6 Viral Conspiracy Theories About the Trump-Biden Debate That Are Totally Fake

President Joe Biden and erstwhile president Donald Trump are scheduled to quadrate disconnected contiguous successful the archetypal of 2 statesmanlike debates for the 2024 predetermination season. But this week has seen a fig of conspiracy theories spell viral connected societal media, with galore radical claiming determination are shadowy forces conspiring to assistance Biden and wounded Trump.

The debate, which is the earliest ever for 2 statesmanlike candidates, volition beryllium hosted by CNN successful Atlanta and starts astatine 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT. Roughly 60% of Americans accidental they program to tune successful tonight, but anyone who’s been pursuing authorities connected platforms similar X, Facebook, and TikTok has astir apt already seen ridiculous conspiracy theories astir what’s going to happen.

We’ve compiled immoderate of the astir salient conspiracy theories below, including everything from claims that Biden volition beryllium wearing an earpiece to chaotic ideas that the broadcast volition beryllium tampered with successful immoderate way.

What’s driving these bizarre conspiracy theories? It seems that supporters of Trump are perfectly terrified that Biden volition execute good against the erstwhile president and are doing their champion to preemptively importune that immoderate beardown show by Biden was rigged successful immoderate way. Trump himself was saying conscionable past period that Biden was a unspeakable debater.

“Crooked Joe Biden is the WORST debater I person ever faced — He can’t enactment 2 sentences together!” Trump wrote connected Truth Social back successful May.

But Trump has changed his tune successful recent weeks, saying connected the All-In Podcast that Biden is simply a “worthy debater” and insisting “I don’t privation to underestimate him.”

Trump, a convicted felon who tried to signifier a coup to stay successful powerfulness connected January 6, 2021, has evidently been trying to negociate expectations truthful that helium doesn’t look similar an idiot. But helium besides has an service of sycophants online who are blessed to muddy the waters successful an effort to sow confusion, arsenic you tin spot from the examples below.

1) Will the CNN statement person a 2-minute broadcast delay?

X idiosyncratic Patrick Webb, who works for a right-wing “news” website called the Leading Report, claimed connected Thursday that CNN would beryllium broadcasting connected an unusually ample delay, the accusation being that CNN would beryllium capable to edit retired immoderate of Biden’s errors.

“BREAKING: CNN volition instrumentality a 1-2 infinitesimal hold for tonight’s statesmanlike statement alternatively of the modular 7-second delay, perchance allowing clip to edit parts of the broadcast,” Webb tweeted on Thursday.

CNN denied the claim, tweeting, “This is false. The statement volition statesman unrecorded astatine 9pm ET.”

Oddly, Webb followed up by sharing a screenshot of a speech helium had with ChatGPT astir the explanation of “live TV,” which is simply a spot similar asking a Speak N Spell astir a analyzable mathematics problem. After getting ridiculed for it, Webb deleted the tweet, arsenic you tin spot successful the screenshot below.

Screenshot: Twitter

Webb is intelligibly flailing trying to rationalize a assertion that has nary credible source.

The Leading Report’s apical communicative close present is simply a mendacious assertion that covid-19 vaccines springiness radical cancer, if you privation to cognize however earnestly you should instrumentality the website and anyone who works for it.

2) Will Biden beryllium hopped up connected performance-enhancing drugs?

One of the astir fashionable conspiracy theories online close present is that President Biden volition beryllium utilizing each kinds of drugs to marque himself look lucid. The assertion implicitly accuses the president of having dementia, thing Trump has said repeatedly contempt his ain rambling incoherence astatine rallies and media appearances.

Laura Loomer, a hateful bigot who’s been banned from over a twelve tech platforms for her bigotry, helped substance the assertion that Biden was going to beryllium hopped up connected performance-enhancing drugs Thursday successful a tweet.

“JUST IN:@JoeBiden conscionable refused to instrumentality a cause trial up of the Presidential statement tonight,” Loomer claimed. “ President Trump agreed to instrumentality a cause test, but Biden is present refusing. This is fundamentally confirmation that Joe Biden is going to person drugs injected into him up of the debate.”

But it’s each bullshit, of course.

As the Washington Post explained recently, there’s nary cause presently connected the marketplace that makes you much coherent oregon masks the symptoms of dementia. If determination was specified a cause we’d beryllium giving it to each Alzheimer’s patients and making the satellite a overmuch much manageable spot for everyone.

And it’s wholly imaginable that this is different lawsuit of Trump projecting. After all, Trump’s idiosyncratic White House doctor, Ronny Jackson (who Trump precocious called “Ronny Johnson”), was demoted by the Navy for drinking connected the job and was nicknamed “The Candyman” for allegedly handing retired powerful pills extracurricular of mean medicine procedures.

3) Will Biden beryllium wearing an earpiece?

The thought that Joe Biden volition beryllium wearing an earpiece has been astir for a agelong time, Trump adjacent ran an advertisement back successful 2020 accusing the president of precisely that. Professional ratfucker and Trump advisor Roger Stone tweeted on Wednesday to assistance dispersed the baseless thought for 2024.

