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<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"/> <title>Useful idiot - RationalWiki</title> <script>document.documentElement.className="client-js";RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":!1,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat":"dmy","wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"Z-6BDjtiEyL1jVRU-5yPNAAAAEc","wgCSPNonce":!1,"wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":!1,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"Useful_idiot","wgTitle":"Useful idiot","wgCurRevisionId":2676622,"wgRevisionId":2676622,"wgArticleId":88314,"wgIsArticle":!0,"wgIsRedirect":!1,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Pages using DynamicPageList parser function","CS1 errors: invisible characters","Politics","Political terms"],"wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Useful_idiot","wgRelevantArticleId":88314,"wgIsProbablyEditable":!0,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":!0, "wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgMediaViewerOnClick":!0,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":!0};RLSTATE={"site.styles":"ready","noscript":"ready","user.styles":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","ext.cite.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles.legacy":"ready","mediawiki.toc.styles":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["ext.cite.ux-enhancements","site","mediawiki.page.startup","mediawiki.page.ready","mediawiki.toc","skins.vector.legacy.js","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","mmv.head","mmv.bootstrap.autostart"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.implement("user.options@1hzgi",function($,jQuery,require,module){/*@nomin*/mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); });});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.cite.styles%7Cmediawiki.toc.styles%7Cskins.vector.styles.legacy&only=styles&skin=vector"/> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""/> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector"/> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.35.6"/> <meta name="description" content="A useful idiot is someone who supports one side of an ideological debate, but who is manipulated and despised by the leaders of their faction, or who is unaware of the ultimate plan driving the ideology they support.&#91;note 1&#93; The term originated in early 1950s America in reference to members of the Socialist Party, allegedly promoted by the malevolent KGB to weaken America as a nation.&#91;2&#93; The closely related term fellow traveller (Russian: спутник, sputnik)&#91;note 2&#93; refers to someone who sympathises with and is willing to support the publicly stated goals of the party while not being a dues-paying, card-carrying member. 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id="contentSub2"></div> <div id="jump-to-nav"></div> <a class="mw-jump-link" href="#mw-head">Jump to navigation</a> <a class="mw-jump-link" href="#searchInput">Jump to search</a> <div id="mw-content-text" lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr"><div class="mw-parser-output"><table class="infobox" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 0.5em 0.5em; text-align:left; border: 1px solid #1E90FF; width:175px;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF"><b>Oh no, they're talking about</b><br /><a href="/wiki/Politics" title="Politics"><font size="4" color="White"><b>Politics</b></font></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="background-color:#97DEFF;" align="center"><a href="/wiki/Category:Politics" title="Category:Politics"><img alt="Icon politics.svg" src="/w/images/thumb/f/f2/Icon_politics.svg/100px-Icon_politics.svg.png" decoding="async" width="100" height="100" srcset="/w/images/thumb/f/f2/Icon_politics.svg/150px-Icon_politics.svg.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/f/f2/Icon_politics.svg/200px-Icon_politics.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="200" data-file-height="200" /></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b>Theory</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Political_spectrum" title="Political spectrum">Political spectrum</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Political_party" title="Political party">Political party</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Government" title="Government">Government</a> (<a href="/wiki/List_of_forms_of_government" title="List of forms of government">forms of</a>)</li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b>Practice</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/International_relations" title="International relations">International relations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Propaganda" title="Propaganda">Propaganda</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/War" title="War">War</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b><a href="/wiki/Political_philosophy" title="Political philosophy"><font color="white">Philosophies</font></a></b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/End_of_History" title="End of History">End of History</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Paleolibertarianism" title="Paleolibertarianism">Paleolibertarianism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ideology" title="Ideology">Ideology</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b><a href="/wiki/Category:Political_terms" title="Category:Political terms"><font