Sen. Ron Johnson was already one of Congress’ most outlandish conspiracy theorists, but the Wisconsin Republican reached an extraordinary new level four months ago when he publicly suggested that the United States government might’ve played a role in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
In fact, the senator didn’t just dip his toes into the 9/11 “truther” waters; he dove in headfirst.
During an appearance on a far-right podcast, the host asked Johnson what he wants to know about 9/11. The GOP lawmaker replied, “Well, start with Building 7,” and added that he suspects there was “a controlled demolition” at the World Trade Center. “My guess is there is an awful lot being covered up in terms of what the American government knows about 9/11,” he added.
Johnson went on to say, “Who ordered the removal and the destruction of all that evidence, totally contrary to any other firefighting investigation procedures? I mean, who ordered that? Who was in charge? I think there’s some basic information. Where’s all the documentation from this investigation? There are a host of questions that I want — and I will be asking, quite honestly, now that my eyes have been opened up.”
Larry Glickman, a historian at Cornell University, noted soon after that it was “incredible” that a sitting senator “can say something like this with every expectation that such comments will not be grounds for bipartisan calls for his immediate resignation or removal from office.”
A few months later, a conspiracy theorist named Richard Gage, known for pushing discredited claims about 9/11, appeared on a podcast and claimed that Johnson would appear at a conspiratorial event held on the anniversary of the attacks.
Evidently, that was correct. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported: On the eve of the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson sought to encourage those promoting unsubstantiated theories about the tragedy to continue to investigate it. He told a crowd of about 75 people gathered in northwest Washington to pursue the ‘truth’ about the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people and suggested the government was covering up key details about the events. “I know a lot of people have theories,” Johnson said Wednesday evening. “Some might be crazy. I don’t dismiss them because so much information has been withheld, because so many legitimate questions not only haven’t been answered, but anybody who even asks them is vilified for it.” The name of the event, led by Gage, is “Turning the Tide: 9/11 Justice in 2025.” Johnson, as best as I can tell, is the only senator to have anything to do with the gathering. It’s hardly unreasonable to wonder whether Senate Republican leaders, especially on the anniversary of the attacks, would make any effort to defend the Wisconsin senator’s public comments. For that matter, it’d be equally interesting to hear GOP leaders explain why Johnson should continue to serve on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, given his bizarre beliefs about 9/11.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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