2026-09-15T16:00:29.134Z / 美国有线电视新闻网（CNN）
密歇根州某竞争激烈选区的共和党国会提名候选人删除了其拥有数千条帖子的社交媒体账号，这些帖子存在多年的煽动性言论和阴谋论论调，其中包括转发一条似乎暗示要对总统唐纳德·特朗普的政治对手判处死刑的内容。
75岁的托马斯·史密斯曾是通用汽车退休员工，同时也是弗林特地区小企业主。他上月在初选中爆冷击败特朗普背书的候选人，赢得共和党提名，尽管他曾在选举日前暂停竞选活动。
CNN“档案文件”栏目对史密斯现已删除的账号中约1.3万条存档帖子进行复盘后发现，其极右翼言论的范围比此前报道的要广泛得多，包括反复指责他人叛国、攻击美国穆斯林群体和伊斯兰教、针对巴拉克·奥巴马的“出生论”式阴谋论，以及史密斯称自己曾在黎明前收到上帝给保守派电台主持人丹·邦吉诺的讯息的帖子。
史密斯将在该选区对阵连任一届的民主党众议员克里斯汀·麦克唐纳·里维特。该选区2024年选票出现分裂：麦克唐纳·里维特以约6个百分点的优势赢得众议院席位，而特朗普在该选区以3个百分点的优势击败卡玛拉·哈里斯。尽管该选区党派倾向为共和党+1，且近期选举均势胶着，但在史密斯初选出线后，《库克政治报告》已将该选区选举评级从“倾向民主党”调整为“大概率民主党胜出”。
这一评级调整凸显出一个潜在风险：在意外获得提名后，史密斯的数字历史大多已从公众视野中抹去，但这些内容可能会给民主党本就难以保住的席位带来变数。
最令人震惊的例子之一出现在2025年2月。以史密斯与儿子共同经营的弗林特萨尔萨店命名的账号“JarHeadSalsa”转发了一条面向特朗普的讯息：“不惜一切代价将国家从那些企图摧毁它的人手中夺回。”
“内部存在叛徒，他们理应因叛国罪受审，”帖子补充道，“叛国罪的惩罚是什么来着？”
被判犯有叛国罪的人可被判处死刑，或至少五年监禁。
史密斯在两个名为“JarHeadSalsa”的账号上多次以本人身份确认自己为账号运营者。
史密斯转发过一条种族主义帖子，呼吁将美国的“索马里入侵者”驱逐出境。
史密斯自己发布的帖子也不乏离奇言论。
2024年5月，他连续三天发文称自己“在凌晨4点30分收到上帝给丹·邦吉诺的讯息”。这条讯息针对这位后来出任联邦调查局副局长的保守派广播主持人，呼吁不同种族的美国人以“基督内的兄弟姐妹”相称，落款仅为“上帝”。史密斯几周后再次发布了该讯息的版本。
史密斯的帖子有时会频繁提及贵金属和矿业股票。2025年2月的九天内，他至少发布了30条关于巴里克黄金公司的帖子。他在帖子中@了数十个账号，呼吁政府官员等人士协助这家加拿大矿业公司将公司注册地迁至美国，其中五次@了一个被证实为非官方的、自称特朗普孙女凯的账号：“凯，能把这个信息带给你爷爷吗。”
几乎同一时间，史密斯还向黄金投资倡导者彼得·希夫寻求投资建议，写道：“我60%的积蓄都投在了黄金、白银或铜矿股票上，我没问题吧？”
《底特律新闻》上周报道了史密斯现已删除的“JarHeadSalsa”社交媒体账号内容，包括支持推翻2020年总统选举结果的帖子。该报还报道称，史密斯曾出席2021年1月6日特朗普在华盛顿举行的“停止偷窃”集会。他后来多次转发帖子，声称那次袭击是联邦特工策划的政府圈套。
《谈话要点备忘录》此前曾报道过史密斯出席集会的情况以及他的部分社交媒体历史，史密斯在其中否认自己进入过国会大厦或受限区域。
史密斯在回应《底特律新闻》时并未否认自己早年的社交媒体活动。“人们可以翻遍我十年前发的每一条推文，没问题，”他告诉该报，随后便批评了麦克唐纳·里维特的投票记录。
在回应CNN的提问时，史密斯在一份声明中表示：“和成千上万爱好和平的爱国者一样，我出席了特朗普总统在华盛顿的集会。冒着严寒等待数小时、聆听总统讲话后，我返回了酒店。我没有进入国会大厦，也没有闯入受限区域。我的重心是为密歇根州带来切实可行的成果，并在今年秋季的选举中击败社会主义者阿卜杜勒·埃尔赛义德的搭档克里斯汀·麦克唐纳·里维特。”
自8月4日意外赢得初选以来，史密斯的竞选团队经历了显著的重启。
7月16日，在他所谓的“祈祷考量”后，史密斯宣布暂停竞选活动并背书对手阿尔·莱莫，呼吁其支持者团结在莱莫身后。但史密斯的名字仍留在选票上，并最终以约50%的得票率获胜。史密斯后来表示，选举当晚结果公布时他正在莱莫的竞选派对上，凌晨2点时共和党已为他配备了两名竞选经理。他随即宣布重新参选。
