Georgia school shooting news faces conspiracy theory for 2024 election

Some right-wingers have developed a new conspiracy theory to dismiss the news that two students and two teachers were killed in a shooting at a Georgia high school Wednesday morning.

Nine other people were hospitalized in the shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. Authorities confirmed that a 14-year-old suspect was arrested.

But skeptics say the tragedy is some kind of election-year, Democrat-led plot aimed at boosting Vice President Kamala Harris.

“Notice how every time the Democrats need a narrative change, a convenient school shooting happens in a key state they control,” wrote one X user. “They are desperate to pull on the emotional strings of the masses and convince them to support this communist instead of Trump.”

“They are likely to resort to any level of deceit, violence or malice to achieve their ends,” the story added. “It couldn’t be more blatant. These people are pure evil.”

Another user echoed the statement: “Kamala is going to push her gun control agenda hard, no accident. These people are EVIL to the core. It’s time to cast these demons out.”

“School shooting in a key state right before a presidential election? Imagine my shock,” one person wrote.

Some right-wingers pointed out that the shooting took place less than a week before Harris and Trump are scheduled to face off in their first debate.

“Now Harris can scream, yell, and yell about a school shooting that just happened in a key state on the debate stage,” said conservative influencer Joey Mannarino. “Good for her campaign. That’s all I’m going to say. No more.”

“A school shooting right before next week’s presidential debates so the conversation can shift from economic policy to gun control?” another influencer mused.

The skepticism comes after confirmation by the FBI’s Atlanta office that the suspect had been identified last May for posting a school shooting threat and images of guns. The FBI said it interviewed the 13-year-old boy in question and that he denied making the threat. It added that his father said he kept his guns locked away.

That only reinforced the theory that Harris and the Democrats were behind it.

“The FBI knew this person, he probably wasn’t important enough to help do some dirty work with this year’s election,” one concluded.

“Whenever there is a mass shooting, I suspect the FBI or CIA, especially when the shooting occurs in a highly contested key state shortly before an election,” another person similarly concluded.

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