Derek Johnson (conspiracy theorist)

Derek Johnson is an American conspiracy theorist, musician, and author known for promoting various unfounded claims about U.S. government operations, election fraud, and military control. He gained prominence in far-right circles following the 2020 United States presidential election.

Background
Johnson is described as an Alabama-based U.S. Army veteran, singer-songwriter, and Billboard-charting country music artist. He operates a website called "The Blueprint" at thedocuments.info, which he claims is "an online tool to help the public understand Military Laws and Orders".

As of November 2023, Johnson had 143,000 followers on X (formerly Twitter).

Election fraud and "Two Presidents" theory
Johnson is a prominent promoter of the false claim that Donald Trump is still the President of the United States and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. He has described Trump as a "military plant" and asserts that "some set of military laws and orders means that Trump is actually still commander in chief".

Biden replacement theory
Johnson has promoted the baseless claim that President Joe Biden has been "executed and replaced". He has shared side-by-side comparisons of photos of Joe Biden on social media, insinuating that Biden had been replaced.

COVID-19 conspiracy theories
In a document entitled "Hindsight is 2020", Johnson claimed that the COVID-19 pandemic was a "nuclear option" orchestrated by political forces. He wrote, "The 'Nuclear Option' was Covid-19. What you have to understand is … it's just a word attached to flu statistics. The military actually took over in November 2016. That's when a lot of the arrests were made. Everything you've seen since then are actors in the best technology known to man."

Johnson also claimed that the military receives a different set of COVID-19 vaccines than the general public.

Other claims
Johnson has asserted that the January 6 insurrection was staged by the FBI.

Public appearances and controversy
In November 2023, Johnson was invited to participate in an "author's week" event at the Monroe Public Library in Alabama. The invitation sparked controversy, with a former activities coordinator at the library expressing concern that giving Johnson a platform to share his views and sell merchandise crossed the line of free speech and could potentially harm the community through misinformation.

Criticism and debunking
Johnson's claims have been widely criticized and debunked by fact-checkers, legal experts, and military officials. His misinterpretation of legal documents, government operations, and military protocols has been noted by constitutional scholars and fact-checking organizations.