color="white">Terms</font></a></b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/NIMBY" title="NIMBY">NIMBY</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ratfucking" title="Ratfucking">Ratfucking</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Buzzer" title="Buzzer">Buzzer</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b>As usual</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bloc_Qu%C3%A9b%C3%A9cois" title="Bloc Québécois">Bloc Québécois</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aung_San_Suu_Kyi" title="Aung San Suu Kyi">Aung San Suu Kyi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Liberty_Korea_Party" title="Liberty Korea Party">Liberty Korea Party</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#1E90FF; text-align:center;"><b>Country sections</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#97DEFF;"> <center><a href="/wiki/Category:United_States_politics" title="Category:United States politics"><img alt="United States politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/40px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="18" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/60px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/120px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1235" data-file-height="650" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:British_politics" title="Category:British politics"><img alt="British politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg/40px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="21" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg/60px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg/120px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom_%283-5%29.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1000" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Canadian_politics" title="Category:Canadian politics"><img alt="Canadian politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Flag_of_Canada.svg/35px-Flag_of_Canada.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="18" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Flag_of_Canada.svg/53px-Flag_of_Canada.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Flag_of_Canada.svg/70px-Flag_of_Canada.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1200" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Chinese_politics" title="Category:Chinese politics"><img alt="Chinese politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/35px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/53px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/70px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:French_politics" title="Category:French politics"><img alt="French politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/40px-Flag_of_France.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/60px-Flag_of_France.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/120px-Flag_of_France.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:German_politics" title="Category:German politics"><img alt="German politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Flag_of_Germany.svg/35px-Flag_of_Germany.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="21" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Flag_of_Germany.svg/53px-Flag_of_Germany.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Flag_of_Germany.svg/70px-Flag_of_Germany.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1000" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Indian_politics" title="Category:Indian politics"><img alt="Indian politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Flag_of_India.svg/35px-Flag_of_India.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Flag_of_India.svg/53px-Flag_of_India.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Flag_of_India.svg/70px-Flag_of_India.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Iranian_politics" title="Category:Iranian politics"><img alt="Iranian politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Flag_of_Iran.svg/40px-Flag_of_Iran.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="20" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Flag_of_Iran.svg/60px-Flag_of_Iran.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ca/Flag_of_Iran.svg/120px-Flag_of_Iran.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="630" data-file-height="360" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Israeli_politics" title="Category:Israeli politics"><img alt="Israeli politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/35px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="25" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/53px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/70px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1100" data-file-height="800" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Japanese_politics" title="Category:Japanese politics"><img alt="Japanese politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/40px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/60px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/120px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:South_Korean_politics" title="Category:South Korean politics"><img alt="South Korean politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg/40px-Flag_of_South_Korea.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg/60px-Flag_of_South_Korea.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg/120px-Flag_of_South_Korea.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a> <a href="/wiki/Category:Turkish_politics" title="Category:Turkish politics"><img alt="Turkish politics" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Flag_of_Turkey.svg/35px-Flag_of_Turkey.svg.png" decoding="async" width="35" height="23" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Flag_of_Turkey.svg/53px-Flag_of_Turkey.