Talk about tin-foil hat conspiracy theories! Over the weekend, The Telegraph reported that First Lady Melania Trump will not join the president at the Camp David presidential retreat this weekend, “extending to 22 days the time since she last appeared in public.” The paper added:
The First Lady was last seen on May 10 and underwent surgery for a “benign” kidney issue on May 14, spending a few days in hospital before being released.
Mrs Trump’s lack of appearance at events she would normally be expected to attend has created headlines in the US media and triggered conspiracy theories.
The Telegraph doesn’t give itself enough credit. It’s opening paragraphs are grist for conspiracy theorists, who took the bait:
Do we even know if she is alive? What if Trump killed her? Serious question. Why else bring all kids to Camp David?
— Kae Bell: author, consultant, cat rescuer (@bellsnwhistles) June 2, 2018
Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?
Atlantic senior editor and Trump hater David Frum tweeted:
Suppose President Trump punched the First Lady in the White House (federal property = federal jurisdiction), then ordered the Secret Service to conceal the assault. POTUS has Article II authority over Secret Service. Is that obstruction? Under Sekulow/Dowd, apparently NO
— David Frum (@davidfrum) June 2, 2018
He subsequently tried to walk it back, but the damage was done:
Considering Melania's 23-day absence from public view (and recent hospital stay), and Trump's known brutality, this may not be a hypothetical question.
— ???? Cyndia BLUE "Unstable Genius" (@malinablue) June 2, 2018
You think it’s a coincidence that sink hole appeared just as she went missing?
— cattywampus (@MrMittensthecat) June 2, 2018
She dead
— cattywampus (@MrMittensthecat) June 2, 2018
Others took time to assign motives to the killer:
What if Trump has became so insane due to his narcissistic power happy above the law attitude that he actually killed Melania. Would we ever know?
— The Anti-Republican (@TheDemocratCafe) June 3, 2018
One left-wing blog devoted an entire post to speculation over Mrs. Trump’s whereabouts:
James Gunn, the director of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, posted this today and it got me thinking: “It’s unlikely Trump murdered Melania in a fit of rage and the people around him are helping to cover it up while they figure out what to do next. But the fact I used the word “unlikely” instead of “impossible” or “ludicrous” kinda shows you the state of our leadership today.” He has a point. It’s not that any of us really think Melania Trump is dead, or locked up in a dungeon. It’s that we even have to consider the possibility – and it raises other questions.
[…]
Let’s try to keep this realistic. Melania Trump is a Secret Service protectee. The agents wouldn’t stand by and allow her demise at the hands of anyone, not even Donald Trump. But what if, hypothetically, he beat her up while they weren’t around? It’s not appropriate to accuse a guy of domestic violence without evidence. But considering the circumstances, maybe it’s time to start asking the question.
Whatever you think of Donald or Melania Trump, and however little you care about the fate of their marriage, this is a serious scandal. If the White House had told us up front that Melania was going to lay low because her health issue was worse than expected, we’d have all left it alone. Instead they’ve fed us one suspicious lie after another, which makes it our business. It’s also –as James Gunn pointed out – a reminder that Donald Trump is such a demented maniac and spiraling so badly out of control, we have to stop and at least consider the very remote possibility that his wife is missing because he murdered her.
Conservative commentator Cathy Young tweeted:
Trump Derangement Syndrome is not a myth, sadly https://t.co/G0qmtrl1Qw
— Cathy Young (@CathyYoung63) June 3, 2018
Indeed. Never a dull moment.
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