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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Jan. 6 Conspiracy Theory Centers on Baseless Claim About Ray Epps

Jan. 6 Conspiracy Theory Centers on Baseless Claim About Ray Epps

James Ray Epps was at the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. But there is no evidence that he was an FBI plant assigned to instigate the riot, as a conspiracy theory — embraced by at least two members of Congress — claims. There is evidence, however, that Epps once held a leadership role in the Oath Keepers, some of whose members have been charged in the attack.

The Facts on Capitol Police’s Tampa Office

The Facts on Capitol Police’s Tampa Office

In a July 6 press release about changes the U.S. Capitol Police is making in the wake of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, the agency announced it is adding field offices in Tampa and San Francisco to investigate threats against members of Congress.

Conservative Outlets Advance Unfounded Theory About Capitol Attack

Conservative Outlets Advance Unfounded Theory About Capitol Attack

There is no evidence that “unindicted co-conspirators” mentioned in federal indictments related to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack are undercover FBI agents or informants, as conservative outlets have claimed or suggested. Legal experts and federal case law say that government agents and informants cannot be labeled conspirators to a crime.

Pelosi, a Ripped Speech, and the Records Debate

Pelosi, a Ripped Speech, and the Records Debate

Q: Did House Speaker Nancy Pelosi break the law by ripping up the president’s State of the Union address?

A: Legal experts have widely dismissed the idea that Pelosi’s copy of the address would be subject to a criminal statute cited by some conservatives.

Misleading Posts Target GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz

Misleading Posts Target GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz

Social media posts distort the facts around an 11-year-old, dismissed DUI charge against Rep. Matt Gaetz. They also leave the false impression that he “stole from dying people.”

Dossier Not What ‘Started All of This’

Dossier Not What ‘Started All of This’

In an interview about the special counsel’s report, Rep. John Ratcliffe said that what “started all of this” was “a fake, phony dossier.” But a House Republican intelligence committee memo said it was information about a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser that sparked the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation.