Former President Donald Trump embarked on another extensive late-night social media spree, reposting more than fifty items across just a few hours on his platform, Truth Social. The barrage of content covered a wide range of topics, from new video evidence related to a recent shooting in Minneapolis to persistent grievances about the 2020 presidential election.
Minneapolis Shootings and Protest Conspiracies Take Centre Stage
A significant portion of the posts reshared by Trump focused on the city of Minneapolis, where the shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal agents have ignited sustained protests. The new footage of Pretti, captured eleven days prior to his death, appears to depict him spitting at and kicking an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vehicle before being subdued.
This visual evidence has been seized upon by some pro-Trump influencers to bolster prior administration claims that Pretti was an agitator. One post, which Trump redistributed, vehemently declared: "This wasn't some 'peaceful protester.' He was a domestic terrorist!"
Allegations of 'Astroturfing' and Paid Demonstrators
Further escalating the rhetoric, another post shared by the former president propagated a conspiracy theory alleging that protesters in Minnesota were financially motivated. The post claimed investigative journalist James O'Keefe had confirmed that "the Minnesota rioters are bought and paid for - to the tune of TENS OF MILLIONS of dollars," pointing to a supposed network of NGOs and activist groups funding the demonstrations.
This accusation employs the term "astroturfing," which describes organised campaigns designed to mimic grassroots, spontaneous public reaction rather than genuine citizen outrage.
Recurring Grievances: 2020 Election and Immigration Crackdown
Trump's social media marathon also revisited one of his most frequent themes: the legitimacy of the 2020 election. With pivotal midterm elections looming just ten months away, he shared posts accusing the Democratic Party of electoral fraud. One ominous reshared message warned: "The 2020 election was stolen right in front of your face... Anyone involved with any type of fraud during the 2020 election better lawyer up. Your time is coming."
Another post misleadingly suggested that 300,000 votes had been illegally certified, despite numerous such conspiracy theories having been thoroughly debunked by officials and independent audits.
Linking Immigration to Alleged Electoral Manipulation
Several posts attempted to weave immigration policy into these election fraud narratives. One individual proposed a secret Democratic plan to surge migration into the United States specifically to sway future elections. Another post made a flawed statistical claim about voter registration in Wisconsin, a Democratic-leaning state, suggesting a vast discrepancy between registered voters and the adult population.
However, official data clarifies that Wisconsin's figures are consistent, partly due to state laws allowing young people to pre-register if they will be eligible to vote by the next election.
A Pattern of Prolific Posting on Truth Social
This latest blitz continues a well-established pattern for Trump on Truth Social, which reportedly reached approximately 6.3 million users as of January 2025. Earlier instances include a session where he posted over eighty times in under two hours following the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and a Christmas Day marathon where he shared more than one hundred posts concerning Somali immigration and voter fraud allegations.
The former president's posts also extended beyond domestic issues, with reshared content accusing the California government of collaborating with entities ranging from Mexican drug cartels to Russian mobsters. This late-night digital offensive underscores Trump's continued use of social media to shape political discourse, promote conspiracy theories, and rally his base ahead of crucial electoral contests.