此后，他的竞选运营得到了全面升级。
一个仅有选区地图、简短个人简介以及捐赠和 yard 标牌链接的简陋网站，已被一个设计精良的红蓝配色网站取代，新网站包含志愿者报名、筹款呼吁和详细的议题页面。新网站宣称“汤姆参选就是为了获胜”，并将其竞选纲领聚焦于“宪法、信仰、自由”，同时强调宪法权利、边境执法、减税和削减联邦开支。
但围绕史密斯打造的专业化竞选团队，与其留下的网络记录形成了鲜明对比——包括1月6日事件前后的发帖内容。
国会山袭击事件两周前，史密斯呼吁其他人与他一同前往华盛顿：“数百万支持者包围国会大厦将是史诗级场面。左翼需要知道他们在对抗什么。”16个月后的2022年4月，他在Truth Social平台上发文称自己当时在场为事件作证：“我1月6日就在现场，我同意。特朗普停止讲话前，国会大厦就已被包围。”
2025年2月暗示应惩罚特朗普对手的帖子，并非史密斯的账号首次转发指控政治人物叛国的言论。
2024年7月，他转发了一条宣称密歇根州州长格蕾琴·惠特默“是叛徒”的讯息。去年11月，在多名民主党议员呼吁军人拒绝非法命令后，史密斯的账号转发了一条称众议员玛吉·古兰德“是叛徒”的帖子。几天后，该账号又转发了另一篇文章，呼吁剥夺退休海军上尉参议员马克·凯利的军衔并以煽动叛乱罪对其进行军事审判。
他还多次转发指控前总统巴拉克·奥巴马叛国的帖子，其中一条将奥巴马称为“影子总统”。另一条帖子宣称“叛国罪指控即将到来”，并@了奥巴马，配文“你完蛋了”，同时质问奥巴马是否下令暗杀特朗普。Truth Social平台上的另一条转发帖子称前众议员埃里克·斯沃维尔是叛国者，应将其监禁。
史密斯多次转发“出生论”式言论，包括2024年9月转发的一条帖子，称拜登政府是“邪恶的肯尼亚人掌控的白宫”——这显然是在影射奥巴马，以及长期流传的虚假阴谋论，即奥巴马出生在肯尼亚，并暗中操控拜登政府。
几天后，他转发了一条帖子，将“这个由肯尼亚人领导的非法政府”称为“这一非法政府”。去年11月，大选数周后，他又分享了一篇提及“这个由肯尼亚人掌控的白宫的腐败与不公”的帖子。
其他帖子则恶毒 targeting 穆斯林群体。
2025年12月，史密斯转发了一条帖子，内容为：“伊斯兰教是癌症，在我们的基督教国家没有立足之地。”五周后，他转发了同一账号的另一篇帖子，呼吁“消灭每一个邪恶暴力的自由派恐怖分子，并将腐败的索马里入侵者驱逐出美国领土”。
2024年5月，史密斯转发了一张已被辟谣的图片， falsely 声称该图片显示众议员伊尔汉·奥马尔在基地组织训练营，同时配文谴责“撒旦的邪恶伊斯兰教”，并呼吁“爱国者”转发该图片。
部分反伊斯兰言论直接来自史密斯的账号，而非转发。
8月2日——也就是共和党初选前两天，当时史密斯已暂停竞选但仍留在选票上——该账号发帖称：“为什么爱泼斯坦岛上的恋童癖行为是错的，但在伊斯兰教里就不是？”
The salsa account of a surprise GOP nominee amplified a post implying execution for alleged Trump ‘traitors’
2026-09-15T16:00:29.134Z / CNN
A Republican congressional nominee in a closely divided Michigan district deleted social media accounts containing thousands of posts that include a yearslong pattern of inflammatory and conspiratorial rhetoric — including amplifying a post that appeared to raise the possibility of the death penalty for political opponents of President Donald Trump.
