Conspiracy theorist Chuck Johnson leaked private text messages to the Washington Post that show Donald Trump's running mate JD Vance discussing UFOs and Jeffrey Epstein's death.
The 20-month long correspondence began in 2022, when Johnson sent Vance a congratulatory text for getting elected to the U.S. Senate. After that, their texts developed into regular consultations from Vance asking Johnson for his thoughts on several different topics.
Vance asked Johnson about his "read" on UFOs and discussed Republican's outlook on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asking "What is GOP Bibi problem?" He also wondered about Epstein and asked Johnson if he thought he "actually killed himself."
According to the Post, Vance said of Epstein: "Also haven't followed story closely but he seemed like a genuinely bad dude."
On the topic of assuming responsibility for the Nord Stream gas pipelines being sabotaged, Vance pointed to the Ukrainian government.
"Dude I won't even take calls from Ukraine," Vance told Johnson in October. "Two very senior guys reached out to me. The head of their intel. The head of the Air Force. Bitching about F16s."
In another message, Vance talked about Republican Sheldon Adelson who died in January of 2021.
"I'm pretty sure he gave me shit," Vance wrote in response to Johnson suggesting he should read about Adelson's influence. "Never met him ... Hes dead. Don't care."
When JD Vance's name was being floated in the media as a potential veep pick for Trump, Johnson warned him against taking the position.
"Congratulations. Good luck," said Johnson.
Vance reportedly took six days to reply. He said: "For what?" and "You assume too much!"
To which, Johnson warned him saying: "Don't take it when it's offered. It's a trap."
Vance wrote back: "Haha" and "Doubt it's offered. We'll see."
The texts were sent using Signal, an encrypted messaging app. Vance's spokesman William Martin claimed the two never had any type of relationship and do not share the same politics.
"Chuck Johnson spam texted JD Vance," Martin said. "JD usually ignored him, but occasionally responded to push back against things he said."
