Conservative Influencer Sentenced to 7 Months in Prison After Sharing Clinton Meme
A social media poster who told Hillary Clinton supporters they could vote online during the 2016 election will serve seven months in prison for his actions.
Douglass Mackey, 34, who in 2016 weighed in on politics using the name Ricky Vaughn, was sentenced Tuesday after his March conviction on a charge of Conspiracy Against Rights, according to the Department of Justice.
Breon Peace, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said Mackey, who indicated he sought to limit the “black turnout,” crossed the line by targeting the wrong people, the DOJ statement said.
“One of the foundational rights we hold as Americans, a right that many fought so hard to obtain, is the right to vote. The defendant weaponized disinformation in a dangerous scheme to stop targeted groups, including black and brown people and women, from participating in our democracy,” Peace said.
JUST IN: Douglass Mackey has been sentenced to prison for sharing memes about Hillary Clinton & the 2016 election.
His crime? Posting memes about Hillary, joking about being able to vote by phone, similar to how people vote on American Idol.
Mackey will be spending the next… pic.twitter.com/mVWY6Kkr7O
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) October 18, 2023
“This groundbreaking prosecution demonstrates our commitment to prosecuting those who commit crimes that threaten our democracy and seek to deprive people of their constitutional right to vote,” he added.
Mackey had 58,000 followers in 2016 and was listed by the MIT Media Lab as a significant influencer in the 2016 presidential election the Justice Department said.
He was convicted of posting messages on X, previously known as Twitter, telling Clinton supporters they could vote for her by social media or text message.
The regime sentenced Douglass Mackey to 7 months in jail for posting memes about Hillary. If anyone still thinks everything conservatives have been saying about the marxists & their intentions is hyperbole they’re idiots & deserve to live under the dems commie system.
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) October 18, 2023
On Nov. 1, 2016, Mackey posted an image of a black woman with an “African Americans for Hillary” sign. The post stated: “Avoid the Line. Vote from Home,” “Text ‘Hillary’ to 59925,” and “Vote for Hillary and be a part of history.”
The post said, in small print, “Must be 18 or older to vote. One vote per person. Must be a legal citizen of the United States. Voting by text not available in Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska or Hawaii. Paid for by Hillary For President 2016.” The post included the hashtag “#ImWithHer,” which was used to support Clinton in her failed attempt for the White House.
Another post showed a woman typing on her cell phone. It was written in Spanish and used a font similar to that used by the Clinton campaign.
Gulags are here, as pro Trump meme maker is sentenced to 7 months in federal prison for a joke. Rule is law is on the way out. Within 5-10 years, we won’t have a legal system. Stalin is smiling down on his demon “judges.” https://t.co/e7fQeDaEaI
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) October 18, 2023
By 2016’s Election Day, at least 4,900 unique phone numbers texted “Hillary” or a similar message to a text number posted by Mackey, according to NBC.
X has said it worked with the federal government on the case.
During the sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Ann Donnelly said Mackey’s actions were “nothing short of an assault on our democracy,” according to The New York Times.
During Mackey’s trial, Andrew J. Frisch, his defense lawyer, said Mackey was trying to gain attention, according to The New York Times.
The Communist Gulags are here in America.
Douglass Mackey was just sentenced to 7 months in federal prison for the crime of posting memes.
Biden’s Department of Justice is fully weaponized against any political opposition.
Who’s next? You?
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) October 18, 2023
“Mr. Mackey did not share these memes as some sort of grand plan,” he said, noting that it was “not a crime to vigorously support your candidate of choice.”
The trial had been called “the single greatest assault on free speech and human rights in this country’s modern history,” by former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
During his trial, Mackey said he did not believe anyone would actually think they could vote in an election by text, according to Courthouse News Services.
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