Viral image – Unfounded claim about McMaster, FEMA and North Carolina is ‘absolutely false,’ a spokesperson said

A recent fabricated news story takes aim at a onetime aide of former President Donald Trump and a frequent bogeyman of conspiracy theorists: the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

“White hats arrest US Army General H.R. McMaster, Retd., for aiding FEMA in deep state’s ‘eminant domain’ takeover of North Carolina,” said what looks like an Oct. 17 news headline that misspelled “eminent.” 

An Instagram post sharing the image was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

Here are the main players in this headline: 

“White hats” is a term QAnon conspiracy theorists use to refer to people working within the government to “thwart the deep state,” according to the Anti-Defamation League. 

The “deep state,” meanwhile, refers to a purported secret network of people working behind-the-scenes to influence government and policy. 

Now retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, a national security adviser in the Trump administration, recently released a book about his time in The White House, calling meetings in the Oval Office “exercises in competitive sycophancy” and saying that he wouldn’t work for the former president again. He has not been arrested. 

FEMA, meanwhile, is a regular target of misinformation — especially following recent natural disasters such as Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which battered parts of the southeastern United States. 

The agency briefly paused relief work in North Carolina because of threats, including a man who was arrested and charged with threatening FEMA employees. He told a local news outlet that he was motivated by social media reports, which he later realized were false, that the agency was withholding supplies. 

This particular claim — about McMaster’s purported arrest for helping FEMA use the government’s power to take private property for public use — originated on Real Raw News, a website that publishes sensational, fabricated stories.  The website’s “About Us” page features a disclaimer saying it contains “humor, parody and satire.”

Still, we asked FEMA about the claim.

Jaclyn Rothenberg, a FEMA spokesperson, told us the claims “are absolutely false.”

 “FEMA is not working with Gen. McMaster and there is no eminent domain takeover of North Carolina or any state,” Rothernberg said. “Misinformation like this endangers the communities that need help and discourages people from seeking assistance when they need it most.” 

We found no credible news stories or other evidence to corroborate the headline about FEMA or McMaster. In the days since this Instagram post appeared, McMaster has posted on X, including sharing a podcast in which he participated. 

We rate this post Pants on Fire!