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Ex-Trump aide jokes about giving homeless counterfeit money to get them arrested
Johnny McEntee, a former aide to President Donald Trump, is roiling social media with a "joke" he made about purposely giving homeless people counterfeit money in the hopes of them getting arrested.
"I always keep this fake Hollywood money in my car so when a homeless person asks for money, then I give them like a fake $5 bill, so I feel good about myself, they feel good," McEntee said in a video. "And then when they go to use it, they get arrested. So I'm actually like helping clean up the community, you know, getting them off the street."
McEntee—who created the conservative dating site The Right Stuff and serves as an advisor to the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025—added a disclaimer in the caption that he was joking. But that caveat was not enough to stop the backlash.
For instance, on X, the term "Secret Service" was trending on Monday as users upset with McEntee's joke called for an investigation. The agency was created to fight counterfeiting operations and continues to deal with financial crimes today.
"George Floyd was murdered by police over a *suspected* fake $20 bill," commented one person. "Hope the Secret Service puts this dude under the jail."
Liberal legal scholar Laurence Tribe similarly referenced the death of George Floyd, stating that he wouldn't be surprised if that was the inspiration behind McEntee's video.
"George Floyd was detained and ultimately murdered by police for passing a fake $20 bill," Tribe wrote. "Wouldn’t surprise me if that was McEntee’s inspiration. With Trumpophiles, the cruelty is the point."
"In the book and film American Psycho, the character of Patrick murdered and maimed homeless people," another person posted. "Johnny McEntee, senior advisor to Project 2025, is the real life version of Patrick Bateman. The FBI and Secret Service needs to look into his actions."
"He should be arrested for passing counterfeit money," wrote someone else. "Where are Secret Service?"
"Is that video confession admissible in court?" quipped someone else.
"Arrest him," another person called.
Despite the pushback, McEntee seems undeterred. The right-wing figure continues to post his alleged jokes on social media.
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