There's something very, very odd about one particular Trump social media booster named "Gary Forbes"

Out of sheer trainwreck curiousity, I check up on the Donald Trump trending list on Twitter. While I personally can't stand Twitter as a social media platform (its awkward layout and inscrutable mix of hashtags, ampersands and misspellings and abbreviations are an assault on the eyes) and don't bother with an account of my own, it does have its purposes. And one of those purposes is to gain an idea of what's being talked about by people across the spectrum.

There's a lot being said about Trump online. A lot of it is very funny at Trump's expense. Other things by Trump supporters range from ignorant to downright bigoted and scary. But one particular name kept coming up as a key source of social media Trump propaganda: A man only identified as one "Gary Forbes".

Gary Forbes' Twitter page doesn't really offer much into who exactly this person supposedly is. He claims to be CEO of a company called "The Forbes Group". That makes it sound like he's affiliated with Forbes magazine or the Forbes family (including Malcolm Forbes and former presidential candidate Steven Forbes). However, there's nothing to indicate that he's actually associated with any of it, although it appears that's what he wants you to think.

His Twitter page contains very few personal pictures. The profile picture shows a middle aged man in his 50s, wearing a suit, against the background of an unidentified city skyline. While I suppose it's supposed to convey the sense of a saavy business type, the unintentionally comical expression on the man's face and hands raised makes it look more like some guy who's being held up at gunpoint on a city street after a night of too many cocktails.

So what does this "Gary Forbes" do? Simple. He produces graphic slides in support of Trump. Lots and lots and lots of them. And they'll pop up all over Twitter after being tweeted and re-tweeted and re-re-tweeted, etc. Most tout endorsements of Trump. Some tout Trump's nonsensical policy positions. Others just merely serve to fellate Trump the Man.

The first Gary Forbes slide I ever saw popped up on my Facebook page from one of the handful of Trump supporting friends I had, and it was a doozy. It claimed--in true North Korean Juche propaganda fashion--that Donald Trump had a "genius IQ" in the 99.9904590555 percentile. "Forbes" supposed this based strictly upon the fact Trump attended the Wharton School of Finance. And that's it. (No mention of whether or not Trump also scored 18 holes in one in a round of golf or whether a double rainbow appeared on the date of his birth or that he doesn't defecate.) Here, take a look for yourself:



That was back in October, and since then "Gary Forbes" has produced dozens upon dozens of similar Trump propaganda slides. All this would appear to be insignificant fanboyism except for the fact that they have been so widely circulated over Twitter and the internet, and that so much of what Forbes claims is just plain wrong. For example, in November, Forbes created a slide claiming that aviation legend Chuck Yeager had endorsed Trump. In fact, this incensed Yeager who never endorsed Trump and demanded Forbes remove the slide. However, this has not stopped the false claim from continued to be circulated as fact amongst Trump supporters for months afterwards. The incident gained so much notoriety that it actually came to Snopes attention, who rightfully called the BS on Forbes:

http://www.snopes.com/chuck-yeager-donald-trump-endorsement/

But Forbes on his website seems to clearly have an agenda of spreading propaganda regarding Trump, true or not, and even explains how to do it to maximum effect:

http://garyforbes.wix.com/blog#!How-to-initiate-conversations-about-Donald-Trump-on-social-media/c1sbz/55d27bb40cf2836caada619b

What is more curious is whether this "Gary Forbes" actually exists as a person. If you Google that name, most of the results lead you to sites discussing a professional basketball player of the same name who is obviously not the same guy. There's very little, however, of a "Gary Forbes" relating to either Donald Trump or this "Forbes Group". The bio on Forbes' own website is mysteriously vague, only claiming that he is an "Author/Speaker/Strategist/Negotiator" but does not list any family, educational, or professional background or give any type of CV listing his accomplishments and publications and such.

But looking a little deeper, things get even weirder. Because not only is Trump Superfan and social media booster "Gary Forbes" a CEO/author/speaker/strategist/negotiator, but apparently he's also an accomplished New Age pianist. At least according to his Youtube site and website that was created with the exact same website platform as his Trump page:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpyvaE9zG4uk8IVn5MfQM8Q
http://garyforbes.wix.com/pianist

The music that Forbes claims is his is reminiscent of that of John Tesh, if you've been so lucky to hear that in your local elevator. He claims to have a CD for sale called "The Illusion of Love" but there's no evidence of it being sold on Amazon or any other sales site. Forbes also claims a glowing review from "actor/writer/film producer" Steven Shavers, calling him an "extraordinary genius". You know, that Steven Shavers....whose name never comes up on IMBD or anywhere else as being an "actor/writer/film producer".

A little clue pops up on Forbes' musical site, however, as the copyright section gives the name "Gary Pasquariello Forbes", and a home video on the Gary Forbes Youtube site references himself as Gary Pasquariello.

Now....what does this have to do with Donald Trump and the country? Very little on the surface. But one has to really wonder if Gary Forbes/Pasquariello/Whoever is acting complete as a free agent spreading the word of Trump, creating intricately detailed slides containing false and libelous information in Trump's favor....or whether it's someone who was put up by the Trump campaign to do so, and the Trump campaign can retain a sense of plausible deniability of non-affiliation when called on the bullshit.

And sadly, this bullshit from "Gary Forbes" spreads like wildfire over social media and becomes nearly impossible to refute due to its viral effect. It does appear to be a logical fit--one con man (Trump) enlists the help of another con man ("Gary Pasquariello Forbes", i.e. the CEO/author/speaker/strategist/negotiator/pianist selling non-existent CDs that are praised by a non-existent actor/writer/film producer) to further catapault the propaganda and the lies all over the internets.

"Gary Forbes" Twitter:

https://twitter.com/gqforbes

"Gary Forbes" website:

http://garyforbes.wix.com/blog