--- title: Donald Trump Keeps Pushing Conspiracy Theories description: President Donald Trump has built his political career on a conspiracy theory: The false claim that Barack Obama wasn't born in the U.S. canonical: https://time.com/5050621/donald-trump-conspiracy-theories/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-12-07T14:45:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T08:34:25.391Z article:section: Politics og:title: Donald Trump Loves Conspiracy Theories og:description: From Obama's birth certificate to his own 'Access Hollywood' video. og:url: https://time.com/5050621/donald-trump-conspiracy-theories/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc81041940f553d98/6988f375bc6cfcaf0a3e42a2/donald-trump-tax-bill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 6000 og:image:height: 3375 og:image:alt: President Donald Trump og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Donald Trump Loves Conspiracy Theories twitter:description: From Obama's birth certificate to his own 'Access Hollywood' video. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc81041940f553d98/6988f375bc6cfcaf0a3e42a2/donald-trump-tax-bill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Donald Trump Loves Conspiracy Theories > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=15ee9961-70f2-4a5f-8788-b7bfbcf21e8d&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump Continues to Push Conspiracy Theories [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Continues to Push Conspiracy Theories](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/wXkEaMac.m3u8) (3:53)  _Published 2017-12-05. Donald Trump built his political career on a conspiracy theory: The false claim that Barack Obama wasn't born in the United States._ by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Dec 7, 2017 2:45 PM UTC Donald Trump built his political career on a conspiracy theory: The false claim that Barack Obama wasn't born in the United States. by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Dec 7, 2017 2:45 PM UTC Donald Trump built his political career on a conspiracy theory: The false claim that [Barack Obama wasn’t born in the United States](http://time.com/4496463/trump-obama-born-birther-hawaii-us/). But it’s not the only conspiracy theory he’s indulged. Over the years, Trump has called everything from [climate change](http://time.com/4959233/donald-trump-climate-change-hoax-question/) to [Russian meddling in the 2016 election](http://time.com/4826069/sean-spicer-donald-trump-russian-interference-2016-election/) a hoax. According to a [recent report in the New York _Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/28/us/politics/trump-access-hollywood-tape.html), he’s told associates that the _Access Hollywood_ video of him bragging about touching women without their consent is also a hoax — even though he [admitted making the remarks](http://time.com/5038934/donald-trump-access-hollywood-authentic-tape/) when it came out. > [](https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/911179462745710593) Sometimes his theories don’t amount to much. Trump has long asserted that vaccines lead to autism — a link that scientists have long debunked — but despite [meeting with anti-vaccine advocates](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/trump-meets-anti-vaccine-activist-after-raising-fringe-theory-trail-n705296) during the transition, he’s not taken any action. > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/238717783007977473) His claim that Supreme Court Justice Antonin [Scalia’s death was suspicious](https://www.newyorker.com/news/amy-davidson/donald-trumps-scalia-conspiracy-pillow-fight) also led nowhere, although that may be in part because the seat was kept open until after the election. Other times, the conspiracy theories have had political consequences. Trump’s belief that millions of people voted illegally in the 2016 election led directly to the [creation of a voter fraud commission](https://www.npr.org/2017/10/26/560089042/nothing-going-on-with-trump-voter-fraud-commission-due-to-multiple-lawsuits). He’s stopped arguing climate change is a hoax in public, but he [pulled the U.S. out of a Paris agreement](http://time.com/4801134/paris-agreement-withdrawal-donald-trump-rose-garden/) meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions anyway. Other times, Trump has floated a conspiracy theory to damage an opponent, then walked away from it when the fight was over, as when he repeatedly floated the idea that Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s father [might have played a role](http://time.com/4316494/lee-harvey-oswald-donald-trump/) in the Kennedy assassination. It’s unclear exactly what Trump believes. He held a press conference during the 2016 election to admit that Obama was born in the United States after all, but the _Times_ reported that he’s again [questioned the authenticity of Obama’s birth certificate](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/28/us/politics/trump-access-hollywood-tape.html) in recent closed-door conversations. But that’s the thing with conspiracy theories: You never really know the truth. ## Transcript " Donald Trump built his political career on a conspiracy theory: the idea that President Obama was not born in the United States ." [ MUSIC ] " Trump repeatedly pushed the idea in interviews and on social media, long after it was disproved ." Why doesn't he show his birth certificate. And I have my own theory on Obama. It's one of the greatest scams in the history of politics. But it's not the only conspiracy theory he's indulged, on a campaign trail and in the White House he's toyed with some outlandish ideas. That Ted Cruz's father might be involved in the Kennedy assassination. His father ws with Lee Harvey Oslwald what was he doing with Lee Harvey Oslwald Right. Shortly, before the deaths, before the shooting. Did anybody ever deny that it was the father? They're not saying," that wasn't really my father ." It's a little hard to do, cuz it looks like him. That Marco Rubio may not be elligible to run for president, an argument no contstitutional scholar supported. You're really not sure that Marco Rubio is elligible Eligible to run for president. I don't know. I really, I've never looked at it George. Honestly, I've never looked at it. Somebody said he's not and I retweeted it. That routine vaccation cause autism a theory scientests have long debunked. The child, a beautiful child, went to have the vaccine and came back, and, a week a later got a tremendous fever, got very very sick, now is autisic. We have extremely. [ MUSIC ] Well documented proof that there's no autism associated with vaccinations. That supreme court justice Anton and Scalia might have been murdered. Scalia was he murdered? I know it's pretty brutal to say that. It's a horrible topic but they say they found the pillow on his face, which is a pretty unual place to find a pillow. I can't tell you what, I can't give you an answer. That Muslims in New Jersey cheered after 9 / 11. A claim no one has ever substantiated. And I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering. And the other side of New Jersey where you have large Arab populations, they were cheering as the World Trade Center came down. That millions of Americans voted illegally in 2016. Sixteen, a claim with no factual support. Does the president believe that millions voted illegally in this election? He continues to maintain that belief based on studies and evidence that people have presented to him. What evidence do you have? I, I, as I said, I think the president has believed that for a while based on studies and information he has. That Climate Change is a hoax. All of this with the global warming and the that a lot of it's a hoax. It's a hoax. I mean it's a money making industry okay? A Sussian meddling in the 2016 election is a hoax. [ MUSIC ] And according to a recent New York Times report that the Acess hollywood viideo of him admitting to grabbing women's genital Is a hoax even though he apologized for it when it came out. I said it, I was wrong, and I apologize. It's not clear how much Trump really believes these ideas. He's backed down from some in the past. Barack Obama was born in the United States. Period. Only to indulge them again later. [ MUSIC ] Some of the theories have helped Trump politically by tearing down rivals or creating doubt about policies he opposes. Others have hurt him, as polls show voters increasingly question his judgment. But one thing is clear, Donald Trump is not going to stop talking about conspiracy theories. 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