John,
Yesterday, Donald Trump took to social media to threaten an executive order banning mail-in ballots and voting machines nationwide. The move could strip millions of Americans of a secure way to vote in the 2026 midterms.
Before we show you how right-wing media and influencers are gleefully amplifying him — in a chilling repeat of the January 6 playbook — we need to be blunt:
Within hours of Trump’s post, MAGA propaganda outlets rushed to amplify his threat:
- Fox News legitimized it. Their coverage read like a policy rollout: “Trump declares he will spearhead a push to eliminate the use of mail-in voting and voting machines in U.S. elections.” No fact-check, no pushback — just Trump’s lie dressed up as news.
- OAN amplified it. They ran his rant in full, all caps and exclamation points intact: “Elections can never be honest with mail-in ballots… the mail-in ballot hoax must end, now!!!”
- Newsmax laundered it. They framed his threat as a “debate”: “The move, Trump argued, is necessary to restore public confidence in American elections.” Then they pointed to Democrats who once criticized voting machines, as if Trump’s authoritarian power grab were just another policy dispute.
- Benny Johnson memed it. Within hours, the MAGA YouTube star churned out viral clips mocking critics and packaging Trump’s lies as entertainment for millions online.
We’ve seen this all before. Just yesterday, Newsmax agreed to pay $67 million to settle a lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems for its 2020 election lies. Fox News already paid nearly $800 million for the same disinformation. They were caught, exposed, punished — and yet they’re running the exact same playbook again.
And research shows why this is so dangerous.
A comprehensive review of more than 280 studies on January 6 found that Trump’s online posts were a chief source of incitement — and that a handful of right-wing outlets and influencers played an outsized role in spreading his lies and mobilizing his base.
January 6 wasn’t spontaneous. It was built online over a year, in plain sight — one post at a time. Trump’s words were the spark, and MAGA media spread the gasoline.
John, this time Trump isn’t just laying the groundwork for millions to question the 2026 midterms — he’s laying the groundwork to fundamentally disrupt the democratic process.
That’s why COURIER exists: to break this cycle, to reach voters with fact-based reporting every day and to protect our democracy.
In solidarity,
COURIER Newsroom