Not to reply a year after you commented, but I think it's the fault of the fake Billy Bat patches he's handing around. It's probably some sort of commentary on how Idolization can creep up onto people's hearts and twist their minds to ignore obvious conclusions.
It's a bit like if your neighbor's kid got home with bruised knees every day, kid says it's the gym teacher beating him up but no one believes him because the gym teacher and the kid's dad were friends in middle school.
Why would they suspect this foreigner guy, he's the kind, exotic, American man waving around Mickey Mouse patches and making children smile.