The 2020 election was already dirty and filled with misinformation, but independent singer-songwriters from Philadelphia like (Sandy) Alex G had been able to stay unscathed. That is, until this week.
Pro-Trump accounts on social media have focused their attention on Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke after he offered a full-throated co-sign of wide-reaching gun control at a recent debate. One of the commonly circulated posts claims to show a young O'Rourke wearing jeans he appears to have urinated in. The picture usually appears on MAGA accounts with some variation of the phrase "I’M BETO ROBERT FRANCIS O’ROURKE I’M HERE FOR YOUR GUNS!”
However, the person in the photo is (Sandy) Alex G, and he wants to stress that he didn't actually piss himself. On Tuesday FactCheck.org verified the origins of the photo, tracking it to backstage at a summer 2017 show in New York City. “I spilled a beer on my pants,” Giannascoli said. “I was joking around... It obviously isn’t that funny anymore.”
If you have trouble remembering whether it's Beto or (Sandy) in the picture, just memorize this simple phrase: "Jeans that look peed? It's (Sandy) Alex G. Looking for a running mate-o? Gotta be Beto."
Read (Sandy) Alex G's cover story here
Thumbnail photos by Chris Maggio for The FADER and FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images
