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The FBI Declared QAnon a Domestic Terrorism Threat — and Conspiracy Theorists Are Psyched
Under the cover of The Rolling Stone [rollingstone.com], tales of fear and loathing in Ohio!
QAnon believers have had a rough summer. Trump’s July 4th rally, when many believed the late John F. Kennedy Jr. would emerge from hiding to claim his rightful role as Trump’s running mate, came and went. So did July 31st, the projected date of “declas,” or the moment when the community believed that declassified documents pointing to deep state corruption would finally be dropped. Now, in what is perhaps the ultimate example of kicking someone while they’re down, Yahoo News has published a 15-page internal memo [yahoo.com] from the FBI declaring conspiracy theories a domestic terrorism threat.
Hmm.
Distributed on May 30th, the memo from the bureau’s Phoenix office notes that it is the first report of its kind to take aim at “conspiracy-driven domestic terrorism,” citing a number of violent incidents the bureau believes were linked to conspiracy theories. “The FBI assesses these conspiracy theories very likely will emerge, spread, and evolve in the modern information marketplace, occasionally driving both groups and individual extremists to carry out criminal or violent acts,” the document says.
Meanwhile, in Cinncinati, according to AlterNet [alternet.org],
Far-right proponents of the bizarre QAnon conspiracy theory — which claims that an alliance of Hollywood actors and Washington, D.C. politicians, among others, have been engaging in an international child sex ring — are not only unhinged; they are also potentially dangerous, according to the FBI. And this week, the Washington Post reports, some QAnon proponents turned up at a rally for President Donald Trump on the same day the FBI issued a bulletin warning that the group could be dangerous.
According to the bulletin, proponents of QAnon as well as the Pizzagate conspiracy theory have the potential for violence. In 2016, Pizzagate proponents claimed that Democrats were using a Washington, D.C. pizzeria for child sex abuse.
Washington Post coverage [washingtonpost.com], if you can get past their paywall and ad-blocker blocker.
Further speculation at Just Security [justsecurity.org]:
On Thursday, Yahoo! News published an exclusive story detailing a May 2019 FBI assessment that online conspiracy theories “very likely” result in domestic extremists committing violent crimes. The report notes that it is “the first FBI product examining the threat from conspiracy theory-driven domestic extremists and provides a baseline for future intelligence products,” and predicts an increased risk of violent outcomes as the United States enters “major election cycles such as the 2020 presidential election.”
If that happens, it may be in no small part due to President Donald Trump’s endorsement and amplification of conspiracy theories and theorists such as QAnon. A few hours after the FBI assessment leaked, the President held a campaign rally in Cincinnati, where the pre-rally speaker Brandon Straka called out the phrase, “Where we go one, we go all,” a rallying cry of QAnon believers. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.
And now it turns out the inventor of the #walkaway hashtag [rawstory.com] may in fact be a member of the conspiracy group!
Straka, who claims to be a former Democrat, is the creator of the “#WalkAway” hashtag, a meme encouraging Democrats to “walk away” from their party and support Trump. The hashtag trended in 2018, largely with the help of Russian troll accounts trying to sow discord in American politics.
And then there is the Republican QAnon-er who is (was?) running to replace Ilhan Omar in Minnesota [independent.co.uk]:
A Donald Trump-supporting Republican running against Ilhan Omar for Congress in 2020 is accused of shoplifting hundreds of items from stores in Minnesota, according to reports.
Danielle Stella, the 31-year-old candidate for the Midwest state, is believed to have been charged with felony theft after getting arrested at a branch of Target in the suburbs of Minneapolis.
The Republican is accused of stealing 279 items worth just over $2,300 (£1,850) from the popular retailer in January, and attempting to rob a bottle of tick spray for cats at a nearby grocery store in April. . . . Earlier this week, Ms Stella was revealed to be an apparent supporter of the QAnon conspiracy theory.
Must be the Russians.
