- Former President Donald Trump speaks at a JD Vance rally in Youngstown, Ohio on Saturday.
- A QAnon song played while talking about Ukraine, “fake news,” and Hunter Biden’s laptop.
- His followers pointed their fingers to the sky. Experts say the finger salute may have also been a nod to QAnon.
Former President Donald Trump addressed a rally for Ohio senatorial candidate J.D. Vance on Saturday as QAnon songs played dramatically in the background while his supporters raised their fingers in a rare salute.
In recent weeks, Trump has been amplifying QAnon’s point on his social media, but a scene in Youngstown, Ohio on Saturday night showed him openly embracing unsubstantiated conspiracy theories. It was probably the clearest indication of that.
— Aaron Ruper (@atrupar) September 18, 2022
A cinematic soundtrack played as Trump complained about Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, “fake news” and Hunter Biden’s laptop at a rally in Ohio.
According to Media Matters, a US-based media watchdog, the soundtrack appears to be a song previously released online under the QAnon slogan titled “Wwg1wga.”
A QAnon person noted the choice of the song, recognizing it as a nod to the movement by the former president. said Alex Kaplan, a senior researcher at Media Matters. in a tweet Saturday.
Last month, Trump posted a video with the same audio on his social media platform Truth Social, according to Media Matters. At the time, a spokesperson for the former president claimed to Vice that it was not a QAnon song, but the music of composer Will van de Cromato.
However, a Media Matters review using Google’s voice assistant and Apple’s Shazam app identified it as “Wwg1wga” by an artist named Richard Feelgood. QAnon followers praised the use of audio at the time, describing it as “the mother of all her Q her proofs” and “the biggest nod they’ve ever given us,” according to Media Matters. doing.
People pointed their fingers to the sky during former President Donald Trump’s speech at a rally in Youngstown, Ohio.
Aaron Luper/Newsmax via Twitter
Conspiracy theorists have also explained that the unusual finger salute that attendees at the Youngstown rally held with their fingers up in the air was also a potential nod to QAnon.
“Some on Twitter are calling ‘Where we go 1’ a one-finger salute to QAnon, but Trump is playing a Pro-Q song while talking. in a tweet Saturday.
Ben Collins, senior reporter for NBC News extremists, said: said in a tweet There is confusion on Trump’s forums about why his supporters raised their fingers at the rally and whether it was a gesture to the QAnon community.
“Some think it’s because of QAnon’s catchphrase, Where We Go 1 We Go All,” he wrote. It’s strange and I’ve never seen it before.”
— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) September 18, 2022
Recently, the AP reported that Trump went from “winking” at QAnon to openly embracing it.
On Tuesday, he reposted to Truth Social an image of himself wearing a Q-pin on a jacket overlaid with the words “The Storm is Coming.” , refers to the day of violent retaliation as Trump’s enemies face televised mass executions.
In late August, Trump reposted (and then deleted) “Q Drop.” This is an anonymous Q.
Of the 75 accounts Trump reposted on his Truth Social profile in the past month, nearly a third promoted QAnon, according to the AP.
An insider did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Trump’s post-presidential office.