To some of the senators, Trump seemed obsessed not with saving lives but with appearing politically strong… But resigned to their belief that his conduct could not be changed, they did not share their unease with Trump or with the public. https://t.co/Q5T9BUYMKN
— Robert Costa (@costareports) May 31, 2020
Category: Conspiracy theories
The dangers of conspiracy theories
Excellent column
It doesn’t much matter if someone thinks that UFOs landed at Roswell— but it matters greatly if someone thinks that the coronavirus isn’t real or that a vaccine may be more dangerous than the disease. Such beliefs pose a danger to public health. https://t.co/reOUvSuOog
— Max Boot (@MaxBoot) May 23, 2020
If the United Stares had a responsible president who cared about public health and safety—and who set an example by wearing a mask—shit like this just might not happen. https://t.co/I9SCPWDaOE
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) May 23, 2020
QAnon update 5/20/20
The Republican candidate for Senate in Oregon believes in this nonsense.
QAnon users are posting make-at-home recipes for hydroxychloroquine as Trump says he’s using the drug https://t.co/OgMomydHxz
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) May 20, 2020
Oregon Republicans just nominated an avowed QAnon conspiracy theorist for the US Senatehttps://t.co/Jdjb49eV7F pic.twitter.com/2z0akQVoN0
— Chris Cillizza (@CillizzaCNN) May 20, 2020
QAnon users are posting make-at-home recipes for hydroxychloroquine as Trump says he’s using the drughttps://t.co/VpNFC3Ghnh
— Sam Stein (@samstein) May 20, 2020
Via @willsommer
This is a fascinating deep dive into QAnon https://t.co/LZpWMYgmWb
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 17, 2020
QAnon has already responded to the Atlantic's big Q piece, sharing a tweet from someone excited to see Hillary Clinton talking about Q. "Get the memes ready" refers to Q believers thinking that memes are ultimate weapons in the digital warfare they've become experts in fighting. pic.twitter.com/mKoGeb3AOf
— Mike "Plandemic is Trash" Rothschild (@rothschildmd) May 14, 2020
A QAnon follower urges President Trump to end what he calls an "OBVIOUS PLANDEMIC."
— Travis View (@travis_view) May 13, 2020
The QAnon follower warns Trump, "I urge you to do something soon for if not, you'll not be able to control the Patriots and they'll take things into their own hands." pic.twitter.com/vHktrjrIIa
Trump promoted QAnon from his Twitter account on Sunday. In a February-March @pewresearch survey, 76% of US adults said they had heard "nothing at all" about QAnon. https://t.co/JHEageHKSc pic.twitter.com/Y0qHjaw96J
— John Gramlich (@johngramlich) May 11, 2020
UPDATE: Trump has now amplified QAnon accounts at least 131 times via at least 80 individual accounts, according to the newest count. Since the coronavirus pandemic began in the US, he's amplified QAnon accounts at least 36 times via 15 individual accounts https://t.co/AItOII5Cft
— Alex Kaplan (@AlKapDC) May 11, 2020
Trump has been amplifying all kinds of "Q-Anon" conspiracy theorists all weekend.
— S.V. Dáte (@svdate) May 11, 2020
I've asked the WH press office if Trump believes Q is real.
Will advise.
Which will fight the theory or fuel it? https://t.co/Lm7s0nmOwX
— Christopher C. Cuomo (@ChrisCuomo) May 5, 2020
The QAnon followers who act as if the "Storm" of mass arrests has already happened fascinate me. It's like their brains decided they're living in a fantasy world already, so might as well go all the way. pic.twitter.com/5kE0S6sVBA
— Travis View (@travis_view) May 5, 2020
EXCLUSIVE: The guy Trump wants as director of national intelligence follows Pizzagaters, JFK Jr. conspiracists, and a 9/11 Truther account with just one follower besides himself. https://t.co/eJtjS5zpYR
— Noah Shachtman (@NoahShachtman) May 4, 2020
Conspiracy theories about the coronavirus death toll
The Trump cult does not believe in science or facts. This will make it harder for us to improve the situation.
As the death toll keeps going up, @realDonaldTrump will continue to attack the numbers as being false or manipulated and sell his followers on another great conspiracy.
— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) May 11, 2020
"Since the outset of the crisis, elements of the right have sought to bolster the president’s political standing and justify reopening the economy by questioning the death toll." @allmattnyt @jimrutenberg https://t.co/Le4JMlyGU8
— Michael Tackett (@tackettdc) May 9, 2020
"At this moment of national trauma, our president can’t seem to muster even a poor imitation of compassion for the victims," writes @djrothkopf. What is more, rather than waging a war against the disease, he is waging one against the statistics." https://t.co/EyQo7Jkysa
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) May 7, 2020
Trump hasn’t even attempted to show compassion for those who have died but he will almost certainly stand in front of the American public and tell them that their friends and loved ones didn’t actually die and it’s all a hoax against him. https://t.co/dqLyRjWjW1
— b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) May 7, 2020
An increasing number of conservatives are convinced the medical community and the media are inflating the coronavirus death toll for political purposes, despite nearly all evidence indicating that, if anything, the figure is an undercount https://t.co/ARg2mpCg3q
— POLITICO (@politico) May 7, 2020
This is going to be a big test of the media–how many will shift the death toll into the category of "politicized" issues where one person believes one thing & another person believes another and be realllly careful about saying who's right because we can't "appear to take sides" https://t.co/Kawih5TLPg
— James Poniewozik (@poniewozik) May 6, 2020
This has a narrative that has saturated right-wing media. A version of the theory has been floated by personalities like Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin, Tucker Carlson, and more. As I wrote back in April, won't surprise me one bit if Trump latches on to it. https://t.co/Mv8NNvD8IL https://t.co/wVbEvAVB9y
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) May 6, 2020
Qanon update 2/25/20
These folks are dangerous!
Currently, a hashtag about Obama is trending nationally on Twitter. According to hoaxy, some of the biggest amplifiers currently of the hashtag are QAnon accounts. pic.twitter.com/0LpTevSKJQ
— Alex Kaplan (@AlKapDC) May 10, 2020
Trump is retweeting QAnon nutjobs this morning pic.twitter.com/q2m28E6WBb
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 10, 2020
For a guy who has had five kids with three wives, you'd think he'd be busy on Mothers Day. https://t.co/xkTVEKQ8a6
— stuart stevens (@stuartpstevens) May 10, 2020
Oprah Winfrey denied an absurd conspiracy theory that she had been arrested for sex trafficking after a raid on a home she purportedly owns in Boca Ratonhttps://t.co/ItE95o2uPT
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) March 18, 2020
QAnon followers are enthused about the prospect of COVID-19 spreading in the U.S. being used as a pretext for martial law. pic.twitter.com/QKVzamSmob
— Travis View (@travis_view) February 25, 2020
Donald Trump retweeted Praying Medic (aka Dave Hayes), a highly prominent QAnon promoter.
— Travis View (@travis_view) February 22, 2020
Praying Medic has previously claimed sometimes he gets messages for Q and his team from God.
He likened himself to a mailman who delivers messages for the God of the universe. To Q. pic.twitter.com/TmqDi0lBMW
Well over a year ago, I posted a long thread of QAnon believers complaining about the lack of progress in mass arrests and purges. They're still waiting, still complaining, and still believing. https://t.co/Q8h5suUGVX
— Mike Rothschild, Perfumed Prince of the Illuminati (@rothschildmd) February 16, 2020
This QAnon meetup in Phoenix looks a lot less fun than the one in VA over wine and jalapeno poppers. https://t.co/lREXhad73S
— Mike Rothschild, Perfumed Prince of the Illuminati (@rothschildmd) February 16, 2020
It has LONG been an article of faith on the QAnon/loon conspiracy front that Andy McCabe was going down hard.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) February 14, 2020
Almost 900 mentions of him at Gateway Pundit lololhttps://t.co/clfgF4dyBc
Modern conservatism is such a toxic fucking cult https://t.co/Kp7kPXzCRX
— Daniel Gilmore (@gilmored85) February 12, 2020
Trump also retweeted a QAnon account this morning pic.twitter.com/EZVscAgDyz
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 19, 2019
Trump-loving QAnon conspiracy theorist Ann Vandersteel speculates that the coronavirus may be a British/deep state plot to destabilize global markets in order to prevent Trump's reelection. https://t.co/V9vo3vdfFe pic.twitter.com/HIpYO2SikR
— Right Wing Watch (@RightWingWatch) February 25, 2020
Over the last several months, I've been going to MAGA and QAnon rallies to get a sense of what IRL Q people actually believe, how their beliefs have morphed over time, and how what they think even differs within their own community. https://t.co/ZEVOqgNAen
— Ali Breland (@alibreland) February 26, 2020
Qanon accounts already spreading the false flag conspiracy about the molson coors shooting. @TwitterSafety are you just going to ignore this? pic.twitter.com/ZMnObLdbWl
— Josh Russell (@josh_emerson) February 26, 2020
And there it is: 𝟑𝟎 current or former 2020 congressional candidates who have endorsed or given credence to QAnon. The newest addition, from Florida, said in a YouTube video that she attended a QAnon rally & has "been following Q since the beginning."https://t.co/yM8gPNJOhq pic.twitter.com/ajBG0kvGG3
— Alex Kaplan (@AlKapDC) February 28, 2020
Florida living up to its reputation as the QAnon epicenter. https://t.co/Fth1JeyD13
— Travis View (@travis_view) February 28, 2020
Two intellectual giants of the QAnon world go toe to toe on the question of "JFK Jr. lives."
