On January 26, 2025, journalist Alexey Pivovarov discussed on his YouTube show Redaktsiya.News how former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki attempted to attend Donald Trump's rally at the Capital One Arena in Washington.
"Former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki turned out to be the most unfortunate guest. He forgot his pass and documents and tried to prove his identity by showing a Wikipedia article about himself on his phone. The stern American police officers remained indifferent, making it clear that they wouldn't let a guy without documents through, even if he were from Texas, not Poland. In the end, Morawiecki made it to the ceremony. Apparently, one of his aides had to rush back to the hotel for the pass," said the journalist, describing the situation in which the Polish politician allegedly found himself.
To support his claims, Pivovarov showed a video in which Morawiecki and a woman are explaining something to people wearing orange-yellow vests, showing them a phone screen.
The original video featured on Redaktsiya.News was posted on January 20, 2025, on social network X by Ukrainian-American journalist Oliya "Scootercaster" Fedun. The caption under it states that Mateusz Morawiecki is standing near the Capital One Arena, trying to explain to National Guard soldiers who he is by showing them his Wikipedia page. Supporters of Donald Trump gathered for a rally at the stadium where the former Polish Prime Minister was filmed; Trump headed there after his inauguration.
On the same day, the former Prime Minister of Poland commented on this news on his page on social network X:
"That's a lie. And what's the truth? Washington has been completely locked down for two days now, for obvious reasons. Because of this, I decided to walk to a pre-arranged interview. So I approached the guards or soldiers myself to ask for directions."
We have no way of verifying Morawiecki's statement. But we can see in the original video, that the woman next to him has Google Maps open on her smartphone.
However, the photographs that accompany Alexey Pivovarov's claim that "in the end, Morawiecki made it to the ceremony" were not taken at the Capital One Arena.
They are from the "Starlight Ball" – one of the inaugural balls held the same evening on January 20 for the presidential campaign's sponsors.
The news about Morawiecki was spread by Belarusian media as well – both state-run and independent outlets.
