TOPLINE
One of the speakers at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday, Mary Ann Mendoza, was pulled hours before she was slated to speak, CNN reports, after she tweeted an anti-Semitic QAnon conspiracy theory, and later apologized for it.
KEY FACTS
Mendoza was pulled from Tuesday’s program after the Daily Beast reported she had tweeted a conspiracy theory about a Jewish plot to enslave the world.
“Do yourself a favor and read this thread,” Mendoza said in a now-deleted tweet, linking to a wild conspiracy theory from a prominent QAnon believer that claimed Jews in the banking industry are looking to enslave other non-Jews and incite world wars.
After the Daily Beast published its story, Mendoza tweeted an apology and said that she did not read “every post within the thread.”
The wide-ranging thread contained multiple references to the QAnon conspiracy theory, along with its hashtags and slogans, and claimed the Rothschilds, a German Jewish banking family, plotted to control and subvert non-Jewish “goyim” by robbing them of their “landed properties.”
Mendoza’s son was killed in a car crash with an undocumented immigrant and she later became a consultant to We Build the Wall, the organization that was recently accused of fraud.
In a September 2019 tweet, Mendoza called George Soros, a Holocaust survivor and prominent Democratic donor, a “Nazi.”
Crucial quote
Mike Rothschild, who recently published a book about conspiracy theories and tracks QAnon online, said on Twitter that the account that posted the thread Mendoza shared, @WarNuse, “is probably one of the most anti-Semitic and bloodlust-addled QAnon promoters on Twitter.”
Surprising fact
The thread shared by Mendoza also claims that “riots and the burning of cities” was “planned over two years ago in case all other measures to take down Trump failed.” The death of George Floyd “simply set in motion” the coup, the conspiracy theory thread claims. It also claims that the infamous “Protocols of the Elders of Zion” is not fabricated.
Key background
The QAnon conspiracy has made inroads in the Republican Party this year. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia congressional candidate who has touted QAnon, recently won her primary and is all but certain to win a seat in Congress this November in her deeply-red district. Greene has been embraced by Trump, and on Tuesday she said she was invited to attend Trump’s convention speech at the White House on Thursday.
Further reading
Twitter Cracked Down On QAnon—But Candidates Touting The Conspiracy Still Thrive There (Forbes)
QAnon Supporter Greene Wins Primary And Gets Push From Trump (Forbes)
Trump-Backed Candidate Marjorie Taylor Greene Promotes 9/11 Conspiracy Theory (Forbes)
‘The Storm Is Here’: GOP House Candidate Tweets QAnon Rallying Cry After Trump Retweets Her (Forbes)
RNC Speaker Cancelled After Boosting QAnon Conspiracy Theory About Jewish Plot to Enslave the World (Daily Beast)
