Five Things to Know as Walker’s Woes Continue and Early Vote Begins

The steady “drip-drop” of bad news stories continued during a turbulent first week of early voting for Trump-tapped U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker. On top of new reports that added to the candidate’s laundry list of falsehoods, exaggerations, and failed businesses, Walker doubled down on his support for banning all abortion – even in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother – faced a “Trump-sized” headache as the former president promised his supporters that Walker would lose if Brian Kemp is the gubernatorial nominee, and skipped yet another GOP Senate debate.

Here are five Herschel headaches to know about as early voting kicks into gear:

1) Walker still under fire after an investigation revealed he has “spent years promoting health products with dubious claims” that were “not supported by medical evidence generally accepted by the medical community”:

• A new report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes that “the products were commercial failures, cost Walker and his business partners millions of dollars and put his companies into deep debt, for which creditors have repeatedly sued Walker and his associates to recover.”
  • Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Herschel Walker spent years promoting health products with dubious claims
  • Daily Beast: Herschel Walker’s Failed Company Hawked Health Products He Knew Were Bogus
  • MSNBC: The unexpected thing Herschel Walker has in common with Dr. Oz
  • Daily Kos: Herschel Walker didn’t just hawk COVID-19 spray; he’s spent decades touting unproven health products
• Fox 5’s Georgia Gang discusses how the “drip-drop” of bad news stories about Walker’s “lot of dirty laundry” is steadily making Republican voters “less likely… to be excited to vote for him”:

• Lori Geary, Georgia Gang Host: “The AJC also had an in-depth article this week on Herschel Walker. It focused on health products with questionable claims that Walker promoted… Tharon, will this come back, possibly, you know, if he wins the primary and heads into November?”

• Tharon Johnson: “Yes, absolutely… The more and more you learn about Herschel Walker – the man, the celebrity athlete, the Trump-endorsed candidate – the less likely voters are going to be excited to vote for him if he’s the Republican nominee. And so you’re seeing a ‘drip drop’ of articles…a lot of dirty laundry that this candidate has in his house.”

2) Herschel Walker doubled down on his support for banning all abortions in Georgia and across the country — even in cases of rape and incest, or to save the mother’s life:

• Herschel Walker is doubling down on his support for banning all abortions without exceptions for rape or incest or to save the life of the mother, promising to “protect the unborn with my life … because I believe from the womb to the tomb.”

• Walker stated in a Georgia Life Alliance survey that he supports “outlawing abortion, including in instances of rape and incest,” even if necessary to save the life of the mother. 

• The morning after the leaked decision, Walker was endorsed by Susan B. Anthony List, a major anti-choice group that has worked to undermine reproductive rights. This endorsement comes after Walker was endorsed by National Right to Life, another organization that fights for bans and restrictions on the decisions women make about their own health care.

3) Walker under fire from ethics watchdog groups amid potential DOJ investigation into his personal financial disclosure:

• Ethics watchdogs are calling out Walker after a GPB report revealed that he could be subject to a Department of Justice investigation of his personal financial disclosure. A previous report from GPB News raised “red flags” about potential “conflicts of interests” in Herschel Walker’s personal financial disclosure, which is “missing key information” and contains major “inconsistencies.” 

• Georgia Public Broadcasting: Democratic group asks for DOJ investigation into Herschel Walker’s financial disclosure forms
  
• The Current GA: Democratic group asks for DOJ investigation into Herschel Walker’s financial disclosure forms

4) Walker’s “Trump-sized headache that won’t go away”: Former president says that Walker won’t win if Brian Kemp is the GOP nominee for governor.

• As the AJC notes: “During his Monday tele-rally for his hand-picked gubernatorial candidate, David Perdue, this week, Trump predicted his Senate candidate Herschel Walker will get trounced in November if Trump’s nemesis, Gov. Brian Kemp, wins his primary in May.” 

• Trump said, “One of the problems also is if Brian Kemp gets in, I think it’s going to be very, very hard for Herschel Walker to win.”

• “Because I don’t believe Republicans are going to go out and vote for Brian Kemp. And if they’re not voting for Brian Kemp, they’re not going to be able to vote for Herschel Walker.”

5) “Where the heck is Herschel Walker?” At GOP Senate debate, rivals rip into the empty lectern representing Walker – “who was instead hosting a fundraiser in east Georgia while his rivals mocked him as a coward for skipping the event.”

• As the Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted: “Missing from the stage was GOP front-runner Herschel Walker, a former football star who was instead hosting a fundraiser in east Georgia while his rivals mocked him as a coward for skipping the event. He also was a no-show at a previous debate, and his campaign taunted critics for “obsessing” over his absence.”
• Gary Black said Walker is “avoiding voters and fellow candidates”, while Latham Saddler called Walker’s absence “pathetic.”
• This comes as Georgia Republicans, conservative commentators, and GOP activists alike have been scrutinizing the Trump-tapped candidate’s “refus[al] to face voters” amid a barrage of reports about his repeated lies and “lengthy political baggage, including recent reports of overstated business claims [and] deficient personal financial disclosures…”

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