A Death in Washington…and a Very Trumpian Conspiracy Theory

By David Corn  September 10, 2022

Michael Brochstein/Zuma

There’s much for which Julian Assange should be held accountable. The WikiLeaks publisher colluded with Russian operatives in 2016 to facilitate Vladmir Putin’s attack on the US election that helped Donald Trump reach the White House. Consequently, Assange bears a slice of responsibility for what Trump as president wreaked upon the world, including reversing US action to redress climate change; mismanagement of a pandemic that politicized the crisis and led to hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths; and advancing authoritarianism, marked most prominently by Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election and the Trump-incited insurrectionist attack on the US Capitol. These are all rather grand matters, and Assange is but one of many contributing factors to each. Yet there was one small deed he committed that was highly despicable for which he owns all the blame: He callously turned a tragic murder in Washington into a dangerous conspiracy theory and exacerbated the suffering of a family.

Assange’s victim was Seth Rich, a 27-year-old employee of the Democratic National Committee who was killed on July 10, 2016, on a Washington street corner in what police believed was a botched robbery. Less than two weeks later, as the Democrats opened their national convention, WikiLeaks released thousands of documents that had been stolen from the DNC by sophisticated hackers. Various experts had already fingered Russian cyber-thieves as the culprits in the DNC job, an attribution that would later be confirmed by the US government and Robert Mueller’s investigation. The release placed WikiLeaks in cahoots with Moscow in a campaign of information warfare that aimed to sabotage the presidential bid of Hillary Clinton, whom Assange had previously assailed as a threat to the world.

But shortly after the WikiLeaks dump of the Russian-pilfered material, when Assange was interviewed by a Dutch journalist and asked about the Russia connection, he claimed Moscow was not involved. And he engaged in an odd pivot, noting, “There’s a 27-year-old, works for the DNC, [who] was shot in the back, murdered just two weeks ago for unknown reasons….” What are you suggesting? the reporter queried. “I’m suggesting that our sources take risks, and they are—they become concerned to see things occurring like that.” Was Rich one of your sources? “We don’t comment on who our sources are,” Assange said, stating that WikiLeaks was “investigating” Rich’s murder “to understand what happened.” He noted, “It is a concerning situation.”

It is not always easy to pinpoint the start of a conspiracy theory. But here it was. Assange was hinting that Rich was the source for the DNC material. And for many, including Trump, that would be quite important, for if Rich had been the hacker and leaker, it would blow apart the narrative that the Russians were secretly scheming to help Trump win the White House. Pinning the DNC cyber break-in, a serious crime, on Rich would remove the made-in-Moscow stain from Trump. In denying Russian involvement, Assange was lying, and by citing the murder of Rich he was attempting to deflect attention from Moscow and protect Putin. It was a crass and cynical move that would assist Trump’s and Russia’s efforts to cover up the Russian operation and that would create a nightmare for the Rich family, which was already confronted with the tragedy of losing a dear one.

This ugly tale is movingly and expertly recounted in a new book by Andy Kroll, A Death on W Street: The Murder of Seth Rich and the Age of Conspiracy. It’s a true-crime story: An innocent young man was murdered, and the killers were never caught. It’s also a modern-day parable of conspiracism. Kroll, a talented investigative reporter who writes with flair (and who once worked at Mother Jones), chronicles the spread of the Rich conspiracy theory and his family’s valiant effort to fight the defamatory falsehoods about Seth that conservative operatives and right-wing media figures (including Sean Hannity and Newt Gingrich) disseminated and exploited in service of Trump. In a way, the Seth Rich conspiracy theory that Assange launched and right-wing media and social media enthusiastically amplified was the progenitor of Pizzagate and QAnon.

