As usual, the blowhard walks it back
Thursday, Oct 27, 2016 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Protest? Civil disobedience? Dude, all you’re gonna do is sit on your can while you flap your gums on the radio and type goofy stuff on Twitter in order to bolster your talk show ratings. C’mon…
Former Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh tweeted Wednesday afternoon that he plans to take up arms if Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump loses on Election Day.
“On November 8th, I’m voting for Trump,” Walsh tweeted. “On November 9th, if Trump loses, I’m grabbing my musket,” asking his nearly 80,000 Twitter followers, “You in?” […]
Walsh, who hosts a syndicated radio show on AM-560, later told NBC5 that the tweet was tongue-in-cheek.
“We’re talking about a musket,” Walsh said. “I could’ve said grab your slingshot and let’s go. Metaphorically, I meant grab your muskets, if Trump loses, man, we’re going to do what we have to do. We’re going to protest and boycott and practice civil disobedience. We may start a third party.”
“We’re going to do a lot of things to get our country back, that’s what I meant,” Walsh added.
* Most of the replies to his tweet were not at all supportive. And some were pretty funny, particularly this one…
But I still say that if he has a FOID card, he should forfeit it.
- Michelle Flaherty - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:11 am:
Who knew Walsh was such a gun grabber?
- wordslinger - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:15 am:
Walsh tries to make a living grabbing his musket in public every day.
- Robert the 1st - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:17 am:
=We may start a third party.=
Good. The Trumpers are an embarrassment to the Republican Party. I hope his defeat is especially crushing so we don’t have to hear him whine about “rigged” elections. He won’t ever go away unfortunately.
- Cleveland Fan - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:19 am:
==We may start a third party.==
Music to Madigan’s ears!
- illini97 - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:19 am:
“if Trump loses, man, we’re going to do what we have to do. We’re going to protest and boycott and practice civil disobedience. We may start a third party.”
Protest? Where and who? Homes of all the people who didn’t vote for your preferred candidate? Outside the White House in January? What are you hoping to accomplish? What’s the goal here?
Boycott what, the Illinois State Board of Elections? The Federal Government? Voting as a concept?
Civil disobedience to what? The inauguration?
Start a third party?What would be the platform of said party and why would it be successful when no other non-major party has grabbed a single Electoral College vote since 1968?
Talkers gotta talk, I guess.
- Jon - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:29 am:
I’d like to know who the “we” is, I have my suspicions…, but I suspect Mr. Walsh would be disappointed with the character of those who agree with him.
I don’t see this as a walk back, but a double down, he is inciting a response, possibly violent, to the non-election of a candidate.
Also, I’m pretty sure “grab your muskets” is not a metaphor for “let’s form a new political party”, it’s actually an allusion to armed revolt, al la 1775, or more likely 1860.
- DuPage Saint - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:31 am:
Third part with Walsh at head a great idea. He can call it the Know Nothing Party
- Oneman - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:50 am:
me thinks you overestimate him…
- Madigan's Lapdog - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 10:59 am:
Worst part is he’s getting national media attention which was his aim.
- sal-says - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:10 am:
== But I still say that if he has a FOID card, he should forfeit it. ==
Well, it looks like he forfeited his brain some time back.
- a drop in - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:16 am:
I thought the Republicans were big promoters of law and order:
“Whoever knowingly or willfully advocates, abets, advises, or teaches the duty, necessity, desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying the government of the United States or the government of any State, Territory, District or Possession thereof, or the government of any political subdivision therein, by force or violence, or by the assassination of any officer of any such government; …Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both, and shall be ineligible for employment by the United States or any department or agency thereof, for the five years next following his conviction.”
- Northsider - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:20 am:
IL-8 must be so proud to have once sent him to Congress.
- kimocat - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:25 am:
“me thinks you over-estimate him…” My thoughts exactly Oneman. He fits right in that stinky basket with them.
- Cable Line Beer Gardener - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:38 am:
Is grab/grabbing the new Republican secret word?
- Anonymous - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:54 am:
80,000 twitter followers. Egads. Walsh admires the very traits that make Trump repulsive to most sane people.
- scholar athlete - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 11:56 am:
In the immortal words of The Three Stooges, “What a maroon!” Nothing else need be said.
- Grandson of Man - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 12:50 pm:
Walsh was implying armed revolution. Kentucky’s governor recently did the same thing.
I’m hoping that the voting demographic who supports this will be defeated enough to matter in this election. If Trump doesn’t get enough of the educated moderate and Republican vote, like in suburban areas, it probably bodes well for Clinton.
- Team Sleep - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 1:30 pm:
I forgot to post this yesterday. There is a reason the RNC and NRCC left him off of their “Victory” program in 2010.
A dear friend of mine worked for him in 2010 and quit because she had not been paid for several weeks worth of work.
- Red tower - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 1:57 pm:
North side - as you probably know IL-08 is much different than it was then due to redistricting. It is unfair to blame the current IL-08 for this maroon being in congress once. Matter of fact the redistricting was one of the reasons he is no longer a congressman. No one liked him enough, or at all, to make a district for him.
- illini97 - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 2:56 pm:
Sadly this has now been picked up by the BBC. The world is reading about this.
- huey - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 3:41 pm:
Bugs Bunny used “what a maroon” too.Don’t know who was first. Outlaw muskets and slingshots!!!
- burbanite - Thursday, Oct 27, 16 @ 5:22 pm:
I wish Walsh would just go away.