Hey MAGA, You’ve Become What You Despised

Dear MAGA friends,

I didn’t think I’d be writing back to you so soon, but here we are. Last week, I joined you in sadness over the killing of Charlie Kirk. I knew Charlie well years ago. He was my political son, and I helped him launch Turning Point USA in 2012. We later parted ways over Donald Trump, but I never, ever wished him harm. His death is tragic, and I grieve for his wife and family.

I want to tell you a story about Charlie. Back in December 2015, he urged me to go on Facebook and respond to then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch. She had suggested that people who criticized Islam might be investigated, following the mass shooting in San Bernardino. I lost it. I dared her to throw me in jail. That rant went viral, and then the feds showed up to intimidate me.

That was the “old” Joe Walsh, who, as I often say, was a divisive political asshole. I’m sharing this now only to show that, even though I was an ignorant loudmouth back then, I’ve always been consistent on my bedrock beliefs, whether left, right, or center. I’ve changed a lot since then, but I remain a free speech absolutist. Government must not censor speech. Nothing sets me off more than a politician telling Americans what they can or cannot say.

That’s why what JD Vance and Pam Bondi are doing right now enrages me. They’re using the power of government to threaten and punish speech. That’s not conservatism. And more importantly, that’s not America.

From Free Speech Absolutists to Triggered Snowflakes?

Look, I think it’s stupid and beneath the Office of the Vice President to go on a podcast and encourage Americans to rat each other out over mean tweets. It’s par for the course for JD Vance, who, nine years after comparing Trump to Hitler, wants nothing more than to earn your devotion, as Charlie Kirk did.

However, this is not unconstitutional. A private company has every right to fire anyone if they see them posting ugly stuff online that doesn’t represent the company well. That’s the reality of free markets. So if you have the time and inclination to be a bunch of snitches for the government, I think it’s lame, but you can do it. You might want to quit whining about the deep state though.

Pam Bondi’s comments were something else entirely. She threatened to criminally prosecute a Home Depot employee who refused to print Charlie Kirk flyers. Think about that. The Attorney General of the United States using the power of government to intimidate a private citizen for declining to make political propaganda. My friends, that’s not freedom. That’s tyranny.

Remember the Colorado baker who didn’t want to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple because it violated his religious beliefs? Conservatives defended him, arguing he shouldn’t be forced to participate in speech he disagreed with. And we were right to defend him. But now, when a Home Depot clerk refuses to print Charlie Kirk flyers, you’re not satisfied that they were fired—you’re demanding prosecution? You’re becoming the people we used to ridicule.

When I was in Congress and later had my own conservative radio show, I pretty ruthlessly mocked the left for being so easily offended. “Safe spaces” on college campuses. Protests to ban controversial speakers. Liberals demanding protections from “hate speech.” We laughed and said they were fragile snowflakes.

Well, now the shoe’s on the other foot. MAGA has become the new cancel culture. You’re demanding people lose their jobs, their visas, their passports for saying things you don’t like. The Pentagon is tracking comments. Marco Rubio wants immigrants deported for criticizing Charlie Kirk. Pam Bondi says “hate speech isn’t free speech”—the same false claim some Democrats used to make.

Frankly, I don’t get it. Don’t MAGA folks hate that the UK is punishing speech? Isn’t that one of the big reasons why you gave Trump another term—to prevent America from going the way of Europe? So why are self-described defenders of liberty now trying to silence, shame, and punish their critics? Hate them all you want, but Joe Biden and Kamala Harris never tried to take your job away because of something you tweeted.

And by the way, there is no such thing as “hate speech” under the First Amendment. Speech is speech. That’s what makes America unique. That’s why we’ve endured for 249 years.

Getting back to Charlie, MAGA leaders are elevating him to near-biblical status. Greg Gutfeld says his death isn’t just a tragedy—it’s a turning point in history. Trump calls him a martyr and blames the “radical left” for his murder. His widow issues a battle cry: “The evildoers who took Charlie’s life have NO idea what they have done.” Elected Republicans say the entire Democratic Party is to blame. That’s not mourning. That’s weaponizing grief to ignite a holy war.

