What is QAnon? A Countable Q(Anon) and A

Wondering about the popular pro-Trump conspiracy theory known as QAnon? We've got some As to your Qs...

How did QAnon enter the mainstream?

• During President Donald Trump’s campaign rally for GOP Rep. Ron DeSantis in Florida last Tuesday, a mysterious sign rose from the crowd: "We are Q."

• Other attendees at the rally also carried signs or wore T-shirts promoting QAnon and their catchphrase, “Where we go one, we go all,” often abbreviated to “WWG1WGA.”

• On Thursday of last week, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders fielded a question about QAnon:

How did QAnon begin?

• In October 2017, a person calling themselves “Q” began posting material on anonymous internet message boards. “Q” is a reference to high-level security clearance, which the poster claims they have.
• Q claimed they would slowly – and enigmatically – release top-secret evidence of a worldwide criminal conspiracy. These bits of evidence are dubbed “breadcrumbs” by the theory’s followers.
• Here’s a "breadcrumb" post from June:

Think SC vote to confirm (coming). No Name action. Every dog has its day. Enjoy the show. Q

• As the Daily Beast explained: " 'No Name' is Q’s nickname for John McCain, and 'SC' is obviously the Supreme Court. As for 'every dog has its day' — that’s the kind of cryptic Q remark that has spawned a cottage industry of PDFs and 24/7 livestreams analyzing the crumbs."

What is “the Storm”?

• QAnon is sometimes referred to as “the Storm.” This is a reference to President Trump’s mysterious statement on October 5, 2017, where he called the military dinner he was attending “The calm before the storm.” A reporter asked: “What storm, Mr. President?” Trump responded: “You’ll find out.”

What conspiracy theory does QAnon believe?

Think of it more as an “omnibus” conspiracy theory, as it folds various right-wing conspiracy theories into one. Basically…

• Every president before Trump was a “criminal president” in league with the global banking elite, deep-state intelligence operatives, pharmaceutical companies, Pizzagate-esque global pedophile rings, and death squads with allegiance to Hillary Clinton.
• The military convinced Trump to run for president as a way to break this evil cabal’s grip.
• Robert Mueller is not investigating the Trump campaign—he is a “white hat” – or hero - actually investigating the Clintons, Barack Obama, top Democrats, George Soros, Tom Hanks and other actors, and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) for their involvement in child sex trafficking and pedophilia.
• The above individuals, and other members of the cabal, were planning a coup, and were operating out of North Korea. Kim Jong Un cleared his country of these deep state operatives with the aid of Trump.
• Those involved in the cabal will soon be arrested and imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay. Many Democrats are already wearing ankle monitors to make their roundup easier.
• The GOP purposely lost the Alabama special election for Jeff Sessions’ Senate seat in order to reveal the use of fraudulent voting machines.
• MS13 murdered Seth Rich under orders from former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
•  J.P. Morgan, the American financier, sank the Titanic.

Who is Q?

• Various theories posit that Q is Russian President Vladimir Putin or even Trump himself.
• But the theory with the most traction is that John F. Kennedy Jr. is Q—followers of QAnon allege JFK Jr. and his wife faked their own plane crash deaths in 1999 and went deep undercover working with Trump.

What do you think?

Does the president, Congress, or the media have a responsibility to cover – or dispute – conspiracy theories? Are you concerned about fringe internet theories entering the real world, as when a man fired a rifle inside Washington, D.C.'s Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in December 2016, citing the "Pizzagate" conspiracy theory? Hit Take Action and tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.

—Josh Herman