— Travis View (@travis_view) February 28, 2020
"Inevitable_ET" is agnostic on whether JFK Jr. is alive. While "Julian's Rum" takes a firmer stance: "He's definitely dead."
Clearly, this is a dispute that won't be settled today. pic.twitter.com/aGa0HGkgA7
Some QAnon people are sticking with the "Coronavirus is part of the plan" theory. This ALL CAPS version of the fantasy is popular.
— Travis View (@travis_view) March 14, 2020
Maybe after the pandemic is over we'll be able to convince them that "the plan" was fulfilled so there's no reason to keep "decoding" Trump's typos. pic.twitter.com/f4mtxgaAJV
Aaaand of course this is Q nonsense https://t.co/srBERPCvw4
— Robert Maguire @ #NICAR20 (@RobertMaguire_) March 8, 2020
Some QAnon followers would only take a hypothetical coronavirus vaccine if it was endorsed by Trump or Q.
— Travis View (@travis_view) March 18, 2020
Imagine taking medical advice from an anon on an imageboard that was shut down because it was popular with mass shooters. pic.twitter.com/TMB4tYzVwR
The QAnon community seems especially agitated today. My detractors are more peeved than usual. pic.twitter.com/9LeWrTt4vf
— Travis View (@travis_view) April 7, 2020
QAnon update
That this is taken such hold within the GOP is a very scary thing for the USA https://t.co/8AjjcPunbc
— Jim Swift (@JimSwiftDC) February 9, 2020
Really strong Yahoo article about the steady creep of #QAnon into the Republican mainstream. I've been screaming for two years that this was a cancer on the GOP, it's nice to see more people listening.https://t.co/CGdEkC7zmG
— Mike Rothschild (@rothschildmd) February 9, 2020
There's a QAnon follower who angrily speculates that Pope Francis is secretly Frank Sinatra, who in reality died in 1998.
— Travis View (@travis_view) January 30, 2020
Sinatra going from a world-famous boozing philanderer to the celibate head of the Catholic Church would be quite a dramatic lifestyle change. pic.twitter.com/0udwW7o2H9
Promoters of the pro-Trump QAnon conspiracy theory were urging their fans to ward off the coronavirus by purchasing and drinking dangerous bleach https://t.co/0EKpNYaOsg
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) January 29, 2020
Lots of crowing from QAnon followers over the run of 53-47 votes. Q proof, right??
