The air crackled with disbelief as the news spread: Rep. Ilhan Omar had been attacked at a town hall. Then came the whispers, amplified by social media megaphones: It was all a hoax, a performance. Did you ever notice how quickly certain narratives take hold, regardless of evidence?
The man who charged at Rep. Ilhan Omar at a town hall in Minneapolis while spraying an unknown liquid has been identified as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak. Almost immediately, MAGA influencers on social media insisted that Omar herself had staged the attack in a bid to get sympathy from voters. But it wasn’t just the typical online voices like Laura Loomer and Alex Jones. King himself, President Donald Trump, floated the conspiracy theory.
Asked by reporters Tuesday whether he had seen the video of Omar, Trump replied, “I don’t think about her. I think she’s a fraud.” Trump went on to insist, “She probably sprayed herself, because I know her.”
The ironic twist is that countless people speculated Trump had somehow orchestrated his own assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024. They focused on the minimal damage to Trump’s ear, amplified by a ridiculously large bandage during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. But, as with Omar, there is no hard evidence.
When accusations fly
The immediate aftermath of the Omar incident revealed a familiar pattern. Conspiracy theories, amplified by social media, took root quickly. It’s one thing to question; it’s another to construct an alternate reality without a shred of supporting data.
That hasn’t stopped some prominent voices on the online right from claiming that the Minnesota congresswoman was just putting on a show for the cameras. Laura Loomer was early to the game, writing shortly after news broke about the incident: “Idk what’s funnier. The video of Ilhan Omar pretending to be sprayed with a syringe tonight, or the fact that everyone knows it’s staged.”
“I’m laughing so hard at how staged and fake it is. Worst acting ever!” Laura Loomer wrote in another tweet. “So funny. I cannot stop laughing at how staged it was.”
It would be easy to dismiss Loomer as a crank conspiracy theorist who doesn’t matter. But she’s unfortunately a crank conspiracy theorist who does matter, given the fact that she has the president’s ear. Loomer has traveled with the president, attended a 9/11 memorial event with him, and has taken credit for the firing of several officials at agencies like the National Security Agency.
How do you spot misinformation?
The digital landscape is a minefield. False narratives spread like wildfire, and it’s getting harder to distinguish fact from fiction. Always ask yourself: Who benefits from this story? What’s the source? Does it align with reality, or does it appeal to emotion?
The social media platform X was also swamped with fake images of Kazmierczak that tried to make it look like he knew Omar. In one of the fake images, the two are made to look like they’re posing for a photo together. Another fake image shows Kazmierczak holding a sign that reads “Black Lives Matter.”
Both images contain the SynthID watermark, which is invisible, but indicates the image was created using Google’s AI image generators. Nano Banana Pro was likely used, given the fact that it appears extremely photorealistic. Nano Banana Pro, which is available through Gemini, is simply one of the best AI image creators out there for realism.
When someone expressed skepticism that the photo on the left was real, one of the many people who posted it replied that Grok says it’s real. (Again, it’s not.)
Several posters have asked grok and it says it’s real.
— No Privacy (@NoPrivacy16) January 28, 2026
Right-wing influencer Nick Sortor took issue with claims that Kazmierczak was a Trump supporter, writing, “Legacy media is going to try to convince you this guy was ‘MAGA’ Horsesht [sic]. Stay frosty, patriots. This is an op.” An analysis of Kazmierczak’s social media posts by PBS News indicates that he most certainly was a supporter of the president, even changing his profile photo to Erika Kirk after Charlie Kirk’s death.
The truth emerges?
Initial reports suggested the syringe contained apple cider vinegar, a non-lethal substance. The claim, sourced to law enforcement by CNN, implies the act was intended to terrorize, not physically harm, Omar. As always, remember that law enforcement is under scrutiny. The FBI has reportedly taken over the investigation from local police, according to CNN.
During the town hall, Omar had called for ICE to be abolished and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign. And President Trump has called Omar “garbage,” along with all other people from Somalia. So it’s easy to see why someone motivated by political animus, and inspired by Trump’s rhetoric, would go after her.
How does political rhetoric incite violence?
Words have power. When leaders use dehumanizing language, they create a climate where violence becomes normalized, even acceptable. It’s not always a direct command, but a slow erosion of empathy. Trump’s choice of words can be a flamethrower.
After the incident Omar said that she wouldn’t be intimidated: “You know, I’ve survived more, and I’m definitely going to survive intimidation and whatever these people think that they can throw at me because I’m built that way,” she said, according to ABC News.
Trump has emboldened conspiracy theorists during his time in office but his inability to keep a consistent message can still cause even his followers to become perplexed about what he’s saying and why. After federal agents killed ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis over the weekend, Trump said that he didn’t like how Pretti was carrying a gun, despite his history of saying he supports the Second Amendment.
“You can’t have guns. You can’t walk in with guns. You can’t do that,” Trump told reporters.
What is the motivation behind conspiracy theories?
For some, conspiracy theories offer a sense of control in a world that feels chaotic. They provide simple answers to complex problems, and a sense of belonging. MAGA influencers like Alex Jones have made millions catering to this desire for simple answers.
Any good conspiracy theorist would be taking that as a sign that Trump was the one who staged a shooting to take away everyone’s guns. Because that’s what this kind of rhetoric always produces. When you’re spreading conspiracy theories with reckless abandon, those conspiracy theories almost always come around. The digital realm is an echo chamber, amplifying both truth and lies; misinformation is like a relentless tide, threatening to erode the foundations of reason. The question is, are we prepared to build stronger defenses against it?