Kroll traces the journey of this lie—from the Drudge Report to Fox News, as assorted bad-faith actors, such as right-wing dirty trickster Roger Stone, spurred it on. To those who knew Seth and his job at the DNC in the voter protection department—as well as details of the computer break-in—the notion that he had hacked the DNC and leaked the files made no sense. Yet, as Kroll writes, “the sheer repetition of such a lie would create the impression of truth. Each lie kicked up a cloud of dust, and the more the lies spread, the more the dust seemed to hang in the sky, blotting out the sun, making it that much harder to see clearly.”

Welcome to the Trump era. Trump had risen to prominence in the conservative world pushing the racist birther conspiracy theory. He had embraced the noxious conspiracy theorist Alex Jones (as I reported at the time). He had no compunction about lying about…well, everything. He made conspiracism a core component of his political project and the right-wing media ecosystem. And in this environment, Rich’s family—his parents Joel and Mary and his brother Aaron—could not stop the lies being told about Seth and them, as the conspiracy theory mutated to variants that claimed Aaron was an accomplice of Seth and his parents were covering up Seth’s involvement in the DNC hack. This led to death threats.

Kroll shows how a small, committed group of Trump devotees, including a sleazy Washington lobbyist named Jack Burkman and a financial adviser and Fox commentator named Ed Butowsky, kept the Rich conspiracy story alive. Other figures in the Trump conspiracy world—then-Rep. Devin Nunes, his aide Kash Patel—played roles. Eventually in 2017 Fox’s website published a story that asserted there was hard-and-fast evidence Rich “had contact with WikiLeaks prior to his death.” There was no evidence. Fox retracted the story a week later. But the damage had been done; the conspiracizing would not stop. Hannity kept pressing the discredited case. And the family would have to continue to battle a never-ending barrage of false and wild allegations about Rich on social media and in conservative outlets. “This is worse than when we lost Seth,” Aaron said.

Kroll deftly conveys the turmoil and trauma experienced by the Riches, as they filed lawsuits to try to clear Seth’s name. (The Riches reached a private settlement with Fox in 2020.) And he shows how the Rich conspiracy theory—boosted also by the Washington Times and leading birther Jerome Corsi—primed the pump for Pizzagate (which led to one adherent firing shots inside a Washington pizzeria that was supposedly the headquarters of a child-trafficking ring run by Hillary Clinton and other Democrats) and QAnon, a loony allegation that expanded upon Pizzagate and claimed Clinton and others were part of a global, cannibalistic, pedophile cabal that Trump was combatting.  At Trump rallies, his supporters waved signs promoting QAnon and the Seth Rich conspiracy theory. Kroll points out that one of the key perpetuators of the fake Seth Rich story, a right-wing social media activist and failed Arkansas businessman named Matt Couch, would become one of the main distributors of Trump’s Big Lie disinformation after the 2020 election.

Toward the end of the book, there’s a poignant scene. A lawyer for the Riches flew to England to meet with an attorney for Assange, who was locked up in a British prison fighting extradition to the United States, where he had been indicted for alleged crimes related to his previous leaks of classified US information. The lawyer pleaded with Assange’s rep to have Assange once and for all correct the record about Seth Rich to bring the family a measure of peace. Assange wouldn’t do it. (Assange’s actions in this story are unrelated to the issue of whether he should be extradited to the United States and the possible threat to press freedoms his prosecution might pose.)

A Death in Washington is a compelling and disturbing read. It demonstrates how truth in the Age of Trump is often at a disadvantage against internet-greased falsehoods. And we are all possible victims. Moreover, there’s little or no cost for the liars. Marjorie Taylor Greene was a QAnon supporter who espoused numerous conspiracy theories, including the bonkers allegation that Rich was killed by members of MS-13, a violent Central American gang. She was elected to Congress in 2020. As Mary Rich said to Kroll, “It’s not about proof; it’s about what they want to believe.” Trump has encouraged such brazen irrationality on the right. Kroll reveals how that caused so much pain for one American family and how it poses a threat to all of us.

