Authorities will be on high alert on Thursday with a prediction from the QAnon conspiracy theory, but according to experts the chances of violence appear minimal compared to the deadly January 6 uprising.
Some segments of the complicated theory community have been complaining for months that the former president Donald Trump
Donald TrumpSouth Carolina Senate Adds Shooting as an Alternative Execution Method Former Trump aide Pierson does not run for a seat in the Dallas area. will return to the White House on March 4, the date of presidential inaugurations until 1933.
While the belief that this Thursday would mark the triumphant return of the leading figure at QAnon was growing, some influential figures in the community have recently reversed that prediction.
Influencers retreating from the “real inauguration” theory is especially important, as they gained more influence in the community after the shadowy figure “Q” stopped posting on image panels in December.
Brian Friedberg, a senior researcher at Harvard’s Shorenstein Center, told The Hill that some QAnon supporters are now “skeptical of the origins or validity of [the] theory.”
“Some believe that any public meeting on the 4th is a trap for the people of MAGA by MSM / Deep State to attract them,” he added in an e-mail, referring to the mainstream media.
Even though some QAnon supporters still think Trump will resume his position, there is little to suggest that they will act on that belief.
“We have seen nothing to suggest that there is any physical mobilization in the real world behind this chatter,” Jared Holt, visiting researcher at Digital Forensic Research Lab, told The Hill.
A memo from the security officer who oversees the House, shared with lawmakers this week, echoes that the importance of March 4 “supposedly has diminished among various groups in the past few days”.
The Capitol Police, at this time, “has no indication that groups will travel to Washington DC to protest or commit acts of violence,” weapons sergeant Timothy Blodggett said in the memo.
Authorities are exercising caution, regardless of the fact that QAnon supporters were involved in the January 6 riots and the theory was considered a threat to national security by the FBI.
The Capitol Police will have additional personnel deployed around the Capitol on Thursday, according to Blodgett’s memo, and the National Guard will continue to support local officials.
Chairman of the Chamber’s Armed Services Committee Adam Smith
David (Adam) Adam SmithOvernight Defense: Tim Kaine tries to regain the authority of the powers of war | Study on sexual harassment and aggression in the armed forces Commissioners tasked with cleaning up names of sworn confederate bases at the first meeting. Biden tries to walk the line with the attack in Syria MORE (D-Wash.) He suggested during a hearing last month that 4,900 members of the National Guard would be extending their stay in DC, which began before the inauguration, in part because of the conversation in the QAnon communities.
“Some of these people found out that, apparently, 75 years ago, the president used to be sworn in on March 4. Okay, now why is that relevant, God knows, anyway, now they’re thinking that maybe we should get together again and attack the Capitol on March 4 … which is circulating online, “said Smith.
The fence that was placed around the Capitol after the insurrection also remains in place.
The Metropolitan Police Department did not issue any authorization for events planned on Thursday, a spokesman told The Hill on Tuesday.
The cooling of interest did not stop the Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC from raising prices around March 4, a tactic also employed around the January 6 Capitol insurrection. Several rooms were still available at the hotel on Tuesday night
While the QAnon community has consistently changed goals in big forecasts without much wear and tear, another flawed forecast could drive more believers out of the theory.
The followers of QAnon considered January 20th to be the day of the “Great Awakening”, when Trump would remain in office and arrest the leading Democrats for their alleged complicity in child sex trafficking networks.
While many supporters shared dissatisfaction with the failed forecast, others moved quickly to the next date.