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Is there a verified source (video, tweet, speech transcript) showing Trump saying that minors aged 14 can make their own decisions?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows multiple instances where President Trump called for prosecuting 14‑year‑olds as adults in Washington, D.C., and posted those remarks on social platforms — for example, Truth Social/Truth and related coverage quoting the message: “The Law in D.C. must be changed to prosecute these ‘minors’ as adults, and lock them up for a long time, starting at age 14” [1]. Independent outlets also quote or summarize his posts and related comments, while fact‑checking outlets note separate rumors about lowering age‑of‑consent or marriage laws that go beyond those posts [2] [1] [3].
1. What the record actually shows: direct public statements that mention age 14
Reporting from The Hill and other mainstream outlets reproduces a Trump post urging D.C. to change its law so people “starting at age 14” could be prosecuted as adults; The Hill quotes the text directly and attributes it to a Truth Social post accompanied by a graphic [1]. Local and national outlets (WUSA9, Audacy/WWJ) likewise report the same language appearing in his social posts and summarize his call to try some 14‑year‑olds as adults [4] [2].
2. What formats are available as verification (video, tweet, transcript)?
The items in the reporting are presented as social‑media posts (Truth Social/X/Truth variants) reproduced or quoted by news outlets; The Hill and Audacy publish the quoted post text in their articles [1] [2]. The search results do not include a linked embedded video clip or a speech transcript that records him saying in a speech the identical “starting at age 14” phrasing; instead, reporting points to his online posts and subsequent press coverage [1] [4].
3. Claims beyond prosecuting 14‑year‑olds: age of consent, marriage, and “minors can make their own decisions”
A persistent rumor circulated that the administration planned to lower age of consent or marriage ages to 14; Snopes investigated and flagged that particular claim as a circulating rumor distinct from the posts about prosecution of young offenders [3]. The available sources do not show Trump saying minors “can make their own decisions” in the context of lowering consent or marriage ages; Snopes specifically treats those broader claims as a separate rumor and documents the provenance and confusion [3]. Available sources do not mention a direct quote from Trump stating that “minors aged 14 can make their own decisions” as a general principle.
4. Context and related policy moves that cause confusion
Other policies and statements in 2025 addressed minors in different contexts: for example, the DHS memo offering cash to some unaccompanied minors to self‑deport (noting offers to children as young as 14) and Biden/administration immigration actions are reported separately and use different language about “choice” or “voluntary option” for unaccompanied children [5]. These distinct policy items — prosecution as adults, immigration incentives, and rumors about consent/marriage age — can be conflated in social conversation, producing ambiguity about what was actually proposed by whom [5] [3].
5. How fact‑checkers and outlets treated the claims
Snopes examined and flagged rumors about federal plans to lower age‑of‑consent or marriage to 14, distinguishing that claim from Trump’s posts about trying 14‑year‑olds as adults; it reproduces Trump’s quoted post about prosecution while treating the consent/marriage story as unproven rumor territory [3]. News organizations such as The Hill, WUSA9, and Audacy reproduced the social‑media language about prosecution and reported the broader political debate and local reactions [1] [4] [2].
6. Bottom line for a verification seeker
If you are seeking a “verified source” in the sense of an on‑the‑record item quoting Trump saying “starting at age 14” that minors could be prosecuted as adults: yes — multiple mainstream outlets reproduce his social‑media text making that call [1] [4] [2]. If you are asking instead whether there is a verified video, tweet/screenshot, or formal speech transcript where Trump states that “minors aged 14 can make their own decisions” (for marriage, consent, or autonomy): available sources do not mention such a quote and fact‑checkers treat broader claims about lowering consent/marriage ages as separate rumors [3] [5].
Limitations: this summary relies only on the provided search results; I did not access original platform embeds, archived video files, or documents beyond these citations, so a direct platform screenshot or White House transcript not included in the provided set could exist but is not present in current reporting [1] [3].