A Stockton woman who is running for state Assembly, who USA TODAY identified as entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, also spread bizarre antisemitic conspiracy theories, new research reveals.
CA state Assembly candidate spread bizarre antisemitic conspiracies
In March, USA TODAY published an investigation into California State Assembly candidate Denise Aguilar Mendez, detailing how online researchers identified her in a video entering the Capitol on Jan. 6. Mendez, who has not been charged for her actions at the Capitol, also spread a bizarre antisemitic conspiracy theory, according to new research from the left-leaning media watchdog Media Matters for America.
- According to Media Matters, Aguilar shared a video in 2019 outlining “a bizarre and antisemitic conspiracy theory essentially claiming that the power grid was turned off in parts of California in 2019 not to prevent fires but to stop the Rothschilds, a prominent Jewish family, from trafficking children.”
- Aguilar is the Republican Party candidate for California Assembly District 13, a seat that includes the cities of Stockton, Tracy and much of San Joaquin County. On March 5, she finished second in the district’s open primary, gaining 37.9% of the vote, and will go on to face a Democratic rival next month.
- The Rothschilds are “in charge of our money,” Aguilar says in the video. “The Federal Reserve is not a government entity. It’s actually a private company owned by these families that control our money. So that’s another rabbit hole to go into.”
- Aguilar co-founded a group called Freedom Angels , which describes itself as “Political strategy & grassroots organizing to protect children ,” and which helped organize a May 2020 anti-lockdown protest in Sacramento that attracted an estimated 1,000 people.
- Aguilar did not respond to a call for comment.