Thomas Smith, a 75-year-old retired General Motors employee and Flint-area small-business owner, became the surprise Republican nominee last month after an improbable primary victory over the Trump-endorsed candidate despite suspending his campaign before Election Day.
A CNN KFile review of some 13,000 archived posts from Smith’s now-deleted accounts uncovered a substantially broader pattern of far-right rhetoric than previously reported, including repeated accusations of treason, attacks on Muslim Americans and Islam, birther-style conspiracy theories about Barack Obama, and posts in which Smith said he had been awakened before dawn with a message from God for conservative radio host Dan Bongino.
Smith will face first-term Democratic Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet in a district that split its ticket in 2024: McDonald Rivet won her House race by roughly 6 points, while Trump carried the district over Kamala Harris by 3 points. Despite the district’s R+1 partisan lean and its recent history of close elections, the Cook Political Report moved the race from “Lean Democratic” to “Likely Democratic” after Smith’s primary victory.
That shift underscores the potential that Smith’s digital history — largely erased from public view after his unexpected nomination — could loom over a race Democrats might otherwise have struggled to hold.
One of the starkest examples came in February 2025. The account, JarHeadSalsa, named for the Flint salsa business Smith owns with his son, reposted a message addressed to Trump: “Do whatever it takes to take our country back from those who sought to have it destroyed.”
“There are traitors within who deserve to be put on trial for treason,” the post added. “What’s the punishment for treason again?”
A person convicted of treason can be punished by death or be imprisoned for no less than five years.
Smith repeatedly identified himself by name on both JarHeadSalsa accounts as the operator.
One racist repost that Smith shared urged the deportation of the “Somali infestation” of America.
Smith’s own posts could also veer into the unusual.
On three consecutive days in May 2024, he wrote that he had been “awakened at 4:30 AM with a message from God for Dan Bongino.” The message, addressed to the conservative broadcaster who later became deputy FBI director, told Americans of different races that they were “brothers and sisters in Christ” and was signed simply: “God.” Smith posted versions of it again weeks later.
Smith’s posts at times reflected an intense interest in precious metals and mining stocks. Over nine days in February 2025, he posted at least 30 times about Barrick Gold. He tagged dozens of accounts as he urged administration officials and others to help the Canadian mining company move its corporate domicile to the US, including five times to a non-verified account styled as Trump’s granddaughter Kai:“Kai, Can you get this info to your Grandpa.”
Around the same time, Smith asked gold advocate Peter Schiff for investment advice, writing: “60% of my nest egg is in gold silver or copper mining stocks, am I okay?”
The Detroit News reported last week on Smith’s now-deleted JarHeadSalsa social media accounts, including posts supporting efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. The newspaper also reported that Smith attended Trump’s January 6, 2021, “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington. He later repeatedly shared posts claiming the attack was part of a government setup, staged by federal agents.
Talking Points Memo previously reported Smith’s attendance and some of his social media history, in which Smith denied entering the Capitol or restricted grounds.
