A fabricated letter saying former President Jimmy Carter died made its rounds on social media on Tuesday, fooling many, including a U.S. Senator.

The Details: The letter posed as one from “The Office of Jimmy Carter” and chronicled Carter’s career in a satirical tone.

Letter Contents: The letter described “getting soft on the Soviet Union” and “failing to rescue several hostages from Iran” as some of Carter's “significant foreign policy achievements.” It also included a paragraph describing Carter’s late wife Rosalynn as a “baddie” and making lewd sexual comments about other previous First Ladies.

Notable Spreaders: Those who mistakenly spread the news of Carter’s would-be death included Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and conservative commentator Laura Loomer. X’s (formerly Twitter) trending headlines section, which apparently uses the company’s Grok AI, was also duped by the letter.

How The Media Covered It: The story was covered mostly by more culture-based or tabloid outlets and was not widely covered by the right. Several outlets on the left framed the story through Lee’s endorsement. The Daily Mail (Right bias) described Loomer as “far-right.” Check Your Fact (Center bias) reported that initially The New York Post (Lean Right bias) and Daily Signal (Right bias) spread the news as well.