Got anything to say about this item—or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com

American Psychosis Update

Once again, let me thank the many Our Land readers who preordered my forthcoming book American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy through the special offer arranged for subscribers to this newsletter. I got a cramp in my hand signing all the bookplates that will be going into these books. Several of you, though, wrote in to say that the shipping cost for the special offer was exceedingly high, ranging from $12.00 to $22.00. When this complaint first arrived, I checked it out and found that when I ordered a copy, the shipping fee was about $4.00. That seemed reasonable. I don’t know why others received such a higher estimate. I can understand why that put off prospective buyers, and I hope you will purchase the book elsewhere. Perhaps in a book store, when the title is released on Tuesday.

A few folks wrote in to protest my promotion of the Amazon link for the book, citing Amazon’s labor record and its unhealthy control of the market. Unfortunately, an author these days cannot ignore the fact that many consumers buy through Amazon. As I’ve promoted the book, I’ve tried to also include a link for American Psychosis at  Bookshop.org, a site that promotes local bookstores.

For those of you who still need a bit more convincing to purchase a copy of American Psychosis, please check out my cover story for the current issue of  Mother Jones: “It Didn’t Start With Trump: The Decades-Long Saga of How the GOP Went Crazy.” It’s adapted from American Psychosis and provides thumbnail sketches of a few of the key episodes in the book. I can assure you the accounts in the book are far richer in detail. And please keep an eye out for the appearances I am scheduled to make on MSNBC and CNN this coming week to talk up the book, and look for me on assorted podcasts.

For folks in the Washington, DC area: I will be speaking about American Psychosis at the wonderful Politics and Prose bookstore on Thursday, September 15, at 7:00 p.m. Please come, say hello, and ask a sharp question during the Q&A. Seating is first-come/first-served. So swing by early.

Dumbass Comment of the Week

Years ago, I was an on-air commentator at Fox. It wasn’t always fun. But the network was far less crazy and dangerous than it has become. I enjoyed going on shows with reasonable conservatives—John Kasich, Tony Snow, and others—and having feisty arguments about substantive issues. (Bill O’Reilly was another matter.) And there were a bunch of reporters who worked for the network whom I believed were trying to be good journalists. Greg Kelly, who covered the Iraq war and military issues, struck me as one of those. But certainly not now. Like so many within the right-wing media cosmos, he has gone full MAGA, joining Newsmax as a host. Last year, he tweeted this racist doozy: “Military life had its Perks, but it was also a major pain. I will tell you what took ‘the sting out of it’—that when I was flying around the Pacific Ocean off of ships, I knew there was a Secretary of Defense who was white, just like me! Made a big difference with ‘morale.’” (He subsequently deleted the tweet.) This past week, he combined the downplaying of January 6 with the promotion of a January 6 conspiracy theory in a single comment: “I mean MAGA, let's face it, had one bad day and a lot of that was facilitated by law enforcement. Who knows? Maybe even the FBI? Nancy Pelosi just letting people in."

Just one bad day? This is truly the MAGA equivalent of the old line “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?”

When the New York Times reported on the potential chaos the Republicans would bring to Congress should they gain control of the House in the coming midterm elections—a possible debt default, impeachment proceedings, a flood of investigations based on conspiracy theories—Norm Ornstein, an emeritus scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, tweeted, “Be afraid, be very afraid if the nutcase GOP takes a majority in the House. Goodbye stability, hello default, impeachments, election denial. Forget policymaking to solve America’s problems.” In response to his tweet, a Twitter account called VA Republicans declared, “This is exactly why we need a GOP House.” I don’t know this account’s relationship to the Virginia GOP—it has several thousand followers—but it is frightening to believe there are indeed Republicans hankering for such chaos in Congress.

Now let’s turn to this week’s winner. Again, it’s Junior. Railing once more against wokeness—while coming across as a fellow who just drank 17 cups of coffee—Donald Trump Jr. dissed women who achieve the highest ranks in the US military: “Probably a militant female will be an admiral or a general for no other reason other than they’re probably female. Again, I’ll get cancelled for saying that. But I have a feeling if you’re joining the military these days, like, if you check those boxes, if you can say, ‘hey I’m trans,’ [you’re made a] general! So they can say they’re doing it, and it’s, like insane.”