“No receptor pieces! Trump should request that Biden beryllium cautiously inspected to guarantee that helium is not wearing immoderate profoundly embedded high-tech earpiece earlier the opening of the CNN debate,” Stone wrote.

There’s nary grounds Biden volition beryllium wearing an earpiece and adjacent conscionable reasoning astir however hard it would beryllium to perceive to idiosyncratic successful your receptor portion trying to antagonistic a loudmouth similar Donald Trump makes it absurd connected its face.

4) Will Biden beryllium replaced by a assemblage double?

Most of the craziest conspiracy theories person originated online. But Fox News is nary slouch erstwhile it comes to the dumbest imaginable ideas for however Biden mightiness cheat. For example, Greg Gutfeld from Fox’s amusement The Five insisted earlier this week that it was inherently suspicious that Biden was spending truthful overmuch clip astatine Camp David to hole for the debate.

“What’s truly going on? Does it instrumentality that agelong for the caller look to heal, does it instrumentality that agelong to 3D people a assemblage double?” Gutfeld said.

Obviously Gutfeld would apt accidental helium was conscionable joking, but it’s an thought that’s highly fashionable among the far-right and QAnon-focused crowd. In fact, determination person been respective times during Biden’s presidency erstwhile conspiracy theorists online person claimed that Biden is either really being represented by a assemblage treble oregon idiosyncratic is appearing successful nationalist portion wearing a Biden mask.

Unfortunately, the “evidence” presented for the disguise mentation is easy explained by what happens to everyone’s tegument arsenic we age. It droops, whether you similar it oregon not.

5) Is CNN blocking entree for journalists to screen up aesculapian emergencies?

The White House Correspondents’ Association, which lobbies connected behalf of journalists for the White House, wrote to CNN connected Tuesday asking for amended entree to the debate. As it stands now, journalists successful Atlanta volition lone beryllium allowed successful an adjacent country watching a livestream.

As Bloomberg explains (emphasis ours):

The interest among the different networks is that thing could hap successful the statement country that lone CNN journalists would witness. Unlike past contests, this statement doesn’t person a unrecorded assemblage and microphones of the different campaigner volition beryllium muted erstwhile 1 is speaking. That could mean rival journalists miss gestures and asides during CNN’s coverage, oregon thing much superior similar a aesculapian exigency involving 1 of the candidates.

That enactment astir aesculapian emergencies made its mode to the net without immoderate discourse and is being twisted to suggest that a “medical emergency” is simply a given.

As 1 tech newsman phrased it connected X, media was “banished from the country successful lawsuit of a ‘presidential aesculapian emergency’.” The implication, of course, is that Biden would beryllium the 1 keeling implicit and CNN doesn’t privation different journalists to spot for immoderate shady unspecified reason.

But there’s nary grounds that CNN is forcing journalists to a antithetic country for immoderate different crushed than they clasp each the powerfulness during this debate. CNN booked it, circumventing the mean rules that person dictated erstwhile debates done the neutral arbiter, the Commission connected Presidential Debates, which has been iced out.

CNN adjacent released a statement Thursday to erstwhile CNN writer Brian Stelter practically saying arsenic much—they’re successful complaint and they don’t privation different media there.

As arrogant members of the White House Correspondents Association, we respect the relation the enactment plays and their enactment for property state and access. CNN’s Presidential Debate is being held without an assemblage successful a CNN workplace and is closed to press. The provender was made disposable to Washington Pool Members, Washington Pool subscribers and CNN Affiliates, and is besides disposable to embed via CNN’s YouTube transmission without complaint for integer outlets and is disposable connected CNN.com. Following our accepted approach, CNN is providing entree to the statement workplace for a choky excavation of photographers for the duration of the lawsuit and a larger radical of photographers during a commercialized break. In addition, CNN is providing entree to the statement hallway for the designated people excavation newsman during the archetypal commercialized interruption to let them to supply a excavation study from wrong the statement studio.

That, of course, won’t halt the conspiracy theories.

6) Will Biden beryllium replaced?

Body doubles aside, there’s a persistent mentation that Biden volition beryllium replaced earlier the November election.

According to Jason Calacanis from the All-In Podcast:

There is simply a important accidental Biden volition beryllium slaughtered by Trump tonight, oregon helium mightiness person a elder infinitesimal portion the satellite watches. If either of those 2 things happens, oregon both, determination is simply a important accidental helium volition bow retired

The blistery swap is coming. Don’t beryllium amazed erstwhile the antiauthoritarian enactment magically finds 2 caller candidates After the polls this week the blistery swap is the champion mode to crook this astir — and they cognize it.

While it’s excessively aboriginal to definitively debunk this one, due to the fact that thing tin so hap successful this brainsick world, there’s perfectly nary grounds this is the case. It simply defies logic that Biden would bow retired astatine this point. He’s had many, galore opportunities to accidental helium wouldn’t privation to tally and lone endangers a Democratic triumph for immoderate successor the longer helium waits.

Again, thing tin happen. But this thought that Biden volition get replaced astatine the past infinitesimal truly lone shows up connected Fox News oregon the astir ridiculous corners of the internet.