Smith did not disavow his older social media activity when responding to The Detroit News. “People can dig through every 10-year-old tweet I ever wrote. That is fine,” he told the newspaper, before criticizing McDonald Rivet’s voting record.
In response to questions from CNN, Smith said in a statement, “Like thousands of peaceful patriots, I attended President Trump’s rally in Washington. After braving the cold for several hours and listening to the President, I returned to my hotel. I did not enter the Capitol or trespass on restricted grounds. My focus is on delivering common sense results for Michigan and defeating Abdul El-Sayed’s partner in socialism Kristen McDonald Rivet at the ballot box this fall.”
Smith’s campaign has undergone a visible reboot since his surprise primary victory on August 4.
On July 16, after what he called“prayerful consideration,” Smith announced he was suspending his campaign and endorsed opponent Al Lemmo, urging his supporters to unite behind him. But Smith remained on the ballot and won anyway, taking about 50% of the vote. Smith later said he was at Lemmo’s election night party when the returns showed him winning and that, by 2 a.m., Republicans had assigned him two campaign managers. He quickly announced he was reentering the race.
His campaign operation has since gotten a serious makeover.
A bare-bones website featuring a district map, a short biography, and links for donations and yard signs has been replaced by a polished red-and-blue site with volunteer sign-ups, fundraising appeals and detailed issue pages. The new site declares, “Tom is in this race to WIN,” and centers his platform on “The Constitution, Faith, Freedom,” while emphasizing constitutional rights, border enforcement, lower taxes and reduced federal spending.
But the professionalized campaign now being built around Smith stands in sharp contrast to the record he left behind online — including his posts before and after January 6.
Two weeks before the Capitol attack, Smith urged others to join him in DC: “Having millions of supporters surrounding the Capitol will be epic. The left needs to see what they are up against.” Sixteen months later, in April 2022, he cited on Truth Social his own presence there to vouch for what happened: “I was there on Jan. 6th and I agree. The Capitol was surrounded before Trump quit speaking.”
The February 2025 post suggesting Trump opponents be punished for treason was hardly the only time Smith’s account amplified accusations that political figures were traitors.
In July 2024, he reposted a message declaring that Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer “is a traitor.” Last November, after several Democratic lawmakers urged service members to refuse illegal orders, Smith’s account reposted a message calling Rep. Maggie Goodlander a “traitor.” Days later, it amplified another calling for Sen. Mark Kelly, a retired Navy captain, to be stripped of his rank and court-martialed for sedition.
He also shared numerous reposts accusing former President Barack Obama of treason, including one labeling him a“Shadow President.” Another declared that “Treason charges are coming,” tagging Obama and adding “you are f**ked,” while asking whether he ordered Trump to be assassinated. Another repost on Truth Social called former Rep. Eric Swalwell treasonous and for him to be jailed.
Smith repeatedly amplified birther-style rhetoric, including a repost in September 2024 calling the Biden administration an “evil Kenyan-run White House” — an apparent reference to Obama and the long-running false conspiracy theories that he was born in Kenya and that he secretly ran the Biden White House.
Days later, he reposted a message describing“this illegitimate government led by the Kenyan.” In November, weeks after the election, he shared another one referring to “the corruption and injustice of this Kenyan-run White House.”
Other posts viciously targeted Muslim Americans.
In December 2025, Smith reposted a message that read:“Islam is a cancer that has no place in our Christian nation.” Five weeks later, he shared another from the same account calling to“Eliminate every demonic violent liberal terrorist and deport the corrupt Somali infestation from American soil.”
In May 2024, Smith reposted a debunked image falsely purporting to show Rep. Ilhan Omar at an al Qaeda training camp, alongside a post denouncing “Satan’s evil Islam” and telling “Patriots” to circulate it.
Some of the anti-Islam rhetoric came directly from Smith’s account rather than through reposts.
On August 2 — two days before the Republican primary, when Smith had already suspended his campaign but remained on the ballot, the account posted, “why is pedophilia wrong on Epstein’s island but not in Islam?”
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