— Mike Rothschild (@rothschildmd) January 22, 2020
53-47 was Q's prediction of the Kavanaugh vote. And Q was wrong. So Q followers retconned it to be the Senate makeup after the midterm. Which was in line with every forecast model. https://t.co/Ep2GAVmDsc
I don't even think Q could have predicted that one of its adherents would become a social media whisperer for a U.S. Senator. pic.twitter.com/D3JQXuVMgv
— Jim Swift (@JimSwiftDC) January 24, 2020
— hend amry (@LibyaLiberty) January 16, 2020
Well this is certainly a terrible development. https://t.co/hWL7c02xis
— Mike Rothschild (@rothschildmd) January 12, 2020
Trump's recent retweets have conspiracists in overdrive. “Best case is we’re up getting a medal at the White House,” one QAnon luminary gushed. https://t.co/1jHfuuWIyZ
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) January 3, 2020
President Infowars: Trump spent his (ongoing) Mar-a-Lago holiday retweeting QAnon and Pizzagate accounts https://t.co/oIfhEbzRod
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 2, 2020
UPDATE: A new count finds that Trump has now amplified QAnon accounts at least 72 times via at least 58 individual accounts. https://t.co/AItOII5Cft
— Alex Kaplan (@AlKapDC) January 2, 2020
Less than a day after his diagnosis with pancreatic cancer, QAnon believers have "determined" that John Lewis is faking having cancer to avoid being executed by a military tribunal for his treasonous crimes. pic.twitter.com/dGBljma7T1
— Mike Rothschild (@rothschildmd) December 30, 2019
With the impeached President retweeting QAnon fan accounts (h/t @atrupar)…
— Ryan Goodman (@rgoodlaw) December 28, 2019
Reminder of the FBI’s sounding the alarm that the promotion of QAnon leads to risk of domestic violence
By @justinhendrix:https://t.co/SwE5GhajYZ
NBC News has identified four candidates running in primaries for *Congress* who have shared or promoted messages affiliated with the far-right QAnon conspiracy theory, as reported by @MorganRadford on @Morning_Joe https://t.co/ECDnCFtHVD
— Michael Del Moro (@MikeDelMoro) November 11, 2019
the president and a staffer appear to be tweeting a Qanon slogan often used to suggest looming arrests of Trump's critics, or similar vengeance. You can order that slogan in a number of "Q"-themed t-shirt designs https://t.co/RYvs8fAqG8
— Devlin Barrett (@DevlinBarrett) March 8, 2020
Trump pursues phony Crowdstrike conspiracy theory
This crackpot conspiracy theory blames the Democrats and Ukraine for 2016 election interference. It gets Russia off the hook which of course appeals to Trump.
New from me:
— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) October 3, 2019
A conspiracy theory called “The Insurance Policy” consumed President Trump’s inner-circle. Their connection? They all absolved Russia.https://t.co/CMMwlg8ScM
It feels somewhat reminiscent of Russian propaganda campaigns themselves—an effort not to advance a single narrative as much as to flood the zone with disinfo and speculation to the degree that an average overseer throws up his hands and decides the truth is simply unknowable https://t.co/YyTYDgQ3CO
— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) October 1, 2019
ok i honestly did not understand the crowdstrike thing until just now, did not know it was connected to the Seth Rich thing, and am blown away once again by how the most powerful man in the world is getting his info https://t.co/SbtH84tSB1 pic.twitter.com/Eu5k44UzKH
— the norms misser (@cd_hooks) October 1, 2019
Unless I missed someone, Bossert appears to be the first Trump former administration official to condemn the president over the Ukraine call and the focus on who did the hacking in 2016: https://t.co/jHLQjEA3XQ
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) September 29, 2019
The Crowdstrike conspiracy that President Trump asked the Ukrainian to investigate started as a 4chan post, then was laundered through almost every step of this handy-dandy chart I made in 2017.
— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) September 27, 2019
4chan rumors become self-fulfilling prophesies—and they eventually cite themselves. https://t.co/fziI2f1BBH
The Crowdstrike conspiracy theory Trump mentioned on his call with Zelenskiy started, of course, on 4chan. Here are the origins: https://t.co/oEBkQNn65t
— Miriam Elder (@MiriamElder) September 26, 2019
Absolutely Critical: The references to "Crowdstrike" and the "server" are abt a conspiracy theory that the DNC hack was an inside job and that Russia was framed for it by Ukraine and the DNC. It's the same theory that says Seth Rich was murdered. https://t.co/j55ZMx0UoP via @TPM
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) September 25, 2019
The Trump-Ukraine phone call memo reveals that Trump pressed Zelensky to investigate CrowdStrike, a private cybersecurity firm that the DNC hired in 2016 to probe whether it had been hacked, and that Trump incorrectly suggested is owned by a Ukrainian. https://t.co/BfmWWA7H5q
— Mother Jones (@MotherJones) September 25, 2019