When the government starts talking about its own citizens as though it is battling “evil,” it is using the exact playbook that’s been used by authoritarian governments around the world throughout history: take a tragedy, inflate it into a cosmic struggle, and then use it to justify silencing the opposition (or worse). C’mon MAGA, you used to know that.

The Double Standard—and the Hypocrisy

For the past week, I’ve heard MAGA folks say, “Imagine if a Democrat were assassinated—the left would be rioting in the streets.” Well, I don’t have to imagine. It happened three months ago.

In an act of political violence, Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman, the Speaker of the House there, was brutally murdered in her home, along with her husband, by an anti-abortion Trump supporter. Their dog was killed too. She left behind two children. How did Democrats react? They called for gun reform. There were vigils. There were tears. But there were no riots. No one declared war on Republicans. No one accused the entire GOP of killing her. No one called for silencing Trump voters.

On the other hand, some Republican leaders cracked jokes. Trump dismissed giving a call to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as a “waste of time.” He didn’t even remember it happened, just three months later. No appearance at her funeral. No flags lowered. No medals of honor.

And Melissa Hortman’s children? They issued one simple statement: honor our parents by planting a tree, petting a dog, baking something, telling a dad joke. That’s it. They didn’t raise money, demonize half the country, or demand revenge. They modeled grace in grief.

Contrast that with Charlie Kirk’s family, friends, and political allies—already turning his death into a fundraiser and a rallying cry for a holy war. Which reaction is the more Christian one? Which reaction truly honors the dead?

Now ask yourself this question: Does Melissa Hortman’s death matter less than Charlie Kirk’s because she was a Democrat? If that’s what you believe, it’s time to log off social media and come back to reality, And if you’ve got “Christian” in your bio, maybe it’s time to remove that, too. After all, Christ commanded His followers to love their enemies—even, yes, political enemies.

Punishing enemies, on the other hand, is exactly what authoritarian governments do. Using state power to silence dissent. Redefining free speech to exclude speech they don’t like. Demanding loyalty not to the Constitution but to one man. And all of it is happening right now, under a Republican government—not a Democratic one, as we conservatives long feared.

JD Vance stood in for Charlie on the radio and said political violence is “only a left-wing problem.” Not only is that statement wildly irresponsible, it’s a flat-out lie. We’ve seen violence from both extremes, and in fact, we’ve seen a lot more of it from the far-right over the past 30 years or so. But Vance’s lie serves a purpose: to justify silencing the left entirely. To frame Democrats as “the enemy” in a cosmic battle.

I’m not writing this as an establishment elite. I’m writing this as someone who came from your ranks, who carried a pocket Constitution, who shouted about liberty on conservative talk radio, who voted with the Tea Party, who once stood shoulder to shoulder with you. And I’m telling you: you’ve become exactly what we despised—and feared.

If you don’t call this out now, if you don’t demand your leaders stop this madness, you will lose the very thing you (and Charlie) claimed to defend: FREEDOM. Because once you justify silencing one group, the government will eventually silence you too.

A Final Plea

Charlie Kirk’s death was a tragedy. But tragedy should humble us, not harden us. It should remind us of the fragility of life and the need for compassion—not fuel calls for war.

You want to honor Charlie? Mourn him. Celebrate his work. Pray for his family. But don’t exploit his death to shred the Constitution. Don’t turn him into Jesus Christ to justify persecuting your neighbors. Speech must be free, even when it’s offensive, even when it’s ugly. That’s the American way.

MAGA friends, look in the mirror. If you support this incursion on our most basic freedom, you’re not on the side of liberty anymore. You’re the very thing you used to mock: “the left.” And not the real left, but a creation of right-wing media to make you think that everyone who thinks differently than you is out to get you.

So call this shit out. Because if Pam Bondi gets her way, the America we both love is done.

Respectfully,
Joe Walsh
Former U.S. Congressman

The Social Contract with Joe Walsh is a citizen-supported movement resisting authoritarianism and restoring classic American values like civic engagement, tolerance, and mutual respect. To join our community, sign up to be a free subscriber. To support our mission, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. Thank you!