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Flag_of_Turkey.svg/70px-Flag_of_Turkey.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1200" data-file-height="800" /></a> </center> <div class="vte plainlinks" style="font-size:smaller; text-align:center;"><a href="/wiki/Template:Politics" title="Template:Politics">v</a> - <a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Politics" title="Template talk:Politics">t</a> - <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Politics&action=edit">e</a></div> </td></tr></tbody></table> <table style="margin: auto; border-collapse:collapse; border-style:none; background-color:transparent;" class="cquote"> <tbody><tr> <td><div style="padding:4px 50px;position:relative;"><span style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:-6px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">“</span><span style="position:absolute;right:10px;bottom:-20px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">”</span>The various modes of worship which prevailed in the Roman world were all considered by the people as equally true; by the philosopher as equally false; and by the magistrate as equally useful.</div> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="padding:4px 10px 8px;font-size:smaller;line-height:1.6em;text-align:right;"><cite style="font-style:normal;position:relative;z-index:2">—Edward Gibbon<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1">[1]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:41</sup></cite> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>A <b>useful idiot</b> is someone who supports one side of an ideological debate, but who is manipulated and despised by the leaders of their faction, or who is unaware of the ultimate plan driving the <a href="/wiki/Ideology" title="Ideology">ideology</a> they support.<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2">[note 1]</a></sup> The term originated in early 1950s <a href="/wiki/America" title="America">America</a> in reference to members of the <a href="/wiki/Socialist_Party_USA" title="Socialist Party USA">Socialist Party</a>, allegedly promoted by the malevolent <a href="/wiki/KGB" class="mw-redirect" title="KGB">KGB</a> to <a href="/wiki/Red_Scare" class="mw-redirect" title="Red Scare">weaken America as a nation</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3">[2]</a></sup> The closely related term <b>fellow traveller</b> (Russian: спутник, <i>sputnik</i>)<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4">[note 2]</a></sup> refers to someone who sympathises with and is willing to support the <a href="/wiki/Propaganda" title="Propaganda">publicly stated goals</a> of the party while not being a dues-paying, card-carrying member. The origin of the phrase has often been attributed to <a href="/wiki/Vladimir_Lenin" title="Vladimir Lenin">Vladimir Lenin</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5">[3]</a></sup> but there is no evidence that Lenin ever said or wrote it.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6">[4]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7">[5]</a></sup> </p> <div id="toc" class="toc" role="navigation" aria-labelledby="mw-toc-heading"><input type="checkbox" role="button" id="toctogglecheckbox" class="toctogglecheckbox" style="display:none" /><div class="toctitle" lang="en" dir="ltr"><h2 id="mw-toc-heading">Contents</h2><span class="toctogglespan"><label class="toctogglelabel" for="toctogglecheckbox"></label></span></div> <ul> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="#Co-optation"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">Co-optation</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="#Misuse"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">Misuse</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3"><a href="#Examples"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Examples</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-4"><a href="#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-5"><a href="#Notes"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">Notes</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6"><a href="#References"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></a></li> </ul> </div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Co-optation">Co-optation</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Co-optation">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <p>The term <i><b>co-opted</b></i> is often used when this phenomenon occurs on a large enough scale that a <i>group, movement, or cause</i> has been co-opted and subverted for a hostile and destructive purpose. </p><p>In the case of <i><a href="/wiki/Agent_provocateur" title="Agent provocateur">agents-provocateurs</a></i>, this may be a deliberate and organised effort; indeed, this would be more or less the goal. Alternatively, it may simply be the extreme natural consequence of <a href="/wiki/Poe%27s_Law" title="Poe's Law">Poe's Law</a> at work, when <a href="/wiki/Trolls" class="mw-redirect" title="Trolls">trolls</a> and <a href="/wiki/Edgelord" title="Edgelord">edgelords</a> (for lack of a more precise and neutral terminology) enter the community of interest in sufficient numbers to distort its aims, methods, and publicly visible message. </p><p>The distinction is, of course, only one of intention; the practical outcome for the community concerned is essentially the same. </p><p>Citing specific examples is a controversial exercise, especially in the second case. </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Misuse">Misuse</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Misuse">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <p>As