Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy That Reshaped America
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- Create Date：2023-03-01 00:19:27
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：William Sommer
- ISBN：0063114488
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Summary
A journalist who has followed the rise of QAnon explains what it is， how it has gained a mainstream following among Republican lawmakers and ordinary citizens， the threat it poses to democracy， and how we can reach those who have embraced the conspiracy and are disseminating its lies。
Over the last year， as the Covid-19 pandemic spread worldwide， so too did the pro-Trump cabal known as QAnon。 What began as a fringe online conspiracy in the mid 2000s is now embraced by millions of Americans across the country—and the globe—including new members of Congress and the thousands of Trump followers， armed with guns and a variety of makeshift weapons， who attacked the United States Capitol on January 6， 2021， searching for lawmakers including the Vice President， shouting “hang Mike Pence。”
Following internet clues from a mysterious figure named “Q”—who has claimed to be a high-level government insider with a Q-level clearance—QAnon adherents， fueled by paranoia and hatred of the left， believe that Donald Trump has been anointed by God to stop evil Democrats who sexually abuse， kill， and eat children; that Trump won the 2020 election that was stolen from him and will soon order mass executions of Democrats， including Hillary Clinton， the Obamas， George Soros， and many others。 QAnon believers continue to spout lies and disinformation about politics and the pandemic; their beliefs have ruptured friendships and family bonds and caused untold damage。
While in office， Trump praised QAnon believers as “people who love our country，” invited them to the White House， and retweeted their crazed messages on a near-daily basis。 Though he is gone， the threat of widespread violence from his acolytes—“the Storm is coming”—remains high。 What can we do about Q's growing platform？ Daily Beast reporter Will Sommer has been reporting on the QAnon conspiracy for years and has been targeted by the group。 In this timely and essential book， he explains the genesis of QAnon， his experience covering its members online and in the real world， Q’s lies and how they are spread， how Q has overshadowed politics， and what the nation must do to address this growing danger—including how to help friends and family who have fallen under Q’s pernicious sway。
Over the last year， as the Covid-19 pandemic spread worldwide， so too did the pro-Trump cabal known as QAnon。 What began as a fringe online conspiracy in the mid 2000s is now embraced by millions of Americans across the country—and the globe—including new members of Congress and the thousands of Trump followers， armed with guns and a variety of makeshift weapons， who attacked the United States Capitol on January 6， 2021， searching for lawmakers including the Vice President， shouting “hang Mike Pence。”
Following internet clues from a mysterious figure named “Q”—who has claimed to be a high-level government insider with a Q-level clearance—QAnon adherents， fueled by paranoia and hatred of the left， believe that Donald Trump has been anointed by God to stop evil Democrats who sexually abuse， kill， and eat children; that Trump won the 2020 election that was stolen from him and will soon order mass executions of Democrats， including Hillary Clinton， the Obamas， George Soros， and many others。 QAnon believers continue to spout lies and disinformation about politics and the pandemic; their beliefs have ruptured friendships and family bonds and caused untold damage。
While in office， Trump praised QAnon believers as “people who love our country，” invited them to the White House， and retweeted their crazed messages on a near-daily basis。 Though he is gone， the threat of widespread violence from his acolytes—“the Storm is coming”—remains high。 What can we do about Q's growing platform？ Daily Beast reporter Will Sommer has been reporting on the QAnon conspiracy for years and has been targeted by the group。 In this timely and essential book， he explains the genesis of QAnon， his experience covering its members online and in the real world， Q’s lies and how they are spread， how Q has overshadowed politics， and what the nation must do to address this growing danger—including how to help friends and family who have fallen under Q’s pernicious sway。
Reviews
Halli Starling
，
This is the book you hand to someone who has maybe heard of QAnon but has no real idea how deep the rabbit hole - and the ludicrous insanity - goes。 For anyone who has followed Will's investigations for a while， there are details in here that might even surprise you。 I certainly didn't know the Baby Q story， and finding out those details made me put the book down and wonder what in the hell is going on。Will's narrative is flowing and easy to get into， and even if you feel out of your depth tryin This is the book you hand to someone who has maybe heard of QAnon but has no real idea how deep the rabbit hole - and the ludicrous insanity - goes。 For anyone who has followed Will's investigations for a while， there are details in here that might even surprise you。 I certainly didn't know the Baby Q story， and finding out those details made me put the book down and wonder what in the hell is going on。Will's narrative is flowing and easy to get into， and even if you feel out of your depth trying to understand how people could get sucked into something like this， he's a very good guide to keep you on track。 。。。more
