President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump are scheduled to sq. off tonight within the first of two presidential debates for the 2024 election season. However this week has seen quite a few conspiracy theories go viral on social media, with many individuals claiming there are shadowy forces conspiring to assist Biden and harm Trump.
The controversy, which is the earliest ever for 2 presidential candidates, will probably be hosted by CNN in Atlanta and begins at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT. Roughly 60% of People say they plan to tune in tonight, however anybody who’s been following politics on platforms like X, Fb, and TikTok has most likely already seen ridiculous conspiracy theories about what’s going to occur.
We’ve compiled a number of the most outstanding conspiracy theories beneath, together with the whole lot from claims that Biden will probably be carrying an earpiece to wild concepts that the published will probably be tampered with in a roundabout way.
What’s driving these weird conspiracy theories? Plainly supporters of Trump are completely terrified that Biden will carry out nicely in opposition to the previous president and are doing their finest to preemptively insist that any robust efficiency by Biden was rigged in a roundabout way. Trump himself was saying simply final month that Biden was a horrible debater.
“Crooked Joe Biden is the WORST debater I’ve ever confronted — He can’t put two sentences collectively!” Trump wrote on Fact Social back in May.
However Trump has modified his tune in recent weeks, saying on the All-In Podcast that Biden is a “worthy debater” and insisting “I don’t need to underestimate him.”
Trump, a convicted felon who tried to stage a coup to stay in energy on January 6, 2021, has clearly been making an attempt to handle expectations in order that he doesn’t seem like an fool. However he additionally has a military of sycophants on-line who’re comfortable to muddy the waters in an effort to sow confusion, as you may see from the examples beneath.
1) Will the CNN debate have a 2-minute broadcast delay?
X person Patrick Webb, who works for a right-wing “information” web site referred to as the Main Report, claimed on Thursday that CNN can be broadcasting on an unusually massive delay, the implication being that CNN would have the ability to edit out any of Biden’s errors.
“BREAKING: CNN will implement a 1-2 minute delay for tonight’s presidential debate as a substitute of the usual 7-second delay, probably permitting time to edit elements of the published,” Webb tweeted on Thursday.
CNN denied the declare, tweeting, “That is false. The controversy will start stay at 9pm ET.”
Oddly, Webb adopted up by sharing a screenshot of a dialog he had with ChatGPT in regards to the definition of “stay TV,” which is a bit like asking a Converse N Spell a couple of complicated math downside. After getting ridiculed for it, Webb deleted the tweet, as you may see within the screenshot beneath.
Webb is clearly flailing making an attempt to rationalize a declare that has no credible supply.
The Main Report’s high story proper now could be a false declare that covid-19 vaccines give individuals most cancers, if you wish to understand how severely it’s best to take the web site and anybody who works for it.
2) Will Biden be hopped up on performance-enhancing medication?
One of the vital common conspiracy theories on-line proper now could be that President Biden will probably be utilizing all types of medication to make himself seem lucid. The declare implicitly accuses the president of getting dementia, one thing Trump has stated repeatedly regardless of his personal rambling incoherence at rallies and media appearances.
Laura Loomer, a hateful bigot who’s been banned from over a dozen tech platforms for her bigotry, helped gasoline the declare that Biden was going to be hopped up on performance-enhancing medication Thursday in a tweet.
“JUST IN:@JoeBiden simply refused to take a drug take a look at forward of the Presidential debate tonight,” Loomer claimed. “ President Trump agreed to take a drug take a look at, however Biden is now refusing. That is primarily affirmation that Joe Biden goes to have medication injected into him forward of the controversy.”
But it surely’s all bullshit, in fact.
Because the Washington Post defined not too long ago, there’s no drug presently available on the market that makes you extra coherent or masks the signs of dementia. If there was such a drug we’d be giving it to all Alzheimer’s sufferers and making the world a way more manageable place for everybody.
And it’s totally doable that that is one other occasion of Trump projecting. In spite of everything, Trump’s private White Home physician, Ronny Jackson (who Trump not too long ago referred to as “Ronny Johnson”), was demoted by the Navy for drinking on the job and was nicknamed “The Candyman” for allegedly handing out powerful pills outdoors of regular prescription procedures.
3) Will Biden be carrying an earpiece?
The concept Joe Biden will probably be carrying an earpiece has been round for a very long time, Trump even ran an advert back in 2020 accusing the president of exactly that. Skilled ratfucker and Trump advisor Roger Stone tweeted on Wednesday to assist unfold the baseless concept for 2024.
