MAGA influencer Kylie Jane Kremer was widely mocked online after claiming someone with "Trump Derangement Syndrome" somehow manipulated the weather over the weekend to ruin President Donald Trump's Great American State Fair and other festivities associated with the United States' semiquicentennial.
Earlier Saturday evening, severe weather disrupted the festivities, prompting federal officials to order an evacuation as thousands gathered on the National Mall. Around 7:15 p.m., the National Park Service urged visitors attending the fireworks celebration to seek shelter and follow instructions from park rangers, law enforcement officers, and event staff because of approaching storms.
Roughly 20 minutes later, organizers of the Freedom 250 celebration heightened the warning, instructing attendees to immediately leave the event grounds and take temporary shelter in nearby buildings as severe weather moved into the area.
This came after weather forecasts warned that the D.C. would be impacted by extreme heat, as Washington Post weather writer and meteorologist Ben Noll pointed out in a post on X:
"D.C. will be hotter than 99 percent of the planet on Friday. Only parts of Africa's Sahara Desert, the Middle East, China's Gobi Desert and a few spots in the Desert Southwest will be hotter."
You can see his post below.
Indeed, the "Freedom 250" X account announced on July 3 that the Great American State Fair and its associated programming would be postponed due to the heat, assuring the public that "the safety and well-being of our guests, volunteers, performers, vendors, and staff is our highest priority."
You can see the post below.
But according to Kremer, the inclement weather was a liberal plot of weather manipulation, and she accused people with "Trump Derangement Syndrome" of geoengineering the weather to make Trump look bad:
"I’m telling y’all that someone with an extreme case of TDS geoengineered this weather in DC. Same way they geoengineered Trump’s inauguration to be one of the coldest in U.S. history. People with TDS hate Trump more than they love America."
You can see her post below.
Shortly afterward, Kremer cited reports of "ping pong sized hail, 50 mph winds, and ground lightening [sic]" near Mount Rushmore ahead of Trump's Fourth of July speech as further evidence of this conspiracy:
"Ping pong sized hail, 50 mph winds, and ground lightening [sic] where Trump is set to speak in South Dakota at Mount Rushmore in celebration for America’s 250th Birthday! BuT iT’s NoT gEoInGeErInG!~! TDS is REAL and destroying America!"
You can see her post below.
This wasn't satire—Kremer genuinely believes liberals somehow concocted a plan to ruin the July 4th festivities for everyone, and people were quick to mock her for it.
Sadly, this isn't the first time the MAGA faithful have accused Trump's opponents of messing around with the weather.
A couple of years ago, far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer insisted the "deep state" is in cahoots with former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley to "rig" that year's Iowa caucuses using High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) "weather manipulation" technology.
HAARP is a research initiative based at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, focusing on the ionosphere, the uppermost ionized layer of Earth's atmosphere. HAARP research contributes to the examination of the physical phenomena taking place in the region but has nonetheless been a target for conspiracy theorists who've blamed it for everything from floods and earthquakes to chronic fatigue syndrome.
Loomer floated the idea that the "deep state" was activating HAARP to disrupt the Iowa caucuses, suggesting that Haley's connections in the defense industry and military complex might play a role. Haley was campaigning for president at the time. Funnily enough, Haley would drop out of the race within days and eventually endorse Trump.
@JennJVN/X
@HunterBiden/X
@HunterBiden/X
