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Former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh made a name for himself for being one of the few very conservative Republicans with the conscience to turn on former Republican President Donald Trump.
And in an appearance on MSNBC's The Mehdi Hasan Show over the weekend, Walsh laid into his fellow Republicans who have as yet been unable to oppose the former President too.
During a discussion on the blowback from the FBI searching Trump's Mar-a-Lago home last week in search of classified or top-secret documents, Walsh lashed out at how his fellow Republicans have been "twist[ing] into pretzels" to defend Trump.
\u201cFormer GOP rep. says Republicans are once again twisting themselves 'into pretzels' defending criminal behavior. It\u2019s what they\u2019ve been doing for the past 6 yrs. @KylieEricaMar https://t.co/QUHU6xEk30\u201d— Joe Walsh (@Joe Walsh) 1660567307
Walsh also told Hasan he thinks the Republican Party is so irredeemably devoted to Trump the FBI search has only made him stronger within the Party.
You can see his comments below.
\u201cCould the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago actually help Trump in 2024? \n\u201cIt\u2019s sad, but this has strengthened Trump within the [Republican] party,\u201d @WalshFreedom tells @MehdiRHasan.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
Walsh told Hasan that his fellow Republicans' response to Trump's bold-faced criminality is right on-brand.
"This may be an inappropriate thing to say, but, Mehdi, I find it so funny watching my former colleagues twist into pretzels trying to defend criminal behavior."
"And that’s what they’ve done for the last six years."
Walsh went on to excoriate Republicans for calling for retaliation for Trump's FBI search even in the wake of the incident in Cincinnati last week in which a pro-Trump domestic terrorist was shot to death after attacking an FBI office there.
"Trump wanted there to be chaos [in 2020], and he wanted there to be violence if he lost that election."
"The same thing, Mehdi, is going on this week. Trump wants there to be violent threats, and he wants there to be violence against members of the FBI..."
"...And he's the leader of that party, and members of that party have to try to defend that."
On Twitter, many agreed with Walsh's take on Trump and the Republican Party.
\u201c@WalshFreedom @KylieEricaMar Huge knots. The biggest knots ever. No one has seen knots this big. Everyone is saying these are the best knots.\u201d— Joe Walsh (@Joe Walsh) 1660567307
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan Trump is a career criminal and con man. You deserve what you get.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
\u201c@WalshFreedom @KylieEricaMar When right and wrong become things you decide based on who does them, your moral or ethical compass can\u2019t be trusted.\u201d— Joe Walsh (@Joe Walsh) 1660567307
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan The MAGA base Is strengthened by this. \n\nSome of the actual media and GOP leaders would take the off-ramp if they can.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
\u201c@WalshFreedom @KylieEricaMar They're a bunch of contortionists. Clearly, Republicans have missed their calling.\u201d— Joe Walsh (@Joe Walsh) 1660567307
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan There is bottom for today\u2019s fascist Republican Party\u2014no level of corruption or criminality that they will not vociferously endorse. It is astounding and maddening.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan Here's a clue\nTrump has a base. It's about 30% of Americans who are racists. He's always had them. He always will. it doesn't matter if you raid his house or distribute the pee pee tape they won't change so stop pretending this is something new or different\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
But others felt more hopeful than Walsh that the FBI raid will be the think that takes Trump out.
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan No. He is done.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan Trump being strengthened within the party = Democrats being strengthened nationally \ud83e\udd37\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
\u201c@MehdiHasanShow @WalshFreedom @mehdirhasan Sorry. Trump is finished.\u201d— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@The Mehdi Hasan Show) 1660528492
Despite his anti-Trump stance, Walsh is far from a moderate Republican.
During his time in Washington he was most famous for promoting the racist "birther" conspiracy theory that former Democratic President Barack Obama was a secret Muslim not born in the United States, and he was a passionate Trump supporter in 2016.
He has since recanted his stances on Obama and has publicly apologized for what he sees as having enabled Trump's rise.
Here's hoping more Republicans will have similar awakenings in the near future.