Trump-appointed federal prosecutor seeks public help on election conspiracy theories
ms.now
A Trump-appointed prosecutor crowdsourcing election conspiracy theories exposes how motivated reasoning can drive legal institutions to work backwards from a conclusion in search of evidence.
Motivated ReasoningConfirmation BiasConspiracy Theory PsychologyPrincipal-Agent Problem
Theory Briefing
- A Republican federal prosecutor is asking the public for evidence of California election conspiracies, signaling no concrete proof yet exists.
- The move mirrors motivated reasoning: starting with a desired conclusion and soliciting facts to fit it, rather than following evidence.
- Using prosecutorial authority to validate unproven conspiracy theories risks normalizing confirmation bias as a tool of government investigation.