Granted, it’s hard to make full sense of his raving. But Trump the Lesser, who did not serve in the military, was saying that the women who have served and risen to become admirals or generals were awarded these positions only because of their gender. And, by the way, being transsexual will guarantee you a quick promotion to the highest rank. This is both idiotic and degrading. But it’s no surprise. Like daddy, like mini-me. In 2020, Defense Secretary Mark Esper postponed announcing the nomination of two female generals to lead US military commands; he feared Trump would not approve the nominations because they were women. President Joe Biden announced their nominations in March 2021. For this utterly dumbass display of misogyny, Trump Jr. takes the prize.

By the way, Junior also sent out one of the stupidest pieces of Trump griftmail I’ve seen in a while. Quite a week for the fella.

The Mailbag

There were a few complaints this week from readers who griped that I had not directly responded to their emails. Let me say that I do read every email that comes in. But I am unable to publish or respond to each correspondence. Please forgive me.

This week there was much response to my two recent issues on Trump and MAGA fascism. Rob Gilmour wrote:

Thanks for your column. It is one of the most levelheaded take downs of MAGA hypocrisy I have read. If I'm not subscribed now, I will be soon. With real legitimate complaints against the MAGA right, how can we not sound like our opponents bloviation? Seriously, we need a message for the Republican and independent American electorate that can be reached. 

I agree that calling out MAGA extremism as fascism—or semi-fascism—can make one sound as bad as the Trumpers who accuse Joe Biden and the Democrats of being fascists. But defenders of democracy must find effective ways to challenge the authoritarianism that Trump and his followers are pushing and to be accurate in describing it. Using the F-word is certainly justified, but it is more important to make a case that resonates with non-Trumpers and helps them to understand the threat. I doubt there are many Republicans who can be convinced.

Susan Mills emailed:

Your points are well-taken. The problem is, how can we awaken the poor brainwashed masses who believe every word spoken by their "leader?"

As noted above, I don’t believe you can break Trump’s hold on the millions who buy his lies. They are lost. The focus should be on those Americans who are not with Trump but who do not yet comprehend the danger he and his cult poses to American democracy.

Michael Schooler shared this:

For a good example of gaslight fascism in which, as you say, "there is no real truth; there is only the self-serving truth they can concoct and enforce," you might take a look at Lance Morrow's recent column in the Wall Street Journal. Morrow revives the time-worn argument that it's really the Democrats and the liberals who are the fascists, while Trump and the Republicans are anti-fascists.  As far as I can tell, there's not a single factually true statement in this column, which makes it easy but cumbersome to refute. Thanks for your newsletter and your reporting over the years.

Michele Coxon emailed:

It seems the only way for our democracy to stay on track and evolve is to make sure Trump cannot run for office. The head of the snake needs to be cut away from the body. Trump has brilliantly stacked judges and others in his favor to insulate himself from indictments. Just read Anne Applebaum's Twilight of Democracy. Yes, we swing back and forth every four or eight years, but the stakes are getting higher and more damage is likely. That's what scares me.

It is tough to “make sure Trump cannot run for office.” That decision—depending on what happens in the various investigations—will probably be up to Republican voters. And most still support him. But an important point to keep in mind is that Trump is not the main problem. This crisis has occurred because tens of millions of Americans yearn for his politics of hate and authoritarianism. Send Trump into exile in Siberia and this demand will remain and be exploited by Ron DeSantis and others—and perhaps more deftly. Even without Trump, Trumpism will remain.

In a recent issue, I asked readers if a movie version of a book had ever ruined the book for them. Sam Tate (“aka Moxie's #1 fan”) replied:

I suppose this shows too much about my teen years, but Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has to be the worst movie ever from a book. Although to be fair, how can one ever translate Hunter S. Thompson to the big screen?

