OPINION| In the wake of the shocking assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, conspiracy theories have run rampant across social media platforms. One of the most persistent and troubling allegations centers around the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and his supposed connection to the CIA’s infamous MKUltra program. However, the CIA has recently come forward to address these claims, categorically denying any involvement or manipulation of Crooks.
The MKUltra program, which operated from the 1950s to the early 1970s, was a covert CIA operation aimed at exploring mind control and behavior modification techniques. The program involved numerous unethical experiments on human subjects, many of whom were unaware of their participation. The revelation of MKUltra’s existence in the 1970s led to widespread public outrage and a series of congressional hearings.
Since the shooting, rumors have circulated suggesting that Crooks was a victim of MKUltra, brainwashed into carrying out the assassination attempt on Trump. These claims have been fueled by the fact that Crooks exhibited no apparent political affiliations or motives for the attack. However, the CIA has strongly refuted these allegations, stating that the agency ceased all MKUltra activities decades ago and that there is no evidence linking Crooks to any such program.
In a recent statement, a CIA spokesperson emphasized that the agency has been transparent about its past involvement in MKUltra and has taken steps to ensure that such unethical practices are never repeated. The spokesperson also noted that the CIA is fully cooperating with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies in their investigation of the shooting, but stressed that there is no indication of any CIA involvement in the incident.
Despite the CIA’s denial, some Trump supporters remain skeptical, pointing to the agency’s history of secrecy and deception. They argue that the CIA’s past actions make it difficult to trust their current claims. However, it is essential to approach these allegations with a critical eye and consider the available evidence.
CIA Denies Conspiracy Theory That It Used MKUltra on Trump Shooter https://t.co/FofMPOjibD
— Gizmodo (@Gizmodo) July 27, 2024
Per Gizmodo:
Was the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump earlier this month part of a secret CIA program involving brainwashed killers? That’s the claim being made by some far-right accounts on X, but the U.S. intelligence agency is taking the unusual step of directly and forcefully denying the claims.
When it was revealed in the 1970s that the CIA had tried to develop a mind-manipulation program called MKUltra, it sounded like the most absurd conspiracy theory around. Unfortunately, it turned out to be true, even if the suggestive results of the program–and potential for creating Manchurian Candidate-like killers–have been exaggerated in the subsequent decades.
But MKUltra has become quite a meme in the 2020s, with many conspiracy theorists jumping into the fray after Trump was shot at by a 20-year-old during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13. The shooter was identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks who acted alone. But some people on social media are trying to claim Crooks was somehow trained by the CIA under an MKUltra program to go after Trump.
The CIA, for its part, decided to push back very publicly against these claims, something the agency doesn’t often do when weird conspiracy theories are floating around on the internet.
“These claims are utterly false, absurd, and damaging,” a CIA spokesperson told Gizmodo on Thursday. “The CIA had no relationship whatsoever with Thomas Crooks. Regarding MKULTRA, the CIA’s program was shut down more than 40 years ago, and declassified information about the program is publicly available on CIA.gov.”
The CIA has officially denied claims that the Trump shooter was an MKUltra plant…
Now it seems even more likely he was. pic.twitter.com/01NIVutlcb
— Chase Geiser (@realchasegeiser) July 28, 2024
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