Flynn's 2026 playbook comes into sharp focus thanks to his network's New York gubernatorial candidate

Recap of an enlightening and shockingly honest conversation with the Republican candidate for Governor of New York: "Damn you retard." "Ivan the pip bomber."

May 29, 2025

I didn’t find Derrick Gibson. He found me.

It started with a flier—the amateur graphics job typical of Flynn network speaking events. Bold red type. “Save America Tour.” A lineup that reads like a Stop the Steal reunion: Roger Stone looming large at the top, Ivan Raiklin below him.

At first I didn’t read the small print under Ivan’s name, but when a reader drew my attention to it I was shocked: “Ivan the pip bomber [sic].”

I found this hilarious, as I have often joked that since Ivan and the J6 Pipe Bomber are the same 5’7” height and similar build and gait, and Ivan has declared for at least a year and a half that he knows the identity of the pipe bomber, that maybe it is, in fact Ivan. To see this on a Flynn network flier was too much.

Was this a prank? An act of a saboteur? I tracked the flier down and to its origin: New York 2026 Republican gubernatorial candidate Derrick Gibson had posted and reposted the event on X, as it is billed to promote his campaign.

It’s still not clear whether Gibson knew about the description of Ivan. His subsequent conversation with me was laden with typos and poor grammar, and it could have been an oversight or maybe he was trolling Ivan’s critics.

But when I questioned the wisdom of his post and flier, Gibson didn’t just take the bait—he tore into it. What followed was a string of replies that said the quiet part loud:

“Damn you retard.”
“I’m independent because both parties are a gang.”
“God works through man, and I’m that man.”
“The wrecking ball is coming.”

And just like that, we had the latest test subject in the Flynn network’s spoiler candidate lab.

His responses are so shocking and revelatory — not just about his intentions but about the Flynn network political operations for 2026 — that I’ll just post screenshots of the whole thing here.

This was just the start of the conversation. I had to look at his profile again. He describes himself as a “staunch Republican.”

Again, this guy is running for Governor. Of New York. Oh wait, there’s more:

At this point I realized this was fun. I really didn’t expect him to espouse messianic ambitions. When he said, “God work [sic] through man, and I’m that man.” I asked, tongue in cheek, “Are you God’s anointed? A prophet?”

His response: “You will find out soon enough and you may not like the results. Repent while there is time.” Apparently, much like his counterpart, Kristina Karamo, Gibson believes all those who question him are sinners going to hell. But his response clearly teases his supernatural aspirations.

In this conversation he threatens that “the wrecking ball is coming and will wipe away the pride of both parties.” But throughout our conversation he never mentioned any desire to do anything but help the Democrats.

He signaled his intentions clearly when he said, “I’m a staunch Republican and will govern as such once I take the party back.”

Let’s be clear. This is not just another angry gadfly running on fumes. Gibson is following a script—one perfected by Flynn’s network across multiple states: insert a firebrand, torch the coalition, and leave Democrats grinning all the way to Election Day.

This Is a Playbook, Not a Personality

What Gibson spouts looks like solo mania, but it’s anything but. The Flynn network has run this play many times before:

Michigan, 2022: Donna Brandenburg gets bumped from the GOP ballot, then runs under the “U.S. Taxpayers Party.” Result? Whitmer sails to reelection.
Michigan, 2023: Kristina Karamo takes over MIGOP under the psychological control of Mike Labadie and runs the party into bankruptcy and uselessness before it was rescued by Trump and Pete Hoekstra.
Arizona, 2021–24: The “Patriot Party” burns legal resources and deepens AZGOP infighting while failing to make the ballot. The Flynn faction, led by Shelby Busch, takes over AZGOP and drives all the sane and productive out of the party.
Florida, 2024–25: The Florida Republican Assembly is now in court with the state GOP over rights to the word “Republican.” Spoiler threat: they are losing in court and have already filed paperwork to form a new third party.

It’s rinse and repeat. Introduce a chaos candidate, fracture the base, and neutralize the Republican threat under the guise of “America First” purity.

Now, New York is next.

Gibson’s Role in the Machine

Gibson doesn’t hide the plan. In our exchange, he pledged to run even if denied the GOP line—promising to “help the people who are fed up.” Translation: he’ll split the vote, hand the race to the Democrats, and then claim it was righteous rebellion.

He mixes messianic self-flattery with tactical sabotage. His rhetoric is radioactive to independents, and the New York media will eat up every slur and self-coronation. And behind the curtain? The digital soldiers are already moving. Stone’s dirty tricks and Flynn’s influencer ecosystem are laying the groundwork.

This is not random. This is a live field test for the 2026 insurgency.

The Cost of Letting It Slide

The GOP can’t afford to blow this off. Look at Michigan: just a few thousand spoiler votes flipped the math. In Arizona, millions were wasted just to defend the ballot. That’s the risk Gibson brings to New York.

The NYGOP is already facing long odds. A Flynn-backed spoiler turns a difficult race into an automatic loss.

And the chaos doesn’t stop at the ballot box. These spoiler runs double as recruitment drives—pulling local GOP chapters, churches, and influencers into the Flynn orbit. What begins as noise becomes infrastructure.

What Must Be Done—Now

Name the tactic. Tell voters, early and often: this isn’t populism. It’s a demoralization campaign dressed in camo and crosses.
Refuse the bait. Don’t trade insults. Instead, quote Gibson’s own words. Let the contradictions hang themselves.
Tighten the rules. The party must fix ballot loopholes now—before Gibson can exploit them as an “independent Republican.”
Contrast with real leadership. Serious candidates need to lead on governance. Gibson talks wrecking balls; Republicans should talk roads, school choice, public safety, balanced budgets, and freedom from government control.

Derrick Gibson’s vulgarity isn’t just online static—it’s a symptom of a deeper infection. The same psyop network that tried to bait Trump into a military coup, hijack the RNC, and fracture red states is now running its next test case in New York.

If conservatives want to win in 2026, they need to start treating these “spoilers” for what they are: Trojan horses with Stone and Flynn riding inside.

And they’re already at the gates.