Eva
，
Will Sommer has been putting in the work reporting on the sometimes wacky， sometimes terrifying world of our conservative ecosphere for years。 He was also one of the few reporters to start tracking QAnon at its nascent stage。 His Right Richter newsletter is responsible for my own fascination with/horrified observance of conspiracy culture and the far right。 If you’ve been reading Sommer or any of his brilliant contemporaries reporting on Q and other far right fringe stuff， reading more of his wr Will Sommer has been putting in the work reporting on the sometimes wacky， sometimes terrifying world of our conservative ecosphere for years。 He was also one of the few reporters to start tracking QAnon at its nascent stage。 His Right Richter newsletter is responsible for my own fascination with/horrified observance of conspiracy culture and the far right。 If you’ve been reading Sommer or any of his brilliant contemporaries reporting on Q and other far right fringe stuff， reading more of his writing is only a good thing。 If you’re new to the far right conspiracy Q sphere but want to know what the hell your uncle or sister in law keeps talking about at otherwise nice holiday gatherings， this is a great primer。 But be warned， if you’ve never really read about QAnon before…this book is going to be a wild fucking ride。 。。。more
Mirkat
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I have been looking forward to the release of this book for a long time， and it did not disappoint。 Although I am well-versed in the background of QAnon as an all-encompassing， crowd-sourced conspiracy theory， Will Sommer fleshed out newer developments and consequences I wasn't aware of。 In addition to tracing the mysterious "Q-drops" from their 4chan shitpost origins， to the offshoots 8chan and 8kun， to Reddit， which banned QAnon activity to violating site rules， to more mainstream platforms li I have been looking forward to the release of this book for a long time， and it did not disappoint。 Although I am well-versed in the background of QAnon as an all-encompassing， crowd-sourced conspiracy theory， Will Sommer fleshed out newer developments and consequences I wasn't aware of。 In addition to tracing the mysterious "Q-drops" from their 4chan shitpost origins， to the offshoots 8chan and 8kun， to Reddit， which banned QAnon activity to violating site rules， to more mainstream platforms like Facebook， YouTube， and Twitter， Sommer identifies moments when various people could have shut down spread of QAnon narratives before they had a chance to proliferate。 。。。more
Leonard Janke
，
This book provides an excellent introduction to， undoubtedly， the strangest political phenomena in our recent very strange times。 Indeed， QAnon is so odd that even Robert Lifton who is a battle hardened leading expert on cults and extremist thinking has called out QAnon for the bizarreness of its beliefs。 In this book， Sommer's writing style is highly engaging and the 220 pages breezed by in just a few sittings。 Sommer does a good job of balancing between discussing QAnon from the high level， in This book provides an excellent introduction to， undoubtedly， the strangest political phenomena in our recent very strange times。 Indeed， QAnon is so odd that even Robert Lifton who is a battle hardened leading expert on cults and extremist thinking has called out QAnon for the bizarreness of its beliefs。 In this book， Sommer's writing style is highly engaging and the 220 pages breezed by in just a few sittings。 Sommer does a good job of balancing between discussing QAnon from the high level， including its historical antecedents and current context （Covid in particular） and giving concrete examples of how it directly impacts those who are taken in and those close to them。 Sommer also does a good job of sounding the alarm bells of the danger posed: something he makes a convincing case is highly underestimated。 Sommer describes QAnon as a "big tent" super conspiracy theory， with vague predictions of its own。 He credits this “big tent" approach for its success in drawing in such a broad spectrum of a new generation of conspiracy theorists willing to go even farther than Alex Jones。 In its manifestation as "Pastel QAnon" Sommer discuses how the #SaveTheChildren movement was able to draw in non-conservatives and even progressives， including even many new-age， hippy， yoga instructor types。 The big tent approach， however， is not without its problems for the movement。 For instance， many did not like the non-conservatives that Pastel QAnon drew in。 Sommer does an excellent job of detailing other infighting of which there is a great deal。 Indeed， he discusses just how dangerous the infighting can be。 Since followers of Q are so apt to see "evidence" of the cabal everywhere the infighting frequently degenerates into followers finding evidence that their opponents are， in fact， cabal members themselves。 