A Heckle Becomes a Rallying Cry: Joe Wilson Calls for Donations to Keep From “Being Muzzled”

Rep. Joe Wilson has gone on the offensive with the release of this fund-raising video calling for contributions to prevent critics from “muzzling” him. This follows a \flood of contributions to his opponent Rob Miller in the immediate aftermath of his outburst on the floor of the House of Representatives during the President’s address — when he called President Obama a liar. For the original video, click here.

It appears to be working. After the releasing of the new video, Wilson has raised $200,000 (here). That is $100,000 per word and counting.

The video is much more combative than his initial statement to the media, which notably says that he called the White House to apologize on orders from his leadership (as opposed to his own initiative):

Now, he appears to be using the outburst as a rallying cry and tells supporters that they must contribute to him so he “will not be muzzled.” Does that mean that the level of contributions will directly support different levels of unmuzzled outbursts? For example, he might be able to set goals like “a thousand dollars will secure a loud snicker; ten thousand dollars will secure an audible Harumph!; one hundred thousand will secure a clearly shouted invective; and one million will secure both a heckling and vulgar hand mannerisms.”

In the ad, Wilson warns: “They want to silence anyone who speaks out against it. They made it clear they want to defeat me and pass the plan.”

The last known effort of members to muzzle an outspoken critic is shown below and only had limited success:

The message seems to be if you do not want members to muzzle Hannibal the Heckler, give generously.

For the story, click here and