arrest for child trafficking crimes

We found no evidence to substantiate the claim that Biden is wearing an ankle monitor or that he was arrested. 

We rate these claims Pants on Fire.

 

No, Biden isn’t wearing a boot to hide an ankle monitor

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
stated on January 7, 2026 a press briefing

stated on January 14, 2026 a statement

Social Media
stated on February 14, 2026 social media posts



stated on January 20, 2026 an op-ed


Donald Trump
stated on February 3, 2026 remarks in the Oval Office


Social Media
stated on February 8, 2026 social media posts





Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
stated on stated on November 17, 2025 in remarks at George Washington University:

Donald Trump
stated on February 2, 2026 an interview with Dan Bongino