a subjective label, it is often misused/abused. There are reasonable differences of <a href="/wiki/Rhetoric" title="Rhetoric">rhetoric</a> and tactics in any ideological movement, but these differences can be <a href="/wiki/Ad_hominem" class="mw-redirect" title="Ad hominem">unfairly smeared</a> with the label of idiocy. Nor are all poor representatives of a position necessarily useful idiots: a useful idiot is a poor representative held up as a figurehead by a third party with malicious intent. <a href="/wiki/VenomFangX" title="VenomFangX">VenomFangX</a> may be a spectacular failure at <a href="/wiki/Christian_apologetics" class="mw-redirect" title="Christian apologetics">Christian apologetics</a>, but he's not a useful idiot because his popularity comes from other <a href="/wiki/Christian" class="mw-redirect" title="Christian">Christians</a>, not <a href="/wiki/Atheist" class="mw-redirect" title="Atheist">atheists</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8">[note 3]</a></sup> </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Examples">Examples</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Examples">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/S._E._Cupp" title="S. E. Cupp">S. E. Cupp</a> — The atheist who hates atheists. She is often seen as a useful idiot of the <a href="/wiki/Religious_Right" title="Religious Right">Religious Right</a>, an atheist who talks at length about how atheists are <a href="/wiki/Irony" title="Irony">sexist</a>, <a href="/wiki/Evil" class="mw-redirect" title="Evil">evil</a>, stupid or unreasonable.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/David_Frum" title="David Frum">David Frum</a> — An <a href="/wiki/American" class="mw-redirect" title="American">American</a> <a href="/wiki/Conservative" class="mw-redirect" title="Conservative">conservative</a> blogger who is regarded by many on the left as "<a href="/wiki/Reality-based_community" title="Reality-based community">the sensible one</a>" and <a href="/wiki/Epistemic_closure" class="mw-redirect" title="Epistemic closure">by many on the right as a useful liberal idiot</a>.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kent_Hovind" title="Kent Hovind">Kent Hovind</a> — A <a href="/wiki/Creationist" class="mw-redirect" title="Creationist">creationist</a> and <a href="/wiki/Evangelist" class="mw-redirect" title="Evangelist">evangelist</a> with a PhD from a <a href="/wiki/Diploma_mill" title="Diploma mill">diploma mill</a> and a 10-year prison sentence, his tactics were scorned by more "respectable" creationist organisations such as <a href="/wiki/Answers_in_Genesis" title="Answers in Genesis">Answers in Genesis</a>, who considered him well-meaning but a useful idiot for the villainous <a href="/wiki/Darwinist" class="mw-redirect" title="Darwinist">Darwinists</a>.</li> <li>The <a href="/wiki/Tea_Party" class="mw-redirect" title="Tea Party">Tea Party</a> — Many of the people involved in the "teabagging" protests have low incomes and would <i>benefit</i> from many <a href="/wiki/Democratic" class="mw-redirect" title="Democratic">Democratic Party</a>-backed policies like <a href="/wiki/Obamacare" class="mw-redirect" title="Obamacare">Obamacare</a>, and would be mostly hurt by <a href="/wiki/Republican" class="mw-redirect" title="Republican">Republican</a> policies like <a href="/wiki/Paul_Ryan" title="Paul Ryan">Paul Ryan</a>'s "<a href="/wiki/Path_to_Prosperity" title="Path to Prosperity">Path to Prosperity</a>," even though a fair number of them oppose cutting government programs like <a href="/wiki/Medicare" title="Medicare">Medicare</a> and <a href="/wiki/Social_Security" title="Social Security">Social Security</a>. (<a href="/wiki/GOP" class="mw-redirect" title="GOP">GOP</a> strategists know this.) The Republican establishment's catering to them in the name of votes eventually backfired. It bit them in the ass when the Tea Party movement broadly coalesced around <a href="/wiki/Donald_Trump" title="Donald Trump">Donald Trump</a>'s 2016 presidential campaign, whose economic populism ran counter to GOP orthodoxy on <a href="/wiki/Free_trade" title="Free trade">free trade</a> and free markets.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Edward_Snowden" title="Edward Snowden">Edward Snowden</a> — After striking a blow against the <a href="/wiki/NSA" title="NSA">abuse of civil liberties</a> by the <a href="/wiki/Bush" title="Bush">Bush</a> and <a href="/wiki/Obama" class="mw-redirect" title="Obama">Obama</a> administrations, <a href="/wiki/Snowden" class="mw-redirect" title="Snowden">Snowden</a> allowed himself to be manipulated into a transparent <a href="/wiki/Public_relations" title="Public relations">public relations</a> stunt by his supposed protector, <a href="/wiki/Vladimir_Putin" title="Vladimir Putin">Vladimir Putin</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9">[6]</a></sup> To his credit, Snowden was fully aware of how this was playing out and was appalled by it. He took to the pages of <i><a href="/wiki/The_Guardian" title="The Guardian">The Guardian</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10">[7]</a></sup> to make clear his rejection of Putin's "answers" and to explain his own intentions in asking the questions. Nonetheless, he married a Russian <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recruitment_of_spies#Love.2C_honeypots.2C_and_recruitment" class="extiw" title="wp:Recruitment of spies" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Recruitment of spies#Love, honeypots, and recruitment">honeypot</span></a><sup><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> as a reward.