Versions of the Great Replacement conspiracy theory—which hinges on the racist belief that non-European immigrants are systematically "replacing" white Americans in the United States—have existed for over a century, but the belief saw a terrifying rise in popularity under the presidency of Donald Trump.
White supremacists at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville infamously marched with torches, chanting "Jews will not replace us!" in 2017. Trump frequently used the term "invasion" to describe immigrants—a term similarly used in the manifesto of the El Paso shooter, who targeted Hispanic immigrants and killed 23 people.
The theory continues to enjoy rising approval in right-wing circles even after the end of Trump's presidency.
Far-right Fox News host Tucker Carlson has repeatedly endorsed the theory on his primetime show, broadcast to millions of viewers each night. As recently as this past April, a former senior Defense Department advisor appointed by Trump—Douglas Macgregor—said in a radio interview that Democrats were trying to "bring in as many non-Europeans as possible in order to outnumber the numbers of Americans of European ancestry who live in the United States."
And now, Republican former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, promoted the racist conspiracy theory on Fox Business in a recent interview with far-right disinformation peddler Maria Bartiromo.
Watch below.
Newt Gingrich is the latest on Fox to go full great replacement theory: The left is bringing immigrants to the United States \u201cto get rid of the rest of us\u201d (ht @EricKleefeld)pic.twitter.com/C0We3CgUKH— John Whitehouse+ (@John Whitehouse+) 1628082576
Graham said:
"I think what's hard for most of us to accept, is that the anti-American left would love to drown traditional classic Americans with as many people as they can who know nothing of American history, nothing of American tradition, nothing of the rule of law. ... And if you go and you look at the radical left, this is their ideal model is to get rid of the rest of us because we believe in George Washington or we believe in the Constitution, and you see this behavior over and over again."
Social media users swiftly called him out.
Right-wing media continues to spread the same white supremacist garbage we\u2019ve seen in countless terrorist manifestos.\n\nNewt Gingrich says this 1 day after the 2 year anniversary of the El Paso terrorist attack, where a white supremacist targeted Latinos based on this BS rhetoric.https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Ahmed Baba (@Ahmed Baba) 1628093229
Two years ago yesterday, a white supremacist gunman killed 23 people in El Paso, TX. The manifesto he left behind sounds an awful lot like this. https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/you-dont-need-read-el-paso-killers-manifesto-just-turn-fox-news\u00a0\u2026https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Matthew Gertz (@Matthew Gertz) 1628085255
This is one of the reasons why I will continue to scream from the mountain top that we must remember El Paso. This rhetoric will continue to put Latinos at risk. \n\nThe idea is that we don\u2019t belong here. That we present a threat. That America isn\u2019t ours. .https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Julissa Natzely Arce Raya (@Julissa Natzely Arce Raya) 1628090497
"the anti-American left would love to drown traditional, classic Americans with as many people as they can"\n\nRead that again: "traditional, classic Americans."\n\nGreat replacement theory is a white supremacist trope that is now being openly embraced by leading conservative elites.https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Brendan Nyhan (@Brendan Nyhan) 1628083873
Sometimes I wonder if white supremacists continue to cite the antisemitic "great replacement theory" because that's practically what white supremacists did in committing genocide of Native Americans\u2014and know no other way of thinking about the future?https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Qasim Rashid, Esq. (@Qasim Rashid, Esq.) 1628092739
who\u2019s the \u201crest of us\u201d newty?https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Tatiana (@Tatiana) 1628099112
People reminded Gingrich that America, at its best, purports to be a haven for immigrants in the spirit of its original motto E pluribus unum, or "Out of many, one."
Dear @newtgingrich: I am an immigrant. We are Americans. We are you. If you don\u2019t understand that, you can leave my country.https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Ted Lieu (@Ted Lieu) 1628106561
BREAKING: Statue of Liberty determined to be a leftist psyop to replace white people.https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— Darrell Owens (@Darrell Owens) 1628095559
Approximately 90% of Americans are the descendants of immigrants.https://twitter.com/existentialfish/status/1422907573817290755\u00a0\u2026— US Rep Brendan Boyle (@US Rep Brendan Boyle) 1628106700
Maybe it's Gingrich who should study up on history.
