Conspiracies travel fast on the internet. After Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton suffered a high-profile stumble leaving the 9/11 anniversary this weekend, then stepped back on the streets to verify for fans and critics that she was alive and well, the crazies struggled to find another explanation.
As of this morning, #HillarysBodyDouble was trending on Twitter. Courtesy of a Hillary impersonator with a sense of humor.
So how did this particular nutjob explanation take hold? For starters, people found this Daily Mail article on Teresa Barnwell, a very successful Hillary impersonator currently on the celebrity impersonation scene. Barnwell, of course, stands to increase her personal income significantly when Clinton gets elected this November.
So what other explanation could there be for Clinton’s ability to walk upright, obviously, than that Barnwell was immediately contacted, snuck into Chelsea Clinton’s Manhattan apartment, made up to look just like Hillary Clinton, then paraded around the streets Dave-style.
So Twitter went nuts:
She collapsed hours earlier but not ONE person near her in case it happened again? #Delusional pic.twitter.com/9jkwpUcwwJ
— ? Pink Lady 4 Trump? (@pink_lady56) September 12, 2016
https://twitter.com/tomkawczynski/status/775285654100045825
The biggest problem with the theory? Barnwell was in Los Angeles when the Clinton pictures were taken.
Had a blast today! We were LIVE on Lip Sync Battle! Fight the power! pic.twitter.com/FcYGGeyL54
— Teresa Barnwell (@teresa_barnwell) September 12, 2016
To be fair, Barnwell did fan the flames a bit when she took this twitpic, apparently in front of a set façade for a Manhattan brownstone. That tweet has since been taken down, but after the uproar arose Barnwell did state adamantly that she had been in California for the entirety of Stumblegate.
OK people, calm down. I was in LA today, all day. Was just messin' with your crazy conspiracy minded little heads. Go to bed.
— Teresa Barnwell (@teresa_barnwell) September 12, 2016
This hasn’t stopped internet conspiracy theorists, who swear Clinton looked like a different person in photographs after she was rested, at least compared to the worst possible pics available of her online:
https://twitter.com/American1765/status/775285997407903748
She just looks more like her than, with all due respect to Barnwell, her celebrity impersonator does.
.@Johnnyd23 & @teresa_barnwell came by to try out our new stage. Needless to say it was a #Yuuuge day! #Lifeat8i #VR pic.twitter.com/9YV6IOW5Dp
— 8i (@8iReality) August 19, 2016
