2016 Conspiracy Theories That People Really Fell For!

Mexican Refugees Are Murderers & Rapists

Donald Trump publicly stated that Mexico was sending criminals, specifically “murderers and rapists.” When questioned, Trump’s team pointed to data that doesn’t actually exist. According to the Washington Post, the data that does exist actually suggests the opposite.

Deputy director of the U.S. Immigration Policy Program at the Migration Policy Institute (a non-partisan think tank) said, “Immigrants in general — unauthorized immigrants in particular — are a self-selected group who generally come to the U.S. to work. And once they’re here, most of them want to keep their nose down and do their business, and they’re sensitive to the fact that they’re vulnerable.” In a current world where racial tensions are at a high, spreading harmful rumors about a race or ethnicity is certainly a dangerous one! Let’s hope no one gets hurt over this rumor.

Ted Cruz’s Father Assassinated Kennedy

In May of 2016, Donald Trump publicly stated that Ted Cruz’s father Rafael was with Lee Harvey Oswald previous to his assassination of President John F. Kennedy and that he likely had a hand in the assassination as well. What? Trump’s source was apparently the National Enquirer which published photos which purported to show Rafael Cruz with Lee Harvey Oswald.

In a phone call with Fox News, Trump said, “His father was with Lee Harvey Oswald prior to Oswald’s being — you know, shot. I mean, the whole thing is ridiculous. What is this, right prior to his being shot, and nobody even brings it up. They don’t even talk about that. That was reported, and nobody talks about it. I mean, what was he doing — what was he doing with Lee Harvey Oswald shortly before the death? Before the shooting? It’s horrible.”