Twitter users have mocked Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker after he flashed what appeared to be a police badge during a debate with Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock on Friday.
Walker was responding to Warnock’s criticism that the Republican has falsely claimed to be a law enforcement officer. The former football star, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, previously made the false claim that he was an FBI agent.
“We will see time and time again tonight, as we’ve already seen, that my opponent has a problem with the truth,” said Warnock. “You can support police officers… while at the same time holding police officers, like all professions, accountable.”
“One thing I have not done I’ve never pretended to be a police officer,” Warnock said.
Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images
Walker responded by showing a badge which quickly became the subject of criticism and mockery online. It’s not clear what kind of badge Walker had and a spokesperson for the Republican later told reporters: “I couldn’t see it from where I was. So I really don’t know.”
“Herschel Walker just pulled out a police badge to claim he is a police officer (he isn’t) when confronted about impersonating law enforcement. He also broke the rules of the debate by having a prop. #GASenDebate,” wrote Brianna Tucker, deputy politics editor at The Washington Post.
Sam Brodey, who covers Congress for The Daily Beast, wrote: “Of all the things, I didn’t expect the toughest pushback from the moderators tonight to be on whether Walker could use a police badge as a prop onstage.”
“Anybody saying Herschel Walker did better than expected in the #GASenDebate seems to be overlooking the fact that this objectively hilarious photo will be the enduring image of the night,” tweeted Rex Huppke, USA TODAY humor columnist, sharing a photo of Walker holding the badge.
Veteran Star Trek actor George Takei also weighed in, writing: “In fairness to Herschel Walker, I sometimes pull out my Star Fleet badge to get past security at Star Trek conferences.”
“I keep refreshing Twitter hoping to find a defensible explanation for the Herschel Walker badge incident,” wrote Steve Koczela, president of MassINC Polling group.
Some Twitter users wanted to know more about the exact nature of the badge. Newsweek has asked the Walker campaign for comment and additional information on the badge that he showed during the debate.
“Anyone have a high res of the actual badge Walker flashed. Not looking for gags. Looking for high res image,” asked Josh Marshall, founder of Talking Points Memo.
There has been considerable controversy over Walker’s claims about his links to law enforcement. His campaign has said he’s an “honorary deputy” with the Cobb County Police Department in Georgia, but the department previously told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution it has no record of him working there.
In August, Walker shared a photo on Twitter of what appeared to be an honorary “special deputy sheriff” card from the Cobb County Sheriff’s Department.
Speaking to the Cobb County Courier in October, a department spokesperson said that the honor is for “a community liaison and partner” who does not have “arresting powers.”
NBA Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins received the distinction from the department at the time.
The Walker campaign told Newsweek in a statement in June: “Herschel studied criminal justice at UGA [University of Georgia] and has supported and worked with law enforcement for years, including speaking to police about mental health, leading a women’s self-defense training, participating in the FBI Academy at Quantico, and being awarded honorary deputy status in Cobb, along with 3 other Georgia counties.”
