Prominent election denier emphasizes the QAnon community’s role: “There’s so many influencers that can reach so many people”

David Clements claimed the QAnon community provides “critical thinking, discernment,” and “investigative prowess”

Written by Alex Kaplan

Published

David Clements, a prominent player in the election denial movement, said in an interview with a QAnon influencer that he “keep[s] up with” the QAnon community because “there’s so many influencers that can reach so many people,” and the community gives “the pulse of, where is good advocacy taking place?” Clements’ comments are consistent with extremist and conspiratorial figures and groups that use the community and its anti-reality online distribution network for tactics like recruiting and spreading their claims.

In an interview with a QAnon influencer known online as “SGAnon” — which was uploaded to Rumble on March 11 — Clements and the influencer pushed false claims about “the events of the November 2020 election and the January 6th 2021 False Flag Operation.” During the interview, SGAnon asked Clements, “What should we be doing from your perspective here in this spiritual war?” In response, Clements said he tells people “to leave the keyboard” because “there’s a world out there that requires action face-to-face” and “we have to be engaged in a way that’s always pushing forward, to manifest the strongest form of advocacy.” 

Clements specifically mentioned the “the Q movement,” saying that he was worried the community thought their “job is just create memes,” which he said he thought was not “going to be enough” (a concern he has expressed before). But he also lauded what he called the QAnon community’s “critical thinking, discernment,” and “investigative prowess,” adding that he keeps up with the “Anons” and “digital soldiers” (other terms for QAnon supporters) because the community has “so many influencers that can reach so many people,” and gives “the pulse of, where is good advocacy taking place?”

From a video uploaded to Rumble on March 11, 2024

“SGANON” (HOST): How do “We The People” beyond, you know, gestures of support and physical interaction with people like the January 6 prisoners or others who have been intimidated by federal law enforcement agencies that have been weaponized out of control — how do “We The People” get involved? What more can we do, and what should we be doing from your perspective here in this spiritual war? 

DAVID CLEMENTS (ELECTION DENIER): I think one of the things we have to think about things and take them to their logical conclusion. In other words, we need to do an internal inventory on counting the cost and figuring out, “What am I willing to give up?” We’re very, very quick to point out what other people should give up and what other people should do, but we construct arbitrary barriers on our own advocacy. 

And, we see that somewhat showcased in the Q movement because there’s a level of, like, let’s lift up the — like, in other words, let’s lift up, like, the good things about the Q movement. One would be, critical thinking, discernment, investigative prowess. And you could even say to some degree anonymity is necessary because you wanna be effective in red pilling. And so a lot of people will embrace that, which is fine. 

But one of the things that I’ve always tried to come around and bolster and tell people is that you’ve got to leave the keyboard. There’s a world out there that requires action face-to-face, and there are many, just to be fair, there’s many people that are anonymous influencers that do remarkable work in the local community, so I want to put that out there.

But there is almost this construction of, “My job is to red pill people on social media. My job is just create memes.” And I just don’t think that’s going to be enough. And so, like, I’m constantly looking at the battlefield of hearts and minds that don’t arbitrarily create a barrier to something more courageous and something that requires more of you, because it’s in those places of consequence — I’m talking about local county commissioner meetings where you show up and people can see you and they can attack you and they can write hit pieces on you and they can deploy lawfare. That’s the place that we need to fill up with greater and greater numbers.

And so, as someone who’s very, very curious about Q, kind of some of the risks and dynamics between Anons and digital soldiers — I don’t pretend to understand it all, but I’ve — I keep up with it because you have to. It’s because there’s so many influencers that can reach so many people that you’re just trying to find the pulse of, where is good advocacy taking place? 

And, the thing that I’m most interested in is making sure that there’s no temptation to enter into a passive framework. In other words, that we have to be engaged in a way that’s always pushing forward, to manifest the strongest form of advocacy.

The remarks from Clements — who previously promoted an effort by QAnon figures and other conspiracy theorists to target government officials with surety bonds — are yet another example of how the the election denial and QAnon movements have become increasingly intertwined, with the latter providing the former with an anti-reality online distribution network for their efforts. That has included election deniers partnering with QAnon figures to fundraise, target election officials, and promote and spread their election fraud conspiracy theories.