3/4/21
As federal law enforcement agencies braced for QAnon conspiracy theorists to engage in potential acts of violence on Thursday, leading affiliates of the far-right extremist movement seemed to amend formerly held beliefs about the significance of March 4. Originally, QAnon theorists believed that Trump would resume his place in the White House on March 4, the standing presidential Inauguration Day prior to the 20th Amendment's passage in 1933. Inaugurations took place on January 20, the day President Joe Biden was sworn into office earlier this year, after that. However, over the past month, prominent conspiracists within the QAnon internet community began to doubt the March 4 theory. Alex Kaplan, a senior researcher at right-wing media watchdog Media Matters for America, showcased the growing skepticism among QAnon influencers in an ongoing Twitter thread. The thread included screenshots of their posts to various chat platforms, such as Telegram, describing March 4 as a "false flag" constructed by mainstream news organizations and internal double agents to deceive true QAnon proponents. One man, identified as Ken, told Washington Post reporter Dave Weigel that the former president "will be inaugurated again on March 20" in comments over the weekend. Ken also believes that "Trump is still in command of the military" and "Biden is acting as president as a ruse while the Pope and others are rounded up," according to Weigel. The upcoming date will mark the 167th anniversary of the Republican Party's founding. Former members of the Whig Party are said to have technically established the GOP during a meeting in Ripon, Wisconsin, on March 20, 1854.
www.newsweek.com
