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August 26, 2019

Former Republican Congressmember Joe Walsh Announces 2020 Run Against Trump
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Former Illinois Congressmember Joe Walsh announced he is challenging
President Trump for the Republican nomination in 2020. Walsh won his
congressional seat as a "tea party" candidate in 2010 but served just
one term before losing in the next election to Democrat Tammy Duckworth.
He was a vocal supporter of candidate Trump in 2016 but said in an
interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos Sunday, "I helped create
Trump," but that he now thinks "[Trump] is erratic, he's cruel, he
stokes bigotry."

He also apologized for past racist comments about President Obama. In
2017, he tweeted, "We LOWERED the bar for Obama. He was held to a lower
standard cuz he was black," and later said Obama was elected because he
was black. He also promoted birtherism and made anti-Muslim comments
about Obama - even though Obama is not Muslim. Joe Walsh is the second
Republican to announce he is challenging Trump, after former
Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld declared his candidacy in April.


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