Sommer discusses one case， in particular， which even led to murder。 One of the main themes of this book is that anyone can end up being a target of QAnon。 QAnons can stretch， since to them it is no stretch， to find secret codes and read "evidence" into anything。 Given the extremity of the beliefs it is not surprising that some should act violently or be waiting for orders （which， of course， are likely to come through "secret codes"） to do so。 If 15% of the population truly believes that children are being sex trafficked and killed en masse the real surprise is， actually， that there has not been more violence already。 （This is likely a consequence of what some describe as QAnon's tendency to make people politically passive thinking Donald Trump and the "white hats" have it all under control as part of “The Plan" with nothing left for Anons to do other than grab the popcorn， watch and be "digital soldiers" online。。。） One particularly interesting discussion in the book is how hard it is to dislodge Anons of their beliefs。 Indeed， Sommer thinks this just may not be possible if done through outside agents。 Anons already see themselves as outsiders and attempts to change their beliefs will likely just be seen as part of the conspiracy thus forcing them to dig in deeper in defiance。Although the book is an excellent introduction overall， there are some relatively minor problems with it:1） Sommer underestimates how difficult it would have been for Republicans to reject the QAnon movement early on。 Sommer seems to take the word of former Anons that they would have dropped their beliefs if prominent Republicans had disavowed it all。 What seems more likely is that they would have just rationalized that such disavowals were insincere and just necessary as a part of The Plan to maintain some kind of "operational security"。 Along similar lines， Sommer thinks there would have been just a "temporary" division in the Republican Party if QAnon was later denounced by prominent Republicans。 What seems more likely is that Trump would have split and formed his own party without hesitation rather than tolerate such "disloyalty"。 With the right split， Democrats would likely have swept the House， the Senate and Presidency with large enough majorities to enact some of their own fringe ideas， making division in the country even worse and giving QAnons even more confirmation of their biases。 （The current political stalemate may， indeed， be the environment in which QAnon is mostly likely to diffuse to the extent that it can on its own。）In both cases， Sommer seems to either be playing politics or being naive about how easy dealing with Q would have been: "Oh， Republicans just had to do this early on。。。"2） A recent pattern that Sommer follows is to call QAnon anti-semitic because it modifies tropes that have been used by anti-Semites in the past and because QAnon theories do， indeed， have some Jews in their cross hairs。 This does not seem like an accurate conclusion since in a world wide cabal you would expect some involved to be Jewish。 Jews would have to be particularly focused on for it to be anti-semitic or Anons would have to argue that there is something sinister about Jewish culture that makes them more likely to be part of the cabal。 As it stands， it is questionable if Soros is a particularly favorite target because he is Jewish or just because of how high profile and politically active he is。 Hilary Clinton is another favorite target， for instance， but not Jewish。What seems more fair to say is that QAnon does attract anti-Semites and there is a risk that they could take over。 Sommer gives example of some current QAnon "thought leaders" trying to do just that。 It is， however， not at all clear whether a move by Q to overt anti-semitism would cost or hurt their overall appeal。3） Finally， it would be nice to see more discussions of the psychology behind it all。 There is some discussion of this in Chapter 7 but， unfortunately， the field of what causes attraction of conspiracy theories is rather nascent。 Still Sommer could have dived a bit more into what is known about the demographics of QAnon， for instance。 （Unfortunately， the answer is that， other than being more likely to be conservative， and slightly more likely to be religious， the demographics do not appear to be that much different from the general population。 This includes in areas such as income and education。） 。。。more
Matt Beaty
，
Very simple history with some specific anecdotes。
Alex Gruenenfelder
，
