(Newser)
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A routine purchase request from the Social Security Administration has caused a flood of conspiracy theories, reports AP. The agency posted a notice that it's buying 174,000 hollow-point bullets, causing some to believe that it was stockpiling ammo to put down civil unrest. A retired major-general at the Daily Caller speculated that the agency was planning to "arm illegal immigrants," or even kill 174,000 US troops and replace them with security forces "loyal to the Administration, not to the Constitution."
The reality is a little tamer. The agency explained that it employs 295 agents with full law-enforcement powers to investigate fraud, the Daily Beast reports. Most of the ammunition will be used on the training range. "Our special agents need to be armed and trained appropriately," the agency says. "They not only investigate allegations of Social Security fraud, but they also are called to respond to threats against Social Security offices, employees, and customers."
