President Trump told Fox News host Laura Ingraham in a White House interview Monday that his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, is being "controlled like a puppet," but he can't specify who is calling the shots. "Who do you think is pulling Biden's strings, is it former Obama officials?" Ingraham asked. "People that you've never heard of, people that are in the dark shadows," Trump said. Ingraham suggested that "dark shadows" sounds "like conspiracy theory" fodder, but Trump disagreed. "No," he said, "only people that you haven't heard of. They're, they're people that are on the streets, they're people that are controlling the streets."
Trump continued that he had "somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend" carrying about seven "thugs wearing these dark uniforms" en route to the Republican National Convention, which ended last Thursday. He promised more details later, but couldn't divulge them now because it is "under investigation."
If Trump talking about Democratic rivals being "puppets" rings a bell, he and Hillary Clinton swapped that accusation in a 2016 debate — with Trump taking great umbrage at Clinton's charge that Russian President Vladimir Putin was trying to help him win the election.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
There is no evidence or logical reason to believe that Biden is not in control of his own campaign, or that he is being ordered around by shadow people.
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-warTalking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Sudoku medium: September 14, 2025The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
