Former President Barack Obama stopped by Georgia this week to campaign — again — on behalf of Democratic Senate candidate Raphael Warnock, who is facing Trump-backed Republican Herschel Walker for a runoff election after neither cracked 50 percent of the overall total in the first round.
Just Warnock and Walker are on the ballot this time, meaning somebody mathematically has to hit the needed level of support. Some polling has shown Warnock leading, and heading into the runoff, Warnock has also maintained his huge fundraising lead. Obama singled out some of Walker’s strange comments in his rally speech, like a diatribe about vampires. “Since the last time I was here, Mr. Walker has been talking about issues that are of great importance to the people of Georgia, like whether it’s better to be a vampire or a werewolf,” Obama quipped. “This is a debate that I must confess I once had myself — when I was 7. Then I grew up… As far as I’m concerned, he can be anything he wants to be — except for a United States Senator.” The former president also compared Walker to an uncle known for saying odd things who’s accepted but not given “serious responsibilities.”
The original context of Walker’s comments about vampires explains what he was trying to get at, but it gets worse because he characterized himself as a divinely appointed “warrior.” He was trying to make some kind of point about the importance of faith as exemplified in fictional fights against vampires, and he eventually added: “We’ve got to have faith in our fellow brothers. It is time for us to have faith. You’ve got to have faith in this country. You’ve got to have faith in the elected officials. And right now, that’s the reason I’m here, because God has brought his warrior and I’m that warrior that y’all have been looking for for a long time.” That’s an objectively troubling level of self-importance.
“@ReverendWarnock is a hard-working, God-fearing, community-serving leader who tells the truth, sticks to his word, and treats everybody with decency and respect. He’ll keep making Georgia proud in the Senate,” a Twitter post from Obama added. Former First Lady Michelle Obama also joined the fight, recording a pair of robocalls on behalf of the Warnock campaign. The turnaround time from general election to runoff is shorter this time than in 2021 when Warnock first won. Election Day is now December 6, with early voting ending Friday. Walker is also facing scrutiny for his loose ties to Georgia as he has kept claiming a homestead exemption on a residence in Texas even while registering to vote and participating in elections in Georgia — suggesting he’s either illegally claiming the exemption or not actually eligible to vote in Georgia, depending on where he’s living. He has also consistently lied about his background, even claiming to have served as a police officer or at least generally in law enforcement despite no apparent record of any serious position.
Obama on Herschel Walker: "Since the last time I was here, Mr Walker has been talking about issues that are of great importance to the people Georgia, like whether it's better to be a vampire or a werewolf … this would be funny if he weren't running for Senate." pic.twitter.com/Wm2KNRvfgt
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 2, 2022
That’s why I'm asking every Georgian to get out and vote for Reverend Warnock. Then get everybody you know to vote.
We can't get tired now.
Make a plan to vote today at https://t.co/SRPhjFLzGA.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) December 2, 2022
