- Fact-checkers from USA Today set no trace of the quote in a library of Voltaire’s communications.
- The quote originated from Kevin Alfred Strom, who founded the neo-Nazi Country-wide Vanguard.
- Strom is an American white nationalist and Holocaust denier, according to the Associated Press.
On Sunday, US Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., tweeted out criticism targeting Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Communicable Diseases, containing a political cartoon superimposed with a quote from neo-Nazi Kevin Alfred Strom, which he misattributed to French philosopher Voltaire.
“To learn who in the mains over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize,” the quote reads.
—Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) January 30, 2022
A USA Today fact-check of the repeat found no trace of the phrase in Voltaire’s correspondence from 1742-1777, which is logged in the University of Southern California’s digital library.
Etymologist Barry Popik invented that the quote originated from a 1993 radio broadcast with Strom, although his wording was slightly unlike, USA Today reported.
Additionally, Strom confirmed to the outlet that the quote was his.
Strom, who helped found the neo-Nazi Resident Vanguard, is an American white nationalist and Holocaust denier, the Associated Press reported.
In 2007, Strom was arrested by federal causes at his home in Stanardsville, Virginia, and charged with possessing and receiving child pornography, enticing a minor to perform sex undertakings, and intimidating a witness, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
He was convicted and sentenced to 23 months in prison, which at the last led the National Vanguard to disband.
While Massie has not addressed or removed the quote from Strom, he has posted additional presentations to his Twitter account, including a link to a newsletter on liberal censorship and a congratulatory message to the Cincinnati Bengals following their playoff win.
Insider has reached out to saleswomen of Massie for comment.