In the heart of Missouri, the Show-Me State, we finally have someone showing us that redemption is actually possible.
Meet Jerry Koch.
He is a veteran and former active-duty airman who decided to stop drinking the orange Kool-Aid.
Koch’s story was recently featured by the Leaving MAGA organization, where he opened up about his former life as a self-described “true believer.”
He detailed his journey from a devout follower of the “Make America Great Again” doctrine to a sane human being.
Koch grew up in a charismatic evangelical Republican family.
He told Rich from the MeidasTouch Network that joining the MAGA movement was basically a “natural progression” from his childhood.
It turns out that being trained not to question authority sets you up perfectly for a certain red-hatted authoritarian.
The God-to-Trump Pipeline
Koch highlighted a disturbing link between his religious upbringing and political blind loyalty.
“Charismatic evangelicalism is inherently an authoritarian doctrine system,” Koch explained.
He noted that in his world, questioning a preacher was like losing God’s grace.
So, naturally, questioning the Dear Leader was out of the question too.
This primed him for the “stolen election” narrative that broke the brains of so many Americans in 2020.
He didn’t just believe it.
He lived it.
Koch spent up to 30 hours a week live streaming and moderating forums.
He was creating content that echoed the movement’s most extreme rhetoric.
Imagine spending a full-time job’s worth of hours unpaid just to yell at the internet.
Angels, Africa, and the Absurd
But then, the cracks started to show.
The behavior of the movement leaders started getting too bizarre even for a die-hard.
The turning point?
Spiritual advisor Paula White.
You might remember her viral hit where she conducted a frantic chant calling for angels from Africa and South America to intervene in the election.
Koch, drawing on his own religious background, recognized the behavior as “pagan” and totally inconsistent with Christian values.
It is hilarious that it took literal summoning of foreign angels to make him pause, but we take the wins where we can get them.
Flat Earth and Other Disasters
That moment of cognitive dissonance sparked a massive change.
Koch started a three-year journey of “deconstruction.”
He devoted an estimated 10,000 hours to untangling the mess of conspiracy theories he had accepted as fact.
His investigation into the online right revealed a chaotic mess.
He recalled sitting on digital panels where Young Earth Creationists, Flat Earthers, and Globe Earthers would debate.
Apparently, they had more in common than they realized.
He also brushed up against the darker corners of the internet.
He described recruitment attempts into “Kekistan” and other digital environments teeming with white nationalist rhetoric.
Touching Grass and Finding Truth
The way out was simple.
He diversified his information diet.
Koch began listening to progressive voices and fellow veterans like Jesse Dollemore.
This helped him contrast the “wild, hyperbolic conspiracy theories” he was used to with actual reality.
He realized the “insider information” promised by QAnon-adjacent influencers was just a pile of failed prophecies.
Now, Koch is on a mission to educate others.
He has reactivated his YouTube channel to document the historical facts that led him out of the echo chamber.
According to the Leaving MAGA organization and the MeidasTouch Network, his testimony is a powerful reminder.
Even the most dedicated partisans can break free from authoritarian grips.
They just have to start asking questions.
My greatest concern is some, not this guy, but some people will end up leaving MAGA and immediately glob onto another political ideology. One that is possibly even more dangerous and damaging than MAGA. I applaud anyone who is humble enough to doubt and question their own beliefs, but we must also ensure they are landing their proverbial thought ship on safer, more stable ground.