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Henry_A._Wallace" title="Henry A. Wallace">Henry A. Wallace</a> — The former <a href="/wiki/Vice-president" class="mw-redirect" title="Vice-president">vice-president</a> under <a href="/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" title="Franklin D. Roosevelt">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a> ran in 1948 on a third party platform that was staunchly <a href="/wiki/Left-wing" class="mw-redirect" title="Left-wing">left-wing</a> and pro-<a href="/wiki/Soviet_Union" title="Soviet Union">Soviet</a>. While it's widely accepted that Wallace himself was not a communist, it's also widely accepted that the party itself (the Progressive Party of 1948) had been infiltrated by genuine communists and fellow travellers. The <a href="/wiki/Communist_Party_USA" title="Communist Party USA">Communist Party USA</a> endorsed him in a "popular front" strategy rather than running their own candidate. As a result of his refusal to disavow them, the anti-communist Socialist Party ran its own candidate (the <a href="/wiki/Perennial_candidate" title="Perennial candidate">perennial candidate</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Thomas" class="extiw" title="wp:Norman Thomas" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Norman Thomas">Norman Thomas</span></a><sup><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup>) rather than support Wallace. In his 1952 autobiography, <i>Where I Was Wrong</i>, Wallace himself later admitted that he felt he had been duped by <a href="/wiki/Joseph_Stalin" title="Joseph Stalin">Joseph Stalin</a>, and that his support for the Soviets stemmed from ignorance of Stalin's true intentions and the nature of his rule.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Smoloko_News" title="Smoloko News">Scottie Spence</a> — The founder (and criminal) of Smoloko News, an <a href="/wiki/Anti-Semitic" class="mw-redirect" title="Anti-Semitic">anti-Semitic</a>, <a href="/wiki/International_Jewish_conspiracy" title="International Jewish conspiracy">international Jewish conspiracy</a> "news" service that sympathises with <a href="/wiki/Adolf_Hitler" title="Adolf Hitler">Hitler</a> and the <a href="/wiki/Nazi_Germany" title="Nazi Germany">Nazis</a>, treating them as if they were the good guys, completely unaware of the <a href="/wiki/Holocaust" title="Holocaust">less than noble things they did to Jews</a>, and pandering to the likes of <a href="/wiki/Henry_Makow" title="Henry Makow">Henry Makow</a>, <i><a href="/wiki/The_Daily_Stormer" title="The Daily Stormer">The Daily Stormer</a></i> and <a href="/wiki/Real_Jew_News" class="mw-redirect" title="Real Jew News">Real Jew News</a>. He also serves as a useful idiot for <a href="/wiki/Russia" title="Russia">Russian</a> President <a href="/wiki/Vladimir_Putin" title="Vladimir Putin">Vladimir Putin</a>. His servant (or sidekick) Alicia Frischmann also falls under the same useful idiocy for Nazism.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tucker_Carlson" title="Tucker Carlson">Tucker Carlson</a> — Perhaps the best example on this list, Carlson has promoted various <a href="/wiki/Authoritarian" class="mw-redirect" title="Authoritarian">authoritarian</a> regimes and leaders, especially <a href="/wiki/Far-right" class="mw-redirect" title="Far-right">far-right</a>/<a href="/wiki/Fascist" class="mw-redirect" title="Fascist">fascist</a> ones (which is not surprising knowing that Carlson himself is a fascist). Some examples include making <a href="/wiki/Propaganda" title="Propaganda">propaganda</a> for <a href="/wiki/Viktor_Orb%C3%A1n" title="Viktor Orbán">Viktor Orbán</a> and Putin, promoting them as "traditional conservatives" fighting against the "<a href="/wiki/Wokeness" class="mw-redirect" title="Wokeness">wokeness</a>" and "<a href="/wiki/Degeneracy" class="mw-redirect" title="Degeneracy">degeneracy</a>" that Carlson claims is prevalent in the West.</li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="See_also">See also</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: See also">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Concern_troll" title="Concern troll">Concern troll</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sucker" class="mw-redirect" title="Sucker">Sucker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bread_and_circuses" title="Bread and circuses">Bread and circuses</a></li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Notes">Notes</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Notes">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="font-size:90%;"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-2">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">There is often (but not always) the implication that the ideology in question is something nefarious and/or that the fulfillment of its goals will screw the useful idiots over in some fashion (such as becoming <a href="/wiki/Genocide" title="Genocide">genocide</a> victims).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-4">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">It is not clear whether this usage originated in the CPSU or was coined in the West among anti-Communists familiar with the Russian word for <i>traveling companion</i> and later imported in a "hey, that's useful, we should have thought of that" moment. The CPSU did originate the very similar term <i>podkulachnik</i> — which means the same thing in relation to <i>kulak</i> — at the time of the "liquidation of the kulaks as a class". This suggests a continuity of ideas, but that does not resolve the question.