David Simon, the acclaimed creator and producer of The Wire who has often used the city of Baltimore, Maryland as the backdrop for his shows, lashed out at Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene after she shared a baseless conspiracy theory about the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in the city.
The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge occurred early Tuesday when a container ship struck the structure, causing it to crumble like a house of cards into the Patapsco River. The tragic event resulted in the deaths of six individuals who were working on the bridge at the time and led to the closure of one of the nation's busiest ports.
Despite initial hopes of finding survivors, the search for the missing individuals quickly turned into a grim recovery mission as authorities expressed doubts about the chances of locating anyone alive.
There is no indication that the bridge collapse was an act of terrorism but that didn't stop Greene from suggesting that it was, as she wrote on X, formerly Twitter:
"There should be a serious investigation into the horrifying tragedy of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland. Is this an intentional attack or an accident?"
"Praying for the victims, survivors, and families."
An X Community Note below Greene's post points out that Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley has said there is "absolutely no indication that there's any terrorism, or that this was done on purpose." The Community Note also cites Maryland Democratic Governor Wes Moore, who confirmed "that the ship's crew issued a mayday and communicated they were experiencing a power issue."
You can see Greene's post below.
Her message quickly caught Simon's attention, prompting him to issue a harsh rebuke:
"Are you intentional or just an accident? You complete submoronic pratfall of a human being."
You can see his post below.
Others have also criticized Greene for suggesting the collapse was the result of a terrorist attack.
Simon has used his X account to counter the allegations of other conspiracy theorists on the social media platform and earlier criticized one poster for suggesting the bridge collapse was an "event to create economic disruption":
"Occam's Dildo never fails to deliver you idiots to whatever factless theory you wish to embrace. Just remember to change the batteries."
You can see his post below.
After another poster claimed Simon has done "more than anyone to display how the ills of incompetent (Democrat-run) government corrupt our Institutions and infrastructure," Simon pushed back as well:
"Moron, port facilities and operations, interstate bridge maintenance etc. have nothing whatsoever to do with Baltimore's governance but are all state functions. Last six and. admins evenly divided between Dem and GOP. Immediately politicizing this is for empty, fact-free hacks."
You can see his post below.
As the search and rescue response to the collapse continued, Coast Guard Rear Admiral Shannon N. Gilreath stated that the likelihood of finding survivors was slim, considering the frigid water and the lack of sightings since the bridge's collapse.
Governor Moore told CNN there “needs to be a full and thorough investigation" into the collapse, adding that "there needs to be a full reckoning, a full accountability, and I think we need to go wherever the investigation takes us to make sure that the people of our jurisdictions are safe.”
