Right-wingers got duped by phony Facebook post in which grieving widow attacked Rep. Wilson
A widely-shared Facebook post purporting to be from Myeshia Johnson -- widow of fallen Green Beret Sgt. La David Johnson -- is a fake, according to Snopes.com.
Conservative groups and Trump supporters spread the fake post because it led readers to believe that Mrs. Johnson was attacking Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL), a longtime friend of the Johnson family who has been demonized by the right since she stood up to Trump last week.
"Conservative social media users circulated an image of a purported Facebook post from 17 October 2017 which they said showed Gold Star widow Myeshia Johnson accusing Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Florida) of exploiting a presidential condolence call over the death of her husband, U.S. Army Sgt. La David Johnson, for political gain," said Snopes' Arturo Garcia.
"I want to set the record straight! I’m getting sick and tired of this so called politician using my husband as a political platform," said the phony Myeshia Johnson. "Even buy [sic] her own words she did not hear all of the conversation she only heard part of it. This is what actually was said. 'They know the risk, they know what they sign up for but they still volunteer to put their lives on the line for their fellow Americans. We owe them a debt that can never be repaid.'”
"While the date of the post corresponds with that of the 17 October 2017 condolence call, the time listed is actually more than an hour before the reported time of President Trump’s phone call, which was 4:45 p.m. Eastern time," Garcia noted.
Right-wing media and the White House have mounted an all-out attack on Rep. Wilson, falsely accusing her of grandstanding at an FBI building dedication in 2005 and childishly mocking her flamboyant hats, which Wilson wears in memory of her beloved grandmother.
The congresswoman has known the Johnson family for decades. Sgt. Johnson was a graduate of Wilson's mentorship program for at-risk black youth and the soldier's father attended the elementary school at which Wilson was principal.