I preordered this book awhile ago， both beginning it and finishing it the week within days of its released。 Having been fascinated with the QAnon phenomenon and cult for awhile， Will Sommer is a name that comes up frequently in reporting on the subject， so I was very interested in what his writing will bring。 Though the book doesn't break much new ground， and instead largely brings in personal stories to add to broadly available information， Sommer tells an easily readable and important story fo I preordered this book awhile ago， both beginning it and finishing it the week within days of its released。 Having been fascinated with the QAnon phenomenon and cult for awhile， Will Sommer is a name that comes up frequently in reporting on the subject， so I was very interested in what his writing will bring。 Though the book doesn't break much new ground， and instead largely brings in personal stories to add to broadly available information， Sommer tells an easily readable and important story for the future of the Republican Party and American politics。Sommer follows the predominant hypothesis of who Q is and explores a few alternative theories， but the point of the book isn't who Q is。 The book views Q as a lesser figure in this， compared to the influencers who have used the conspiracy theory as a justification for violence。 The book references a number of documentaries and other reporters who investigate theories you might like to know more about， but this book is established as a primer。 There is no one focus， such as January 6th， but a broader focus on the movement。Sommer connects the web of conspiracy theories that is QAnon to the history of conspiracy theory politics in America， but he also concludes that this movement is different。 As a man who has himself become obsessed with this cult， he provides evidence of its increasing power， even in the aftermath of Donald Trump's presidency。 There is no easy solution to the crisis Sommer describes， nor does he really try to articulate one。 Instead， this book is a solid introduction to the conspiracy theory that is worsening our nation day-by-day， perfect to fill in the uninitiated and expand the knowledge of the already addicted。 。。。more
Margeau
，
If anyone in your life doesn’t know what the Q phenomenon is， this is a great place to start！
courtney
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I’ve been following QAnon since its origins， but it’s difficult to follow all of the meandering roads it will lead you down， and the cast of characters associated with it， unless you make it your life。 Luckily Will Sommer has done that for us and this book is a great comprehensive look at the crazy and the sad that this movement has inspired。
Jim
，
I've read （too much， for sure） about the Q conspiracies before， but this is by far the most cogent book on the subject。 Rather than attempting to narrativize a chronology of events， Sommer devotes each chapter to a specific element （say， the numerous kidnappings associated with Q） and then synthesize that information while jumping around in time。 Utterly terrifying。 I've read （too much， for sure） about the Q conspiracies before， but this is by far the most cogent book on the subject。 Rather than attempting to narrativize a chronology of events， Sommer devotes each chapter to a specific element （say， the numerous kidnappings associated with Q） and then synthesize that information while jumping around in time。 Utterly terrifying。 。。。more
Brian S
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Fascinating and extremely well researched！ Sommer keeps the emotions in check， allowing for an objective view inside the curtain。
Emilie Buckley
，
I love Will Sommer and was so excited for the book to come out。 If you're like me and have already read the many books previously released on Q-anon， there isn't a whole lot that's new。 If you haven't， I think it's a great primer。 I love Will Sommer and was so excited for the book to come out。 If you're like me and have already read the many books previously released on Q-anon， there isn't a whole lot that's new。 If you haven't， I think it's a great primer。 。。。more
Andrew Chapman
，
Not the definitive account I'd hoped for。 Ultimately reads like cobbled together articles from the Daily Beast， which of course， it is。 While Sommer does cite some interesting studies and input from authorities on conspiracy， the book is too pedestrian and breezy for such a massive topic。 Only toward the end does Sommer begin to drink deep of the madness， recounting the pathetic ballad of "Baby Q"。 Needed more deep cuts like that。 QAnon is a plot that's been marinating for millions of man-hours Not the definitive account I'd hoped for。 Ultimately reads like cobbled together articles from the Daily Beast， which of course， it is。 While Sommer does cite some interesting studies and input from authorities on conspiracy， the book is too pedestrian and breezy for such a massive topic。 Only toward the end does Sommer begin to drink deep of the madness， recounting the pathetic ballad of "Baby Q"。 Needed more deep cuts like that。 QAnon is a plot that's been marinating for millions of man-hours in some of the dankest depths of the internet。 Weirdness beyond what makes it into the New York Times on a regular basis barely bubbles to the surface in this accounting。 Casual enthusiasts of the conspiracy won't find much here they didn't already skim elsewhere。（Sommer does include some thoughtful and well-reported personal accounts of QAnon victims--the family members of Q acoyltes。 I enjoyed reading these， but again， was left hoping for a bit more） 。。。more
Vasiliki Haralambopoulou
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As a sociologist with a fascination for cults and conspiracies I am looking forward to devouring this one。 Thank you Harper for the copy！Review to come。
Katelynn
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