“No ear items! Trump ought to demand that Biden be rigorously inspected to make sure that he isn’t carrying some deeply embedded high-tech earpiece earlier than the start of the CNN debate,” Stone wrote.
There’s no proof Biden will probably be carrying an earpiece and even simply occupied with how troublesome it will be to hearken to somebody in your ear whereas making an attempt to counter a loudmouth like Donald Trump makes it absurd on its face.
4) Will Biden get replaced by a physique double?
Many of the craziest conspiracy theories have originated on-line. However Fox Information is not any slouch on the subject of the dumbest doable concepts for the way Biden would possibly cheat. For instance, Greg Gutfeld from Fox’s present The 5 insisted earlier this week that it was inherently suspicious that Biden was spending a lot time at Camp David to organize for the controversy.
“What’s actually happening? Does it take that lengthy for the brand new face to heal, does it take that lengthy to 3D print a physique double?” Gutfeld said.
Clearly Gutfeld would possible say he was simply joking, nevertheless it’s an concept that’s extraordinarily common among the many far-right and QAnon-focused crowd. In reality, there have been a number of occasions throughout Biden’s presidency when conspiracy theorists on-line have claimed that Biden is both really being represented by a physique double or somebody is showing in public whereas carrying a Biden masks.
Sadly, the “proof” offered for the masks concept is well defined by what occurs to everyone’s skin as we age. It droops, whether or not you prefer it or not.
5) Is CNN blocking entry for journalists to cowl up medical emergencies?
The White Home Correspondents’ Affiliation, which lobbies on behalf of journalists for the White Home, wrote to CNN on Tuesday asking for higher entry to the controversy. Because it stands now, journalists in Atlanta will solely be allowed in an adjoining room watching a livestream.
As Bloomberg explains (emphasis ours):
The priority among the many different networks is that one thing might occur in the controversy room that solely CNN journalists would witness. In contrast to previous contests, this debate doesn’t have a stay viewers and microphones of the opposite candidate will probably be muted when one is talking. That might imply rival journalists miss gestures and asides throughout CNN’s protection, or one thing extra critical like a medical emergency involving one of many candidates.
That line about medical emergencies made its strategy to the web with none context and is being twisted to counsel {that a} “medical emergency” is a given.
As one tech reporter phrased it on X, media was “banished from the room in case of a ‘presidential medical emergency’.” The implication, in fact, is that Biden can be the one keeling over and CNN doesn’t need different journalists to see for some shady unspecified motive.
However there’s no proof that CNN is forcing journalists to a special room for another motive than they maintain all the facility throughout this debate. CNN booked it, circumventing the traditional guidelines which have dictated earlier debates by the impartial arbiter, the Fee on Presidential Debates, which has been iced out.
CNN even released a statement Thursday to former CNN journalist Brian Stelter virtually saying as a lot—they’re in cost and so they don’t need different media there.
As proud members of the White Home Correspondents Affiliation, we respect the position the group performs and their assist for press freedom and entry. CNN’s Presidential Debate is being held with out an viewers in a CNN studio and is closed to press. The feed was made obtainable to Washington Pool Members, Washington Pool subscribers and CNN Associates, and can also be obtainable to embed through CNN’s YouTube channel with out cost for digital shops and is offered on CNN.com. Following our conventional strategy, CNN is offering entry to the controversy studio for a good pool of photographers at some stage in the occasion and a bigger group of photographers throughout a business break. As well as, CNN is offering entry to the controversy corridor for the designated print pool reporter through the first business break to permit them to offer a pool report from inside the controversy studio.
That, in fact, gained’t cease the conspiracy theories.
6) Will Biden get replaced?
Physique doubles apart, there’s a persistent concept that Biden will probably be changed earlier than the November election.
In line with Jason Calacanis from the All-In Podcast:
There’s a important likelihood Biden will probably be slaughtered by Trump tonight, or he might need a senior second whereas the world watches. If both of these two issues occurs, or each, there’s a important likelihood he’ll bow out
The new swap is coming. Don’t be stunned when the democratic occasion magically finds two new candidates After the polls this week the recent swap is one of the simplest ways to show this round — and so they understand it.
Whereas it’s too early to definitively debunk this one, as a result of something can certainly occur on this loopy world, there’s completely no proof that is the case. It merely defies logic that Biden would bow out at this level. He’s had many, many alternatives to say he wouldn’t need to run and solely endangers a Democratic win for any successor the longer he waits.
Once more, something can occur. However this concept that Biden will get changed on the final minute actually solely reveals up on Fox Information or probably the most ridiculous corners of the web.
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