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Why do conservatives constantly lie to support their...."ageeeendaaaaa"?
Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted a claim about missing kids that parrots a QAnon conspiracy theory and misrepresents FBI data
Lindsay Dodgson
Mon, December 13, 2021, 5:24 PM
Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted that 365,348 children went missing in 2020.Drew Angerer/Getty Images
- Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted that 365,348 children went missing in 2020.
- The tweet misrepresents FBI data, as nearly 95% of that group was classified as runaways.
- The QAnon conspiracy theory popularized the idea that American children are being abducted en masse.
Boebert, a Republican, that "365,348 children went missing in 2020" and criticized "the media" for lacking coverage of that statistic. "There enlies the problem," she added, appearing to intend to use the phrase, "therein lies."
While that number is technically correct — there were 365,348 reports of missing children entered into last year — nearly 95% of those were categorized as runaways, or children who leave home without permission and stay away for at least one night, the agency said in its 2020 report.
The misrepresentation of the data reflects a belief popularized by the QAnon conspiracy theory.
In addition to the 246,310 children whom the FBI said , 2,593 (or 1%) were abducted by a noncustodial parent, and 276 (or 0.1%) were abducted by a stranger, according to the FBI. Overall, a minor being kidnapped by a noncustodial parent was nine times more likely than being taken by a stranger, the agency said in its report.
I think this makes it quite obvious that 3.9% of these missing kids are taken by the Aliens.