For the last six months I've been investigating the #constitutionalsheriffs movement and the threat it poses to next months election.

Here's what I found:

1/11

wired.com/story/constitu… For those who haven't heard of them, constitutional sheriffs are actual elected sheriffs, but they believe that they hold the ultimate power in their county and that no federal or state agency can overrule them.

They believe their power comes from the constitution—even though there is no mention of sheriffs in the constitution—and God.

2/11

A private Facebook group with 27,000 members is pushing dangerous pseudoscience to parents of young children, claiming it can cure a range of ailments—including autism.

Here's what's happening inside that group

1/8

wired.com/story/inside-t… The group, set up in 2022, is run by Julia Czelazewicz, known online as Detox Mama. In a video on TikTok (where she has 500K followers) she says she first found out about the detox treatment she's peddling from Sherri Tenpenny —an antivaxxer famous for this claim

2/8

For the last seven years, Laura Loomer has spewed a toxic mix of Islamophobic, racist and conspiratorial bile.

That period has also coincided with her relationship with Donald Trump growing ever closer.

Here's how it happened:

1/8

wired.com/story/donald-t… Loomer likely first came onto Trump's radar for disrupting a version of Julius Caesar in Central Park in 2017 that had a Trump-like figure in the lead role.

She was arrested, but critically, she was also interviewed by Trump's favourite TV star at the time, Sean Hannity

2/8

Inside Russia's plan to sway the the US election for Trump:

— A 277-page indictment. unsealed this week, gives unprecedented insight into the goals, target audiences, tactics and resources the Kremlin is using.

This is "Project Good Old USA"

1/11

wired.com/story/project-… The plan was written in late August 2023 by Moscow-based company Social Design Agency. The company founder Ilya Gambashidze shared his plans with high-ranking officials in the Kremlin, and notes obtained by the FBI show Putin was among those being briefed.

2/11

There was lots of focus on JD Vance's "childless cat ladies" comment when he was named Trump's VP pick

But our investigation found this was a tiny part of the campaign's deep-seated misogynistic worldview, echoing the darkest corners of the internet

1/6
wired.com/story/trump-va… Here are some of the things both Trump and Andrew Tate have called women in the past:

• Dumb
• Dogs
• Crazy
• Low IQ
• Bitches

Of course both have also been accused by multiple women of rape and sexual assault.

2/6

It has been 10 years since the misogynistic online hate campaign that became known as #Gamergate

Then the hate came from fringe online platforms like 4chan. Today, that hatred comes direct from the GOP.

Here's how it happened

1/6

wired.com/story/gamergat… Back in 2014, the harassment campaigns were aimed at games developers and commentators who sought to broaden women’s place in gaming.

Those tactics eventually “became embedded into the MAGA movement” and “seeped into the fabric of US democracy,” says @AttorneyNora

2/6

In Telegram channels, neo-Nazis and white supremacists have been discussing ways to spread their message to new audiences, and even recruit new members.

And one platform is targeted above any other: #TikTok

Here's what's happening:

1/6

wired.com/story/tiktok-n… Neo-Nazi are sharing tips on how to spread their content on TikTok, using coded language, symbols and altered images and videos to circumvent TikTok's content moderation policies.

The content is overtly racist, including pro-Hitler videos and Holocaust denial posts

2/6

In the space 24 hours, a false story about Volodymr Zelensky's wife buying a $5M Bugatti Tourbillon spread at warp speed across the internet from from an unknown AI-powered French website to the top search result of Google

Here's how it happened

1/7

wired.com/story/ai-gener… On July 1, the website Vérité Cachée published an article headed: “Olena Zelenska became the first owner of the all-new Bugatti Tourbillon.”

The claim was backed up by video testimony from a "whistleblower" and documents.

It was all fake.

2/7

US domestic extremists, including neo-Nazis, have been using AI for years, but new research shows that in 2024, their adoption of the technology has accelerated dramatically—and experts are deeply concerned.

1/6

wired.com/story/neo-nazi… Extremists, initially skeptical about "the evils" of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, have changed their minds.

“In the last few years we’ve gone from seeing occasional AI content to AI being a significant portion of hateful propaganda content online" @MEMRIReports

2/6

As Trump and the GOP continue to push voter fraud conspiracies ahead of the US elections, experts are seeing a resurgence in far-right paramilitary activism.

Now, a January 6th prisoner is trying to launch a 50-state armed militia from his jail cell.

1/7
wired.com/story/january-… Jake Lang, caught on video swinging a bat at police during the Capitol riot, has been in jail for 3yrs.

“It's important to recognize that Lang is, first and foremost, a grifter who knows that his ‘political prisoner’ schtick is his only shot at relevance,” @Jon_Lewis27 says

2/7

For the last month I've been attending online webinars from election denial groups who are ramping up their efforts to try and disrupt the 2024 presidential election.

