Donald Trump’s top communications official at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched a conspiracy theory, baselessly claiming that career government scientists have been plotting against the president and took it a step further by telling Trump supporters to arm themselves ahead of the November presidential election, the New York Times reports. We’re already concerned that there won’t be a peaceful transition of power if Trump is defeated in November by Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, so this isn’t helping.
Michael Caputo — the assistant secretary of public affairs at HHS — bizarrely alleged on social media that there are people in the Center for Disease Control who are guilty of “sedition” over their handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the news outlet, Caputo said the career scientists “haven’t gotten out of their sweatpants except for meetings at coffee shops” to plot “how they’re going to attack Donald Trump. There are scientists who work for this government who do not want America to get well, not until after Joe Biden is president.”
Caputo claims that the CDC has an official “resistance unit” that is determined to undermine the president. And yes, the CDC does have a resistance unit, but it’s clearly listed as ‘Antibiotic Resistance Threats to the United States.’ Meaning, it’s not “the resistance” to Donald Trump’s presidency.
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That was easy to clear up by using Google.
Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States, 2019 (2019 AR Threats Report) is a publication of the Antibiotic Resistance Coordination and Strategy Unit within the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“I don’t like being alone in Washington,” Caputo posted on Facebook Live on Sunday and described “shadows on the ceiling in my apartment, there alone, shadows are so long.”
Caputo then spewed out conspiracies theories to claim that Trump will win in November, despite the president flailing in the polls less than two months ahead of the election.
“And when Donald Trump refuses to stand down at the inauguration, the shooting will begin,” he said. “The drills that you’ve seen are nothing.” He added: “If you carry guns, buy ammunition, ladies and gentlemen because it’s going to be hard to get.”
The department said in response, “Mr. Caputo is a critical, integral part of the president’s coronavirus response, leading on public messaging as Americans need public health information to defeat the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Caputo claimed it was Biden, not Trump, who will refuse to concede the race. That’s some straight-up projection right there, considering that Trump thinks he should serve a third term because he has been treated unfairly. Michael Caputo is pals with Roger Stone, so his violent rhetoric isn’t surprising.
Featured image via Gage Skidmore/Flickr, under Creative Commons license 2.0
