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Far-right Extremism

‘Pizzagate’ Activists Reboot Conspiracy Theories After Eric Schneiderman’s Resignation

New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman speaks at a press conference in Penn Station on Tuesday, May 13, 2014.
(Photo: Patrick Cashin/Metropolitan Transportation Authority)

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman resigned last night after news broke that four women had accused him of physical abuse, which inspired current and former “Pizzagate” activists to post not-so-subtle nods toward the original allegations surrounding the hoax(link is external).

Pizzagate, as it came to be known, was an elaborate conspiracy theory(link is external) alleging that top Democratic officials and global leaders were involved in a satanic child sex ring operating out of Comet Ping Pong, a Washington pizza restaurant. Many figures ceased(link is external) mentioning the pizzeria after a gunman fired rounds(link is external) inside the restaurant, but the premise of the conspiracy has lived on in many forms, such as “The Storm(link is external).”

The New Yorker broke news(link is external) yesterday that four women had accused Schneiderman of physical abuse against them during nonconsensual sex acts as part of what one woman described as “abusive, demeaning, threatening behavior.” Three hours after the publication of the New Yorker article, Schneiderman resigned(link is external).

Liz Crokin, who insists to this day(link is external) that the Pizzagate conspiracy theory is true, viewed Schneiderman’s resignation as validation of the theory that President Trump is secretly working(link is external) to take down a “global child sex trafficking ring.”

Jack Posobiec, a Pizzagate promulgator once so involved in the hoax that he filmed himself(link is external) inside of Comet Ping Pong, said that “none of this would have happened if we had never seen Podesta’s emails,” an apparent reference to the belief (link is external)among Pizzagate activists that leaked emails from former Clinton aide John Podesta proved that he was involved in a sex cult.

Posobiec also posted photos of Schneiderman pictured at an event with Hillary Clinton(link is external) and Huma Abedin(link is external), whom Pizzagate conspiracy theorists allege are involved in a nonexistent snuff film(link is external) that they claim was found on former Democratic congressman Anthony Weiner’s laptop after it was seized by the FBI.

Mike Cernovich, a once-prominent “Pizzagate” activist(link is external) who has since attempted to distance himself from his role in the conspiracy theory, posted a poll on Twitter asking his fans whether they believed that “CNN refuse to cover the Schneiderman story for several hours, and then buried it at bottom of page in fine-print” because the network was “Protecting Democrats” or if the “CNN execs” were “in on it”:

Cernovich spent most of last night speculating that various bogeyman of the Right were somehow involved in the Schneiderman story. He posted(link is external) a photo of Alex Soros, son of billionaire philanthropist George Soros, posing with Schneiderman, asking “What were they doing behind closed doors?” Cernovich later posted a photo he claimed(link is external) depicts the younger Soros with “a mock dead body behind him.” He also questioned(link is external) whether Special Counsel Robert Mueller was covering up pedophilia and used New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s initial refusal(link is external) to comment on Schneiderman’s to suggest that the two had “orgies together.”

Andrew Meyer, a man made famous by the “Don’t Taze Me Bro(link is external)” video who now works as host and producer for Cernovich, used the Schneiderman news to suggest that journalists are part of the NXIVM sex cult(link is external), which is widely reported to have branded women with its co-founder’s initials.