Here's what I found out:

(with typically wonderful art from @AnjaliNair25)

1/7

wired.com/story/election… True the Vote and founder Catherine Engelbrecht have been trying to disenfranchise voters for more than a decade, but as the November elections rolls around they are now looking to recruit thousands of local activists to challenge voter rolls and disrupt election locations

2/7

Russia's media is this morning celebrating a huge victory thanks to #TuckerCarlson's softball interview with Putin last night.

Here's how the Kremlin-backed outlets, as well as Telegram channels, and bot networks are spinning the encounter.

1/6

wired.com/story/tucker-c… The homepages of all Russian media are dominated by stories about the interview. State-run news agency RIA Novosti's newsfeed had at least a dozen stories published since last night — focusing on how Putin had succeeded in "educating" the west about Russia/Ukraine history

2/6

Going to be monitoring the #takeourborderback convoy here today, watching numerous livestreamers who are in Viriginia broascasting from the convoy as it gets ready to depart for Texas

1/x

wired.com/story/extremis… Last night some of those involved got kicked out of the parking lot where they were set to meet this morning, prompting a last-minute change of venue



2/x

https://twitter.com/ZTPetrizzo/status/1751786949495644637

Tensions on the Texas border are already sky high, with GOP lawmakers calling for civil war & Trump calling to deploy the national guard

Now a convoy, organized by a far-right extremist who wants to hunt down migrants, is about to make things worse

1/5
wired.com/story/extremis… The #TakeBackOurBorder convoy is spearheaded by Pete Chambers who claims to be a former green beret and plans to deploy tactics used fighting ISIS in Syria against migrants crossing the border.

Here he is on Alex Jones talking about deploying a "domestic internal defense"

2/5

How did Bannon and Carlson, two of the biggest MAGA influencers, end up boosting a conspiracy that Ireland's government is replacing its population with "people from the third world"?

The answer is Keith Woods (a Roscommon native whose real name is Keith O'Brien)

A 🧵... Woods, who has blocked me, was a student at NUIG where he studied philosophy.

He can be seen in this picture (back row, 3rd from left) which was taken at an intervarsity debating competition where Woods (or O'Brien as he's referred to in the caption) came 2nd.

Irish Garda Commissioner Drew Harris this morning said that there's no way when the stabbing happened they "could have anticipated" the #DublinRiots

It was the first thing I expected when I heard about the stabbing.

Anyone paying attention knew this was coming.

A short 🧵 Last year, @globalextremism warned that white nationalist, anti-LGBTQ+, anti-immigrant and anti-lockdown groups in Ireland “seem to be coming together and echoing each other’s hateful rhetoric."

The report was largely ignored with one Irish journalist calling it "disinformation"

It has been quite a week in QAnon world....so if you're sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner today, it might be good to know just what your crazy uncle from Florida is talking about.

Here's a short 🧵... Elon Musk began the week by reviving the Pizzagate conspiracy, a precursor to QAnon that many within the movement still believe to be true, even though it was thoroughly debunked

edition.cnn.com/2023/11/20/tec…

Moms for Liberty claim to be protecting children, but the group's interference in Tony's life almost cost him his life.

Here's his story:

🧵 1/8

vice.com/en/article/dy3… Tony had been messaging a boy who went to his church since June 2021, when, one Sunday morning in January 2022, the boy's parents outed Tony to his parents.

Tony's mother's reaction was not good. "She kept telling me that I was going to hell"

2/8

vice.com/en/article/dy3…

Meet Nicole Sirotek, a former nurse who has become an anti-vaxx superstar and is using her platform not only to spread disinformation but also harass real nurses who are trying to debunk her lies

1/6

vice.com/en/article/bvm… Sirotek shot to fame in 2020 for this video where she claimed NYC hospitals, then the epicenter of the pandemic, were murdering patients for money and compared the ICU to a Nazi gas chamber.

2/6

NEW:

A month after being exposed as the operators of an Ohio-based neo-Nazi homeschool group, the Lawrences have spoken publicly for the first time.,

Defending their Nazi-infused cirriculum, they call it "so wholesome" and "just extra fun"

1/6

vice.com/en/article/epz… The Lawrences spoke to the white suprematist website the Justice Report, which has ties tothe National Justice Party, which Katja Lawrence promoted in her Dissident Homeschool group encouraging members to join and meet up in real life

2/6

vice.com/en/article/epz…

NEW: For the last decade, Travis Vernier worked with the @OKCPD as a decorated officer, earning the Medal of Honor, his department's highest award.

But since 2020, he led a double life as one of MAGA world's favorite election conspiracists.

1/6

vice.com/en/article/v7v… As Election Wizard, Vernier quickly gained fame in the world of election conspiracies around the 2020 presidential election.

Within the space of a few months he had gathered 130,000 followers, and then Donald Trump shared one of his videos

2/6

vice.com/en/article/v7v…