If you like American Thinker’s content, please consider subscribing here for access to an exclusive, weekly newsletter offering insight from the editorial staff.

The mockingbird media isn’t just a leftwing spectacle anymore, as more and more “conservative” influencers join the ranks of what is derogatorily known as Conservative, Inc. (or ConInc.), parroting the “conservative” establishment narrative.

We saw it with “Phase 1” of the Epstein files when a slew of selected “influencers” paraded around with white binders on the White House containing absolutely no new information before posting almost identical messages to social media about how Pam Bondi wasn’t really to blame for the colossal fumble, and now, ConInc. is shilling for welfare and food stamps.

Dr. Simon Goddek collected a few screenshots from Eric Daugherty, Ian Michael Cheong, and Jenna Ellis:

🚨NEW—Turns out Big Soda is paying influencers $1,000 a ‘pop’ to attack a proposed ban on using SNAP for junk food.

Ian Miles Cheong is one of them, shilling soda while dragging Trump into it, even though he’s got nothing to do with it.

Watch who you follow. Most of these guys… pic.twitter.com/25ZQ7aGqr7

— Dr. Simon Goddek (@goddeketal) March 22, 2025

And here’s another:

Imagine having the audacity to call yourself "Clown World" and then go on to claim that diet coke is a non-negotiable human right bestowed upon the masses by the federal government pic.twitter.com/5BrVC0kGNz

— Vagrant of Rhodes 🗡️🕯️ (@vagrantwires) March 22, 2025

Talk about a paid script.

Now, according to ClownWorld, this “campaign” was not on behalf of Big Soda, but was “strictly a campaign against government overreach.” I have to wonder though, what kind of leading “conservative” can’t discern on their own that curtailing ostentatious purchases while using someone else’s money to buy your groceries—a 12-pack of Pepsi now costs somewhere between seven and ten dollars—has nothing to do with government overreach? Sure, if the government were banning Pepsi from manufacturing or selling its product… but it’s not. Removing eligible items from food stamps to cover only the bare essentials is a good first start—but it’s a program that should be entirely abolished. At least, that’s the real conservative position. I’ve said this before but apparently I have to say it again for “conservative” influencers who just post what they’re told to post without thinking (best case scenario)—there should be no government welfare. It’s theft, disguised as charity, but the role of charity in a society belongs to the church, or anyone personally compelled to act charitably.

I don’t buy coke for my household for a number of reasons: We avoid high fructose corn syrup, I don’t need the empty calories, and it’s too expensive and I have to budget my money. From someone who pays for her own grocery bill, I can’t afford to blow ten bucks on pure garbage. (We’re a water and raw milk household all the way).

Idiots, they’re all idiots. Or, liars.

Ian Smith, remembered for his defiant stance against New Jersey’s governor Phil Murphy during the tyranny of COVID lockdowns when he kicked in the boarded up entry to his own gym, explains it like this:

The Conservative movement is being bought through their influencers. Most have no idea who’s pulling the strings or how this works. So, let's break it down. 🧵

This all works through companies like Influenceable (they are not the only one, just the biggest). Essentially, it is a…

— Ian Smith, Sr. (@iansmithfitness) March 23, 2025

They’re handing out money, scripts, and bullet points to social media personalities—political influencers, trad-life accounts, meme pages, and “patriotic” content creators.

These influencers then flood your feed with what looks like organic content. But behind the scenes, it’s a…

— Ian Smith, Sr. (@iansmithfitness) March 23, 2025

They post polished videos, acting like it’s just “common sense” conservatism, while parroting the same talking points:

Defend sending billions in foreign aid.
Attack Rep. Thomas Massie for opposing it.
Defending junk food purchases under SNAP.
Justify endless military spending…

— Ian Smith, Sr. (@iansmithfitness) March 23, 2025

Let’s be honest—when did we as conservatives start supporting government welfare expansion and blank checks to foreign governments?

We didn’t. But now, some of the loudest voices in our space are getting paid to make it sound like we did.

This is paid influence designed to…

— Ian Smith, Sr. (@iansmithfitness) March 23, 2025

Shills, shills, and more shills.

Image: Free image, Pixabay license.