William F. Buckley Jr is spinning in his grave

This Conspiracy-Toting Conservative Blogger Could Be Headed to Congress

Wes Riddle's campaign says President Obama gave seven islands to Russia, and he's written that slavery was a net positive for blacks. Could he make it to Washington?

Wes Riddle/Facebook

In mid-May, Texas Republican congressional candidate Wes Riddle posted a new note on his Facebook page. It was written by his spokesman, Garrett Smith, and it was dire. "The reasoning for President Obama's impeachment," Smith wrote, "begins with the fact that the State Department is giving away seven strategic, resource-laden Alaskan islands to Russia." According to the statement, Riddle—who has Rep. Ron Paul's endorsement and stands a good chance of winning in November if he can make it out of next Tuesday's runoff—believed that Obama's unprecedented giveaway included at least one island the size of Rhode Island and Delaware combined, "billions of barrels of oil" from offshore deposits, and unknown strategic advantages.

"The agreement was negotiated in total secrecy, not allowing the state of Alaska to participate in the negotiations, and…the public was not given any opportunity to comment," he wrote.
There were a few problems with this indictment of Obama: The president hadn't given away any islands; the treaty in question had been signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1991; none of the islands, which are well on the other side of the international boundary, had ever been officially claimed by the United States; and Alaska's two US senators at the time had publicly endorsed the measure. Smith's rant, much of which was copied word for word from a WorldNetDaily article, was based on a falsehood.