Influencers in the QAnon conspiracy theory movement — which falsely asserts that a secret satanic pedophile cabal that included Jeffrey Epst
Alex Kaplan at MMFA:
Influencers in the QAnon conspiracy theory movement — which falsely asserts that a secret satanic pedophile cabal that included Jeffrey Epstein runs the world — are trying to explain away President Donald Trump’s efforts to deflect outrage following a Department of Justice and FBI memo reportedly concluding there is “no evidence” Epstein “kept a ‘client list’ or was murdered.”
Many of these QAnon influencers have speculated that there is “more to the story” and that Trump's actions are actually part of an elaborate and “brilliant” plot he is enacting against the supposed pedophile cabal. Additionally, some have indicated that they still trust Trump — who has repeatedly promoted QAnon over the years — and have lashed out at those criticizing him about Epstein, calling it “a loyalty test to see which Con Inc-ers turn against” Trump and saying that “Trump supporters are now aligning themselves with … Fake News narratives."
A smaller group of QAnon supporters, however, have criticized Trump for his comments about Epstein.
Many QAnon conspiracy theorists defend Donald Trump’s opposition to releasing the Epstein List, even though these same turds were the ones clamoring for the release of such a list. A smaller batch, however, have called out Jeffrey Epstein’s BFF Trump for it.
Right-wing and far-right media have amplified a baseless claim that touch screen voting machines in Kentucky are flipping votes from former
Jack Winstanley at MMFA:
Right-wing and far-right media have amplified a baseless claim that touch screen voting machines in Kentucky are flipping votes from former President Donald Trump to Vice President Kamala Harris, with similar claims emerging from Texas. Local election officials in each state have rebutted the claims, with one Kentucky official saying, “There is no scenario in which a voter would be forced to cast a ballot that they believe did not reflect their intentions.”
Election officials in several states have rebutted social media posts claiming that voting machines are flipping votes
Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams debunked a widespread TikTok video that purports to show a voter in Laurel County, Kentucky, unable to select Trump on a touch screen voting machine. The video, which also showed the machine selecting Harris, has received 6.1 million views, with right-wing figures sharing it across other social media platforms as well. According to Adams, “There is no ‘vote-switching.’ The voter confirmed that her ballot was correctly printed as marked for the candidate of her choice. Get your voting information from legitimate sources.” [The Dispatch, 10/31/24; TikTok, 10/21/24, 10/21/24; Louisville Courier Journal, 10/31/24; PolitiFact, 11/1/24]
Kentucky election officials suggested that the video showed an isolated incident, with one Laurel County official stating, “Nobody complained before her, nobody complained after her.” Laurel County officials reported the issue to the attorney general’s office “just to cover all our bases,” and took their own video “showing that the machine is working and it is not flipping votes,” but were ultimately “unable to replicate the woman’s issue.” A spokesperson for the company that provides voting equipment for Laurel County confirmed that the touch screen devices print paper ballots that can be reviewed by voters prior to submission, adding, “There is no scenario in which a voter would be forced to cast a ballot that they believe did not reflect their intentions.” [The Dispatch, 10/31/24]
The Tarrant County, Texas, elections office stated that it has “no reason to believe that votes are being switched by the voting system,” after a right-wing X (formerly Twitter) influencer claimed that machines were switching votes. Right-wing commentator George Behizy claimed that “Voters in Tarrant County, Texas are reporting that the voting machines are flipping their votes from Trump to Kamala Harris.” Local officials confirmed, however, that the voter who believed his vote had been miscast “was issued a new ballot and able to vote." [PolitiFact, 10/24/24; Twitter/X, 10/21/24]
In the run-up to Election Day, right-wing and far-right media figures have been pushing baseless claims and conspiracy theories, seemingly attempting to undermine the election results. Several of these claims have involved voting machines, but experts say that voting machines are safe and difficult to hack or interfere with, and that errors are generally remedied by poll workers and local officials who have backup systems to ensure accurate votes are cast. [Bloomberg, 10/30/24; ABC News, 10/31/24; CBS News, 10/24/24; Brennan Center for Justice, 3/1/24, 10/25/24; Media Matters, 10/24/24, 10/30/24]
Election denialist right-wing media mouthpieces push the BS lie that touch screen voting machines are “flipping” votes from Donald Trump to Kamala Harris to push the lie about how the upcoming elections are “rigged.”
Wishing all #QAnon Patriots around the World a very Merry Christmas!@realDonaldTrump 🎅🏻 #WWG1WGA #MerryChristmas #QArmy #PatriotsUnited @JodyICEMANJames Art. pic.twitter.com/XIDHE1fdp7
— [intheMatrixxx] (@intheMatrixxx) December 25, 2018
Welcome all trolls! I have been expecting you!
Funny how the negative comments are from accounts with a small follower number.
ALL FOR A LARP?
[ATTACK THOSE WHO THREATEN YOU THE MOST]@realDonaldTrump #QArmy #QAnon #PatriotsUnited #Trolls #flak #WWG1WGA pic.twitter.com/YOZG8oytTC
— [intheMatrixxx] (@intheMatrixxx) December 9, 2018
