Russia allegedly enlisted the assistance of two individuals in supporting Trump's campaign. The claim isn't a fabrication. Opinion piece.
In the summer of 2016, two residents of Palm Beach County, Florida, found themselves unwittingly involved in a Russian propaganda operation. Anne Marie Thomas and Harry Miller were contacted by Russian operatives posing as college students, asking them to organise a pro-Trump rally.
The rallies were scheduled to take place simultaneously on August 20, with the goal of uniting America and supporting Donald Trump. Thomas, who played Hillary Clinton in the performance, recruited her boyfriend to play Bill Clinton. In the script, Thomas-as-Hillary-was supposed to pull a skillet from her purse and hit her "husband," wearing a Bill Clinton mask, as he groped female passersby.
Thomas added her own creative touches to the Russian script. She wore a shirt with the prison number 09112012, referencing the 2012 Benghazi attack. Miller was also paid several hundred dollars to purchase supplies to create a cage for the performance.
The rally climaxed with the crowd chanting "Lock her up!" and Thomas climbing into a makeshift cage on Miller's truck. The Russians who orchestrated the entire event requested photos and video as proof of their successful meddling.
In the 2018 investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller, 13 Russian nationals and three Russian companies were charged for interfering in the 2016 election. However, there is no credible or verified evidence publicly available that specifically documents Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election in Palm Beach County, Florida.
Thomas and Miller were later interviewed by FBI agents, who concluded they were unaware of who was really pulling the strings. The recent documents and reports released or cited in 2025 mainly focus on allegations about the intelligence community and political narratives regarding Russian interference nationwide, but they do not provide localized evidence pertaining to Palm Beach County.
Despite this, it's important to note that the U.S. intelligence community's 2017 assessment concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 election broadly, targeting the U.S. electoral process, including cyber operations and information campaigns aimed at influencing public opinion. While the localised evidence in Palm Beach County may be lacking, the broader national-level assessments indicate that Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 election were real and happened across the United States.
Recent releases by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard in July 2025 claim that the Obama administration "manufactured" intelligence to create the narrative of Russian election interference. These documents allege political manipulation in the intelligence assessment process after the election, rather than presenting new verified evidence of interference itself.
In summary, while national-level assessments and investigations indicate that Russia engaged in efforts to interfere in the 2016 election, no verified evidence or authoritative reports specifically highlight Russian interference in Palm Beach County, Florida. The recent 2025 revelations focus on disputes over the legitimacy and handling of the national intelligence regarding Russian interference, not on confirmed local incidents.
- The involvement of Anne Marie Thomas and Harry Miller in the Russian propaganda operation in 2016 extended to social media, as they were asked to organize a pro-Trump rally which was promoted online.
- In the midst of war-and-conflicts and politics, the pro-Trump rally in Palm Beach County, Florida, was part of a broader Russian effort to interfere in the general news of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
- The entertainment factor of the rally, which included scripted skits such as Hillary Clinton attacking Bill Clinton, was a tactic used by the Russian operatives to capture public attention and influence opinions.
- Apart from the political implications, the intricate scheme also involved crime-and-justice, as Thomas's boyfriend was paid several hundred dollars for casino-and-gambling supplies to create a makeshift cage for the performance.
- In the sphere of policy-and-legislation, the 2018 investigation led to charges against 13 Russian nationals and three Russian companies for their interference in the election, though no specific localized evidence was found in Palm Beach County regarding sports-betting or other sports.