Jerry Peace emailed, “Eyes Wide Shut tried to ruin Stanley Kubrick for me.” I agree. It was a terrible final project for one of our great directors and featured an awful ending. It is sad that the last word in the film, the last word in Kubrick’s canon, was “fuck.”

Erik Skamser wrote:

I was struck today by your story about Viet Thanh Nguyen’s novel The Sympathizer and how it affected your attitude toward Apocalypse Now, particularly because I’ve been reading Nguyen’s 2016 book Nothing Ever Dies: Vietnam and the Memory of War. It’s a nuanced and in some ways haunting account of war (Vietnam and war more generally), the complexity of memory, and the American culture of militarism and war. It includes a lot about the role of the American film industry in that culture. I can’t possibly do justice to the book, but I wanted to mention my similar reaction to Apocalypse Now, which I went back and watched again while reading Nothing Ever Dies. One of the points Nguyen makes has to do with the emphasis we put—in movies and elsewhere—on the guys with the guns, as if they weren’t just a small part of any war. Our war culture really involves so much more, from weapons manufacturers to the film industry and much of American life, making collaborators of any of us who don’t actively oppose war, or a particular war... I just wanted to give a shout out to this other one of Nguyen’s many books, and to say thank you for always making me think.

This was an encouraging note from Pen Harms:

In 11 days, I can start checking my snail-mail box, looking for your book. I preordered when you first mentioned it and have decided that the day it comes (or the next day if the mail is late), I will get off the computer, make a carafe of coffee, and read cover-to-cover. The more teasers you send out, the more fascinating it sounds!

And Bettina Norton emailed a compliment and a question:

You are one of the best political commentators out there: lucid, intelligent, very up on past history to buttress your case. Is your dog a standard poodle? We are on our sixth.

Yes, Moxie is a standard poodle. Not a mix. We took a poodle and mated it with a poodle and got a…poodle. She was the runt of the litter. Sometimes I refer to her as a “sub-standard.” She really doesn’t like that. Speaking of which….

MoxieCam™

“What’s out there?”
“Dreams, Moxie. Lots of dreams.”

“About squirrels, balls, and other dogs?”

“Indeed.”

Read Recent Issues of Our Land

September 7, 2022: Donald Trump and gaslight fascism; the conservative crazy gets crazier; American Psychosis: the first review; a brilliant after-the-Vietnam War novel and Dark Winds; and more.

September 2, 2022: Snowflake fascists and the GOP politics of rubber and glue; American Psychosis tease of the week; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Blake Masters); Michael Ondaatje’s The Cat’s Table and Sara Watkins’ “You and Me”; the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

August 26, 2022: In praise of preaching to the choir; American Psychosis tease of the week; J.D. Vance and the podcaster who said “feminists need rape”; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Mitch McConnell); comparing The Old Man, Westworld, and For All Mankind; the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more

August 19, 2022: Has Biden learned from Obama’s big #fail?; American Psychosis tease of the week; conflicted feelings about Liz Cheney; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Ted Cruz); Better Call Saul’s magnificent finale; MoxieCam™; and more.

August 5, 2022: The January 6 Rudy Giuliani mystery; American Psychosis tease of the week; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Alex Jones); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

July 29, 2002: We need to worry about Christian nationalism; American Psychosis tease of the week; Stranger Things jumps a ghoulish shark; Steve Earle honors his forebears; Joni Mitchell’s glorious return; MoxieCam™; and more.

July 23, 2022: Trump’s trap for the GOP; American Psychosis update and tease; Dumbass Comment of the Week (John Cornyn); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.  

July 19, 2022: Announcing the forthcoming release of American Psychosis; Breitbart gets something right; The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent and The Player (three decades later!); Simon Winchester’s The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology; and more.

July 16, 2022: Does Steve Bannon buy his own BS?; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Catherine Glenn Foster, Lauren Boebert, and Dave Yost); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.

Got suggestions, comments, complaints, tips related to any of the above, or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com.