XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.politics.republicans, talk.politics.guns

In article <4uibsjlctog0cn2p4l5lpi3s6tj4mfeqtc@4ax.com>,
Lying Wingnut Manure Spreader John Smyth <smythlejon2@hotmail.com>
wrote:

This story will make your blood boil.

'Never forget that the Biden administration used $25 BILLION of
taxpayers’ money through USAID to subsidize small businesses in Ukraine:

<https://x.com/ImMeme0/status/1896273049361490072>

Breakdown, shakedown, yer busted....

https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/usaid-paid-x-to-y

Part of a series on Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). [View
Related Entries]
Updated Feb 07, 2025 at 06:11PM EST by Zach.
Added Feb 07, 2025 at 03:39PM EST by Philipp.

About

USAID Paid X to Y is a parody meme format and phrasal template used for
posts spreading humorous misinformation that the United States Agency
for International Development (USAID), which was gutted by the
Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) established by President
Donald Trump in early 2025, spent large amounts of money on ridiculous expenses, such as paying celebrities to pose with Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelensky and paying brands to discontinue certain products.
The format gained virality in early February 2025 following a fabricated
report that the agency paid Hollywood actors actor millions of dollars
to travel to Ukraine and take photographs with Zelensky to boost his international popularity. The meme format is similar to Blaming the
Rothschilds memes.
Origin

On January 24th, 2025, United States President Donald Trump ordered a near-total freeze on all foreign aid, which was followed by Elon Musk,
head of the Department of Government Efficiency, announcing that USAID
was in the process of being shut down, claiming it was "beyond repair."

In early February 2025, USAID's budget and its spending on global
programs, including its sponsorship of certain media in the U.S. and
other countries, became a viral subject of discussions on social media.

On February 5th, a fabricated[1][2] report made to look as if it was
produced by E! News went viral online. The report falsely claimed that
USAID paid millions of dollars to Ben Stiller, Sean Penn and other
Hollywood celebrities to travel to Ukraine and pose for photographs with
the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.


For example, on that day, the X[3] account @ImMeme0 shared the video,
with the post (shown below) gaining over 4.1 million views, 13,000
reposts, and 27,000 likes in two days.

Did you know that USAID spent your tax dollars to fund celebrity
trips to Ukraine, all to boost Zelensky s popularity among Americans?>/ pic.twitter.com/8VCZ43UGLs

I Meme Therefore I Am << (@ImMeme0) February 5, 2025


Later on February 5th, 2025, X[4] account @TruthHammer4EVA made a series
of posts based on the video. The opening post, which falsely claimed
that USAID paid actor Ben Stiller $4 million to take photographs with
Zelensky, gained over 16 million views, 31,000 reposts and 125,000 likes
(shown below).

Post falsely claiming that USAID paid $4 million to Ben Stiller to take
photos with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky

Spread

Starting on February 6th, 2025, users on X posted parody claims that
USAID spent ludicrous amounts of money to fund relatively random agendas.

For example, on that day, X[5] user @GrecoGum made a post with a
humorous claim that USAID paid Bodybuilding.com to shut down its forums.
The post (shown below) received over 2,400 reposts and 34,000 likes in
one day.

Post falsely claiming that USAID paid bodybuilding.com to shut down
their forums.

The parody format gained particular popularity with the NAFO collective, members of which posted AI-generated art of Zelensky meeting with dead celebrities together with claims that USAID paid them to pose with the Ukrainian President.

For example, on February 6th, 2025, X[6] user @Vladi12 posted an
AI-generated image of Zelensky together with musician Elvis Presley that garnered over 1,700 reposts and 18,000 likes in one day (shown below).

An AI-generated photograph of Elvis Presley and Volodymyr Zelenski
paired with a humorous claim that USAID paid the singer $100 million to
pose with the president.

More parody posts based on the format went viral on X / Twitter in early February 2025.

Various Examples

PrinzTom @PrinzTom1 USAID paid 234 million to embed Zelenski together
with han solo in carbonite Rock @TheCensored Rock USAID paid Taco Bell
$34 million dollars in 2002 to get rid of this aesthetic. Unbelievable
... :
UNITED * STATES AGENCY USAID ERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT USAID M THE AMERICAN
PEC
Taco Bell and Kansas City Chiefs 12:57 PM Feb 7, 2025 1,799 Views
Anonymous TV @YourAnonTV USAID just paid us $20 million to post this
video '
NOVEMBER 1992 PALM BEACH, FL DONALD TRUMP & JEFFREY EPSTEIN TALK WOMEN'S
LOOKS IN 1992 PARTY FOOTAGE 1:04 PM "
Feb 7, 2025 32.3K Views ALMSNBC 6:32 AM MT " " "
Matt +Q @mattsgoodtweets USAID paid Wendy's $550 million in 2002 to
remove all of their solariums
WENDY'S * UNITED STATES AGENCY USAID INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT 2:21 PM
Feb 6, 2025 71.6K Views
USAID M THE AMERICAN PEC Eli @theelishev Tupac was paid $170 million by
USAID to pose with Zelenskyy. ... Kaguya's Top Gal @hayasaka_aryan USAID
paid streamer Steven Bonell (known online as Destiny) 6 million dollars
to perform oral sex on several men
UNITED STATES AGENCY USAID INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMEN USAID M THE AMERICAN
PEC Last edited 2:33 PM Feb 6, 2025 67.5K Views

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