Tulsi Gabbard's "Claims" that the Obama Administration Staged a "Coup" Fuel Far Right's Fantasies of Political Violence

https://globalextremism.org/post/gabbards-claims-that-obama-staged-a-coup/

On July 18, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard made a post on Twitter alleging “the most powerful people in the Obama administration,” including former President Barack Obama, were involved in a “years-long coup” and a “treasonous conspiracy” against Donald Trump. Her post quickly went viral, amassing over 13 million views over the weekend, and galvanized the online fringe to fantasize about violence against their political enemies. Trump fanned Gabbard’s flames, sharing a racist AI-generated video of Obama being arrested on Truth Social, which Trump owns.

Major news stories generally act as flashpoints for extremists online to ramp up their spread of hatred and advocating for violence. This time was no different, as extremists, clearly inspired by Trump and Gabbard’s social media posts, were given new reason to target their long-time nemesis, President Obama. On platforms like Truth Social, Gab, and Telegram, which are frequently used to spew hatred and share violent political fantasies, users directed racist comments at Barack Obama, and his wife Michelle, and dreamt of political violence, suggesting Obama should face a firing squad or public execution by hanging, a crude reference to America’s dark history of racist mobs lynching Black people.

On Truth Social, comments made between July 17 and July 20 targeting Obama as treasonous and deserving of either imprisonment or execution , rose from three to 36, an 1,100 percent increase, including a high of 56 on July 19, reflecting a monstrous 1,767 percent increase. Gabbard’s post enraged Trump supporters, who were quick to call for a military tribunal against Obama, demanding that Attorney General Pam Bondi “get them all now and don’t waste another day… The punishment for Treason is Hanging,” and that Obama and his former cabinet “should all [be put up against a wall for a firing squad].” One user expressed glee at the possibility of Obama being “prosecuted for the death penalty,” saying “I’m so happy finally accountability for that corrupt piece of dog sh*t.” Another called for “public trials and public executions” against former members of the Obama administration, saying “our enemies are from within not foreign,” sharing a similar remark from Vice President J.D. Vance, who in a February address to European leaders warned them of “the threat from within.”



On Gab, a platform similar to Twitter, comments made between July 17 and July 20, targeting Obama as treasonous and deserving of either imprisonment or execution rose from nine to 48, representing a 433 percent increase. Users on Gab responded to Gabbard’s allegations by further accusing “commie Jews and black democrats” of “kill[ing the American elections system].” Others exclaimed they weren’t satisfied with an arrest, saying “Obama should be prosecuted for treason, all asset ceases and both him and Mooochelle deported to Tanzania,” but would “settle for a firing squad of all on [pay-per-view].” In the same comment, the user accuses Obama of being a “Radical Islamic Terrorist Sympathizer” whose goal was to transform America “into a socialist black terrorist sh*t-hole.” Users called for Obama to be lynched, saying “All you need is some rope and a little wood.” Others wanted to take justice into their own hands, including one user who said “I WILL DESTROY AND JAIL ALL OF THE FAKE NEWS MSM ALL CRIMINAL POLITICAL HACKS AND ALL DEEP STATE PLAYERS WILL BE TRIED AND EXCUTED!!!!!!”



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