Fetterman makes a video pretending to have a body double to address the conspiracy that has reached everyone from Melania Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin

These are both pictures of the real John Fetterman.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images // Mark Makela/Getty Images

• During Senator John Fetterman's stay at the hospital rumors swirled that he used a body double.
• Fetterman posted a video Tuesday trying to prove otherwise. 
• The body double conspiracy is something many politicians deal with but spotting them is in the ears.

Senator John Fetterman is attempting to put rumors to rest in a Twitter video Tuesday poking fun at the conspiracy claiming that he and dozens of political figures — from former First Lady Melania Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin — use a body double.

Fetterman is back in the Senate after being released from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on March 31 after seeking treatment for clinical depression, but during his six-week stay, QAnon conspiracy theorists and prominent right-wing accounts began pushing a claim that Fetterman had a person on his payroll pretending to be him.

"You know, during my time, during the hospital, the fringy fringies really came up with a conspiracy theory that I have a body double. And I just want you to know that's just crazy. That's not true," Fetterman say in the video.

A split-second later, the body double John Fetterman — who is actually just Fetterman, for those fooled by the camera work — walks into the room from a side door and asks the "real" Fetterman what event he was supposed to be covering for. 

"Dude. Really?" the real Fetterman responds and shrugs, while "Just the Two of Us" by Bill Withers and Grover Washington, Jr. plays in the background.

—John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) April 18, 2023

 

Theories about political figures using body doubles often appear to correlate with rumors of illness or weakness — perceived or otherwise.

Political decoys have been used on the international stage before, Insider's Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert previously reported. Their use is uncommon, but measurements of people's ears are the best way to tell the genuine article from a phony.

Representatives for Fetterman did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

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