Far-right talk show host Alex Jones calls Trump a 'dumb-a--,' highlighting rift over vaccinations
Photo by Oliver Touron/AFP via Getty Images
- Former President Trump recommended attendees of his "Save America" rally on Saturday get vaccinated.
- Members of the crowd booed Trump for the suggestion.
- Misinformation and conspiracy theories pushed by Jones on his show were echoed by Trump on the campaign trail.
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During an August 22 taping of his Infowars show, Alex Jones shamed former President Donald Trump for advising attendees of his "Save America" rally in Alabama on Saturday to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
"At least you're going to get some good Republicans elected, and we like you. But, my God, maybe you're not that bright. Maybe Trump's actually a dumbass," Jones said after playing the clip of Trump's vaccination statement at the rally.
-Media Matters (@mmfa) August 23, 2021
Jones then continued to push more misinformation regarding vaccine efficacy and booster shots, both of which the Biden administration has advised Americans to receive.
After Trump was booed for his suggestion, he immediately tried reassure members of the crowd.
"You've got your freedoms, but I happened to take the vaccine. If it doesn't work, you'll be the first to know, okay? I'll call up Alabama and say, 'Hey, you know what?' But it is working. You do have your freedoms. You have to maintain that," Trump said.
-Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) August 22, 2021
Frontline produced a documentary in July 2020, "United States of Conspiracy," examining how the alliance between Jones and Trump led to the former president echoing Jones' misinformation and conspiracy theories on the campaign trail.
Jones, who over the last three years has been deplatformed from Facebook, Spotify, Google, Apple, and YouTube, has found himself in considerable legal trouble for using his platform to push conspiracy theories, including his false claim that the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut was a staged event carried out by actors.
The Justice Department and FBI are investigating whether Jones played a role in January 6 insurrection. Another Infowars host was charged in connection to the Capitol riot on Friday.
from Business Insider https://ift.tt/3gs2eWO
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