Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) held another lively town hall meeting this weekend, playing host to a constituent who accused President Barack Obama of "sedition" because he had allegedly lied to voters about his true political allegiances to "socialism, communism and Nazism."
In a discussion about health care reform, a woman told Walsh that she believed the United States was losing its freedom because of elected officials who were falsifying their ideologies to get elected.
“It is sedition. I mean, they did it underground. If they are honest brokers and they believe in what they’re saying and where they want this country to go, like Obama, then you’re right. He should have said it before he was elected, and said 'I’m a socialist, I believe in socialism, in communism, Nazism,' whatever, and say 'this is where I want to lead the country' -- not do it underhandedly,” she said.
Walsh followed up on the constituent's claim without challenging it.
“However you want to label or define it, don’t you think after three and a half years as a country now we have a really good idea where this president wants to go?” he said. "There are people in this audience -- it's fine -- who believe in this America we're living under right now. That's fine, that's a legitimate viewpoint. I will fight to my last breath against it, but I wish politicians on the other side would be honest about how they feel."
Walsh has displayed penchant for creating controversy at town halls in the past. Late last month, he told a gathering that Obama had gotten elected in 2008 because he was black.
"He was a historic figure. He’s our first African-American president. The country voted for him because of that. It made us feel good about [ourselves]." Walsh said. "I’ve said it before, it helped that John McCain was about 142 years old. It helped that the economy was tanking. A lot of these things helped. But he never would have gotten there without his historic nature."
WATCH a clip of the recent town hall exchange via Mediaite: