Right-wing media push new conspiracies about Waukesha parade killer -- and give no evidence for any of them

The right-wing effort continued on Monday to manufacture a culture-war weapon out of the tragic carnage of the Waukesha Christmas Parade.

Rep. Marjorie Greene posted the following on Telegram:

“The media won’t cover the Waukesha killer Darrell Brooks because saying his name means a man can be responsible for mass murder without a gun. In the Rittenhouse trial, the gun and the right to self-defense were really on trial. For the left it’s always to get gun control.”

The Rittenhouse reference is significant, as it continues a right-wing conspiracy theory rooted in no evidence since the tragedy occurred: that Brooks was acting on behalf of Black Lives Matter as a terrorist seeking to avenge Kyle Rittenhouse’s acquittal for murder in nearby Kenosha, Wisconsin.

That theory had been rejected out of hand by Waukesha Police Chief Daniel Thompson who last Tuesday stated that Brooks acted alone and that “this was not a terrorist event.” No evidence has yet surfaced in right-wing media to contradict those assertions, but dark references to media bias have persisted.

If Greene had evidence of media outlets minimizing or justifying Brooks’ actions, she did not provide it. Brooks has a long criminal history -- as reported in the media -- and faces at least six murder charges in connection with the tragedy, also widely reported.

If Greene had evidence of media outlets suggesting that Brooks was overcharged, she did not present it. As to the comparison she forged to the Rittenhouse case, she did not offer examples of left-wing media referring to Brooks as a hero, role model or potential congressional intern. Mainstream media continues to report on domestic-violence allegations in Brooks’ past.

The Right has been desperate since the tragedy to cast Brooks a symbol or representative of all they hate. Here are some examples:

• Tucker Carlson said on Fox News that “'This has to do with the [Rittenhouse] verdict. That's the obvious conclusion. Is it true? Again, we have not confirmed it, but we can be absolutely certain that the national media will spend zero time trying to find out. Why? Because they're implicated.”

• Commentator Candace Owens needed only one day to assess fault by Tweet: “Darrell was on the streets and able to kill 5 more people, plus injure 48, because Democrats sponsor Black terrorism.” (She used lower-case “black.”)

• Donald Trump Jr. weighed in that the media “will be coming up with every excuse for this piece-of-crap terrorist within about five minutes," as reported at RawStory.com.

• And, of course, there was Greene herself on Twitter: “After the widespread hateful reaction to the Rittenhouse verdict and dog whistle calls to radical BLM ground troops by the mainstream media, Democrats and even the President of the United States, we must ask if they incited the mass murder in Waukesha, WI.”