Trump’s conspiracies have exploded due to the Hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks
Donald Trump is at the center of a new wave of online virus conspiracy theories, with far-right influencers and anti-vaccine activists falsely claiming that the recent hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks were “engineered” to derail the Republican president ahead of the US midterm elections.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the compassionate fringe theories that emerged after isolated hantavirus cases linked to a cruise ship caused panic on social media platforms already fueled by years of Covid misinformation.
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‘Covid 2.0’ Panic Leads to Wild MAGA Conspiracy Claims
Online activists borrowed the term “red piller” from the movie “The Matrix.”
Anonymous accounts enabled X, Telegramand off-the-wall livestreams pushed claims that pharmaceutical companies, global health agencies and Democratic “operatives” were preparing a “Covid 2.0” scenario with lockdowns, mail-in voting and economic chaos designed to weaken Trump politically before voters go to the polls next year.
Several reports falsely described the outbreaks as “biological weapons” intended to “destroy” the president’s base of support in conservative states.
Many of them are the work of so-called ‘red-pillers’ – online activists and influencers who claim they are ‘woke’ to hidden truths about politics, society or culture.
The term “red-piller” is borrowed from The Matrix film, in which taking the red pill reveals the reality behind a global illusion and has since been co-opted by conspiracy theorists, men’s rights groups and far-right online communities spreading anti-establishment narratives.
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MAGA influencers are sounding the alarm
Marjorie Taylor Greene repeated unsupported claims about Ivermectin.
Alex Jones and Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene were among the highest-profile figures accused by critics of amplifying the claims online.
Greene repeated unsupported claims that the antiparasitic drug Ivermectin could treat hantavirus because it “prevents RNA viruses from entering the nucleus, thereby preventing replication.”
Public health experts quickly dismissed the claim, noting that hantavirus replicas reside in the cytoplasm, not the nucleus.
A political campaign consultant source in Washington told us, “There are those within the MAGA ecosystem who are treating every public health warning as a political attack. The idea being pushed is that shadowy elites are preparing a new pandemic scare to harm Trump before the midterm elections.”
Another Republican strategist said: “The rhetoric has become apocalyptic. Some influencers are openly describing the hantavirus and Ebola as ‘political bioweapons’ created to destroy Trump’s movement and force vote-by-mail nationwide.”
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The truth behind the fear of outbreaks
Internet users have been falsely repackaging old clips of Donald Trump online.
Old clips of Trump criticizing Covid-era restrictions were also reshared online and wrongly repackaged as commentary on current fears of an outbreak. Trump has privately rejected suggestions for renewed restrictions and told aides he would never support false hantavirus pandemics, according to sources close to the president.
The conspiracies reflect the many narratives that emerged during the coronavirus pandemic, when vaccines, lockdowns and public health officials became central targets for disinformation campaigns.
Internet users also falsely claimed that hantavirus was secretly listed as a side effect of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine.
Global health authorities have repeatedly emphasized that hantavirus does not pose the same level of threat as COVID-19.
Maria Van Kerkhove, director of Epidemic and Pandemic Management at the World Health Organization, recently said of the disease: “This is not Covid, this is not the start of a Covid pandemic. This is not the same situation we were in six years ago. It is not spreading in the same way.”
Health authorities have also warned that Ebola outbreaks remain geographically limited and monitored through long-standing international response systems rather than emergency political measures.
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Trump privately rejected suggestions for renewed pandemic restrictions.
Researchers monitoring online extremism told us that conspiracy stories surrounding disease outbreaks are increasingly mixing anti-government rhetoric with election paranoia.
Analysts also noted that made-up Trump quotes, manipulated video clips and AI-generated content spread faster than health guidelines on online platforms and conspiracy forums, as well as on the dark web.
Trump’s strategy for the midterm elections is expected to focus on energizing his loyal MAGA base through attacks on immigration, inflation and what he describes as “deep state interference in government.”
A source said: “The president is also likely to view Democratic opposition and media criticism as coordinated efforts to undermine his government.
“Trump will also campaign heavily in battleground states, using rallies and conservative media appearances to boost turnout among Republican voters.”