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-8">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Granted, examples of Christian apologists who are <i>successful</i> at convincing <a href="/wiki/Skeptics" class="mw-redirect" title="Skeptics">skeptics</a> to embrace <a href="/wiki/Christianity" title="Christianity">Christianity</a> are… hard to come by.</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="References">References</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: References">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; -webkit-column-count:2; column-count:2; font-size:80%;"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-1">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/bim_eighteenth-century_the-history-of-the-decli_gibbon-edward_1777_1/mode/2up"><i>The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire</i></a> by Edward Gibbon (1777) William Hallhead. 4<sup>th</sup> edition.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-3">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://oed.com/view/Entry/220640?redirectedFrom=useful%20idiot#eid205795844">Useful idiot</a>, Oxford English Dictionary</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-5">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r2708880">/* Errors processing stylesheet [[:Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css]] (rev 2708880): • Invalid or unsupported value for property 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.cs1-ws-icon a{}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFBecket_Adams2012" class="citation web cs1">Becket Adams (January 26, 2012). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/01/26/soros-supposes-hes-one-of-lenins-useful-idiots/">"Soros 'Supposes' He's One of Lenin's 'Useful Idiots'<span class="cs1-kern-right"></span>"</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Soros+%E2%80%98Supposes%E2%80%99+He%E2%80%99s+One+of+Lenin%E2%80%99s+%E2%80%98Useful+Idiots%E2%80%99&rft.date=2012-01-26&rft.au=Becket+Adams&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theblaze.com%2Fstories%2F2012%2F01%2F26%2Fsoros-supposes-hes-one-of-lenins-useful-idiots%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AUseful+idiot" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-6">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite id="CITEREFWilliam_Safire1987" class="citation web cs1">William Safire (April 12, 1987). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/12/magazine/on-language.html">"ON LANGUAGE"</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=ON+LANGUAGE&rft.date=1987-04-12&rft.au=William+Safire&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1987%2F04%2F12%2Fmagazine%2Fon-language.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AUseful+idiot" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-7">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Paul F. Bioler Jr., <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=NCOEYJ0q-DUC&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=lenin+said+useful+idiots&source=bl&ots=hCOzRyw0KG&sig=c8z6W_BkBI3XqC0SdLPQPVSJKuk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CEMQ6AEwBjgKahUKEwiJ6Nzk-ezIAhVBOCYKHUlZCe0#v=onepage&q=lenin%20said%20useful%20idiots&f=false">They Never Said It: A Book of Fake Quotes, Misquotes, and Misleading</a>. Oxford University Press, 1990.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-9">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite id="CITEREFKathy_Lally_and_Greg_Miller2014" class="citation web cs1">Kathy Lally and Greg Miller (April 17, 2014). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/edward-snowden-asks-vladimir-putin-about-russian-spying-on-its-citizens/2014/04/17/bdbdcbdc-c62b-11e3-9f37-7ce307c56815_story.html">"Edward Snowden asks Vladimir Putin if Russia spies on its citizens"</a>. <i>Washington Post</i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Washington+Post&rft.atitle=Edward+Snowden+asks+Vladimir+Putin+if+Russia+spies+on+its+citizens&rft.date=2014-04-17&rft.au=Kathy+Lally+and+Greg+Miller&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Fedward-snowden-asks-vladimir-putin-about-russian-spying-on-its-citizens%2F2014%2F04%2F17%2Fbdbdcbdc-c62b-11e3-9f37-7ce307c56815_story.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AUseful+idiot" class="Z3988"></span> <span class="cs1-visible-error citation-comment"><code class="cs1-code">{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_web" title="Template:Cite web">cite web</a>}}</code>: </span><span class="cs1-visible-error citation-comment">soft hyphen character in <code class="cs1-code">|title=</code> at position 26 (<a href="/wiki/Help:CS1_errors#invisible_char" title="Help:CS1 errors">help</a>)</span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-10">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Snowden, Edward. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/18/vladimir-putin-surveillance-us-leaders-snowden">"Vladimir Putin must be called to account on surveillance just like Obama."</a> <i><a href="/wiki/The_Guardian" title="The Guardian">The Guardian</a></i>, 18 April 2014.</span> </li> </ol></div></div>    </div></div><div class="printfooter">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&oldid=2676622">https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Useful_idiot&oldid=2676622</a>"</div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Special:Categories" title="Special:Categories">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Politics" title="Category:Politics">Politics</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Political_terms" title="Category:Political 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