Aaron Rodgers insists he’s not a Sandy Hook truther.
On Wednesday, March 13, CNN published a damning report alleging Rodgers had pushed a baseless conspiracy theory regarding the 2012 school shooting that occurred in Newtown, Connecticut. Sources told the outlet that the New York Jets quarterback had dismissed the deadly tragedy as a hoax and believed it “never happened.”
“All those children never existed,” an insider recalled Rodgers saying. “… They’re all making it up. They’re all actors.”
The NFL star addressed the allegations via X (formerly) on Thursday, claiming he never shared such a conspiracy theory.
“As I’m on the record saying in the past, what happened in Sandy Hook was an absolute tragedy,” the potential vice presidential candidate wrote. “I am not and have never been of the opinion that the events did not take place. Again, I hope that we learn from this and other tragedies to identify the signs that will allow us to prevent unnecessary loss of life. My thoughts and prayers continue to remain with the families affected along with the entire Sandy Hook community.”
The massacre took place on Dec. 14, 2012, at Sandy Hook Elementary School, where a 20-year-old gunman ultimately shot and killed six adults and 20 first-grade students. A number of far-right figures, including disgraced Infowars founder Alex Jones, spent years propagating the lie that the Sandy Hook shooting was a government inside job that aimed to tighten firearm laws.
Jones told his audience that the grieving families and Sandy Hook first responders were “crisis actors” engaged in “method acting.” He was subsequently hit with defamation lawsuits and ordered to pay a minimum of $55 million over 10 years to the families of the shooting victims.
During his highly publicized trial, Jones admitted that the shooting was “100 percent real” and apologized for his “irresponsible” messaging.
“It was. Especially since I’ve met the parents. It’s 100 percent real...” said Jones in a Texas courtroom in 2022. “I unintentionally took part in things that did hurt these people’s feelings, and I’m sorry for that.”
Despite the fact the Sandy Hook shooting was very real, American firearm laws have not changed in a significant manner since the shooting. In fact, since 2012, the number of gun related murders in America have dramatically increased and so has the number of American mass shootings per year.
