QAnon Conspiracy Supporters Growing Among Trump's Base
CABRERA: We're starting to see a new type of supporter at President Trump's rallies. In fact, we might see them tonight, people wearing T-shirts or holding signs with the letter "Q." The "Q" stands for QAnon, a group that believes, among other bizarre things, that the deep state is out to kill President Trump. And that's just scratching the surface. CNN's Tom Foreman has more.</s>FOREMAN (voice-over): Photos of missiles and mysterious strangers, rants about a shadow government, Freemasons, secret symbols, and predictions of a world about to change, all of this is part of the conspiracy stew cooked up by QAnon, an Internet conspiracy persona. Some followers of whom showed up at the president's most recent rally, and many of whom see him as a hero, like them, ready to embrace wild theories, to claim secret plots against him, and to attack anyone who says otherwise</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Fake news, fake news.</s>TRUMP: They are fake.</s>TUCHMAN: Internet postings associated with the movement gained traction fast among followers, like one that says the Parkland school shooting victims and witnesses were really actors. NBC News noted earlier this week a spate of YouTube videos falsely accusing top celebrities of pedophilia.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The higher you go, the more sick it gets.</s>TUCHMAN: At the same time, the "Q" is attracting interest from others, including Roseanne Barr and Curt Shilling.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been asked --</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you believe the "Q?" Do you know who "Q" is?</s>TUCHMAN: The Washington Post" says "Q" is, "An anonymous user claiming to be a government agent with top-security clearance, waging war against the so-called deep state in service to the 45th president." But back on earth, this is known. The promotion of conspiracy theories can have real consequences.</s>UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: The Hoover Dam was evacuated.</s>TUCHMAN: In June, police detained an armed man after he blocked Hoover Dam, demanding the release of a government report, apparently about Hillary Clinton's e-mails, although such a report was already out. In 2016, police say a man fired a rifle in a D.C. pizza place as he claimed he was investigating a widespread conspiracy theory about human trafficking. He was convicted and is now serving four years.</s>ALEX JONES, RADIO SHOW HOST: We're not covering Pizzagate enough.</s>TUCHMAN: And Alex Jones, who pushed the Pizzagate conspiracy on his radio show, is now in court over another made-up tale. Families of victims in the Sandy Hook school shooting say they have been hounded mercilessly since Jones claimed their stories were all part of a hoax to push for gun control. He is countersuing them for legal defense fees. (on camera): And yet, for all that, back in 2015, Candidate Donald Trump praised Alex Jones. So perhaps it's no surprise the QAnon crowd is now crowding around the president, offering their support. Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.</s>CABRERA: QAnon is the name of the group. And "Daily Beast" reporter, William Sommer, has been reporting on this bizarre movement, and joins us now to discuss further. So, William, it's so bizarre. And yet, it seems to be growing. Are QAnon followers drawn to Trump, or are Trump followers, do you think, drawn to QAnon?</s>WILLIAM SOMMER, TECH REPORTER, DAILY BEAST: You know, it's interesting, I think it's a mix of both. Sometimes you see people who are already hardcore Trump people, and they turn to QAnon or believe in it because it portrays this world where, you know, Trump is constantly winning and victorious and sort of engaged in this very dramatic battle. At the same time, I think there are people, especially people drawn from the far left, who find it appealing because it portrays this world sort of controlled by evil banks and shadowy forces, and they, in a way, sort of meet in the middle with QAnon.</s>CABRERA: How is this different than Pizzagate or Birtherism?</s>SOMMER: Sure, in a way, it's sort of a combination of all of them. It's a mega-conspiracy theory that offers this explanation for all of that going on. So they say, oh, Pizzagate is real. That stuff's real. Maybe Barack Obama wasn't a legitimate president because he was born in Kenya. They claim the Seth Rich conspiracy theory. They claim he was murdered by Hillary Clinton, this DNC staffer. So it combines all this stuff that's been bubbling up for a long time now and offers this explanation of Trump versus this global cabal.</s>CABRERA: But a lot of those we hear that are not supportive of the president, the person in power, these seem to be backers of the current president.</s>SOMMER: Sure, so this is the interesting thing about QAnon. Is that conspiracy theory experts have looked at this and they say, normally, you get a conspiracy theory like, let's say, Birtherism, when your side loses. This time, though, it's the president's supporters. The Republicans control the entire government. So what's going on? I think what's going on is that the president -- he made such extravagant promises and his supporters believed in him so much during the campaign. So, for example, they were chanting, "lock her up." Hillary Clinton was never going to be sent to prison, but they're disappointed that she wasn't, so they create this world or believe in this world like QAnon where they think Hillary Clinton's going to be sent to Guantanamo Bay.</s>CABRERA: CNN's Gary Tuchman got a chance to speak to some of these QAnon supporters. Here's what they told him.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys are --</s>TUCHMAN: So you don't believe in the First Amendment?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I totally believe in the First Amendment.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys are weaponized. You guys are totally weaponized by the CIA.</s>TUCHMAN: By the CIA? I don't know anybody in the CIA except a couple people I've interviewed over the years.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.</s>TUCHMAN: You believe there's a deep state?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.</s>TUCHMAN: And what do you think that deep state is doing? Do you think they're running this country?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe they were, and they're petrified now because they're losing their control.</s>TUCHMAN: And who is in this deep state? Who are the people in it?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I definitely believe that, like, the Clintons, the Bushes, the Obamas.</s>TUCHMAN: Do you think the Clintons, the Bushes and the Obamas are running this country as we stand here in the rain?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, they're trying.</s>CABRERA: William, you say, "QAnon's impact on politics and Trump world is dangerous." Explain.</s>SOMMER: Absolutely. Well, we saw in the earlier segment, we've already seen one QAnon believer who shut down a bridge. He was armed. He had a weird improvised armored truck. He's a hardcore QAnon guy so we know he's motivated by that. At the same time, obviously, in 2016, we saw someone with Pizzagate, you know, an armed person invade a pizzeria in Washington. So what's happening here is the QAnon people are saying, we're not violent, we're not violent. And admittedly, so far, no one that we know of has been hurt by this. But at the same time, you know, you're telling people these sort of extravagant conspiracy theories about pedophiles and people abusing children, and the fact that the idea that essentially democracy is broken, the government's out of your hands, and so then I think, naturally, that's going to appeal to some fringe people. And as we know, it already has.</s>CABRERA: Increasing emotions and passion. William Sommer, thank you very much for your reporting. It's so interesting.</s>SOMMER: Thanks for having me.</s>CABRERA: Great to have you with us. We have this just in to CNN. First lady, Melania Trump, taking sides in her husband's feud with Lebron James. And you might be surprised whose side she's on. Stay right there.