Saturday, October 31, 2026Every claim sourced. Every source linked.
The record of what the American press got wrong, and who it helped
The Big Lies › 2013 › File PF-0023
Debunked

Breitbart: Hagel Took Money From 'Friends of Hamas'

Breitbart's Ben Shapiro reported, citing Senate sources, that defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel may have received money from a group called 'Friends of Hamas.'

First reported Feb 7, 2013 · Breitbart News
Screenshot of the original report as published
Screenshot of the report as published: mediaite.com (archived copy, Wayback Machine). Tap to open the source.
Who it helped: Republicans

The claim served conservative opposition to Obama's defense secretary nominee.

What was reported

Breitbart's Ben Shapiro reported, citing Senate sources, that defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel may have received money from a group called 'Friends of Hamas.'

What actually happened

No group by that name has ever been shown to exist. New York Daily News reporter Dan Friedman said he invented the name as an absurd hypothetical in a question to a Republican Senate aide a day earlier. The claim spread through conservative media during Hagel's confirmation fight; Shapiro said his source was not Friedman and did not retract.

The proof

No evidence of the organization's existence; Friedman's published account of inventing the name, reported by NPR and NBC.

The receipt. Copy this and paste it anywhere:

Breitbart: Hagel Took Money From 'Friends of Hamas' — Debunked. No evidence of the organization's existence; Friedman's published account of inventing the name, reported by NPR and NBC. Full file: https://www.thepropagandafiles.com/case/breitbart-hagel-friends-of-hamas-2013/

Original reporting

Corrections, findings & records

Archived copies

Stories get edited after publication. These open the Internet Archive's earliest saved copy of each original.

Get the daily file.