What They’re Saying: #GASEN Candidate Walker “Fumbles Again” Questioning Science Behind Evolution

March 16, 2022

Yesterday, the Huffington Post reported on new statements from GOP U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker questioning the concept of evolution, asserting that “the fact that apes and humans coexist disproves accepted science” — and triggering a wave of coverage across the country of the Trump-tapped candidate’s latest head-scratcher.

It’s the newest in a string of bizarre blunders and false statements that the Trump-tapped candidate has made, including bragging about having a “dry mist” product that — “as you walk through the door” — [would] “kill any COVID on your body.” 

Read coverage of the Republican U.S. Senate candidate’s latest fumble below:

WJCL, Savannah: “[Walker] doesn’t believe in evolution

  • Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker’s new comments making headlines right now.
  • The reason why? He doesn’t believe in evolution.

Herschel Walker Skeptical Of Evolution: ‘Why Are There Still Apes? Think About It’

Huffington Post, 3/15/22

  • Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker cast doubt on the theory of evolution in recent remarks, saying the fact that apes and humans coexist disproves accepted science.
  • “At one time, science said man came from apes, did it not? … If that is true, why are there still apes? Think about it,” Herschel said in an appearance at Sugar Hill Church in Georgia on Sunday.
  • “Now you’re getting too smart for us, Herschel,” lead pastor Chuck Allen responded.
  • Walker is currently the front-runner in the GOP contest to challenge Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) in November. He’s a former NFL star who has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, and he’s outspoken about his Christian faith.
  • Walker is hardly the first GOP candidate who has run for office questioning evolution.
  • Humans did not evolve from the apes that you see at the zoo. Rather, humans and apes have a common (and now extinct) ancestor that lived roughly 10 million years ago. Technically, all humans are apes, but that doesn’t mean that chimpanzees are one step away from becoming people. Walker’s summary of evolution is incorrect, and there’s nothing incompatible about humans coexisting with other apes.
  • Evolution and Christianity also aren’t necessarily at odds, and a number of prominent Christians have said it is possible to believe in both God and the science of evolution.
  • The Walker campaign didn’t respond to a request for additional comment.
  • Walker remains the front-runner in the race despite facing domestic violence allegations.
  • In their divorce proceedings, his ex-wife alleged that he displayed “physically abusive and threatening behavior” during their marriage. In one instance, she said, he pointed a gun at her head and said, “I’m going to blow your … brains out.”
  • Two other women have also claimed that Walker threatened them.
  • In a December interview with Axios, Walker said he has struggled with mental health issues and is “accountable” for his past actions, without going into specifics about his behavior toward his ex-wife.

Herschel Walker fumbles again, this time on evolution

MSNBC, 3/15/22

  • Many of the issues plaguing Herschel Walker’s Senate candidacy have nothing to do with his rhetoric. It’s become obvious, for example, that the Georgia Republican knows effectively nothing about public affairs. Voters have also learned about allegations of domestic violence and other dangerous personal behavior. His failures as a businessman have also been well documented.
  • But Walker’s rhetoric clearly hasn’t helped matters.
  • Late last year, the first-time candidate tried to argue that the late-Rep. John Lewis was a senator who’d oppose the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. We learned soon after that Walker had falsely claimed the FDA had approved an unproven “dry mist” mystery treatment for Covid-19. The Republican then said it was “totally unfair“ to ask for his opinion about the bipartisan infrastructure law.
  • Now, as HuffPost reported, Walker is rejecting evolution, too, suggesting the existence of apes casts doubt on modern biology.
  • As most junior-high-school students know, evolutionary science does not tell us that humans “came from” apes. Rather, in reality, humans and apes share a common ancestor that’s now extinct. One need not earn advanced degrees to know this; it’s Biology 101.
  • What’s more, note how Walker said science accepted evolution “at one time,” as if such knowledge is a thing of the past. It’s not.
  • We’re reminded anew why the Georgian’s campaign team has tried to limit the retired football player’s public appearances and kept Walker “largely behind closed doors.”
  • In other words, Walker’s rhetoric reinforces concerns that the guy just isn’t ready for prime time…

Senate candidate Herschel Walker questions evolution, asking, ‘Why are there still apes?’

Washington Post, 3/15/22

  • Herschel Walker, the leading candidate for the Republican Senate nomination in Georgia, questioned evolution at an event over the weekend, asking why apes still exist if humans have evolved from them.
  • Walker made the remark Sunday during an appearance at Sugar Hill Church in Sugar Hill, Ga.
  • Polls show that Walker, who has been endorsed by former president Donald Trump, is the overwhelming favorite in the race for the GOP nomination to face freshman Sen. Raphael G. Warnock (D-Ga.) in the fall.
  • “At one time, science said man came from apes. Did it not?” Walker asked Chuck Allen, lead pastor of Sugar Hill Church, during Sunday’s event.
  • “Every time I read or hear that, I think to myself, ‘You just didn’t read the same Bible I did,’ ” Allen replied.
  • Walker continued: “Well, this is what’s interesting, though. If that is true, why are there still apes? Think about it.”
  • “You know, now you’re getting too smart for us, Herschel,” Allen responded.
  • As The Washington Post’s “Dear Science” columnists discussed at length in 2016, humans did not evolve from chimpanzees or any other great apes that are living today. Rather, humans and chimpanzees share a common ancestor that lived about 10 million years ago. They are now on different evolutionary tracks.
  • During the Sunday event, Walker also appeared to question in vitro fertilization and other forms of assisted reproductive technology.
  • “And then, the conception of a baby,” Walker said. “Let me tell you, science can’t do that. They’re still trying to do it, but they can’t, because there has to be a God.”
  • A Walker campaign spokeswoman did not address the substance of Walker’s remarks in a statement.
  • The statements are the latest eyebrow-raising comments by Walker. In January, the Daily Beast reported on an August 2020 podcast appearance in which Walker promoted a “mist” that he claimed would “kill any covid on your body.”
  • Walker, 60, is a former University of Georgia and National Football League running back and College Football Hall of Famer. He has received support from Trump and some other high-profile Republicans despite facing domestic violence allegations and questions about his business record and residency.
  • Walker’s ex-wife, Cindy Grossman, claimed in divorce filings that her former husband was physically abusive and threatened to kill her, forcing her to secure a protective order against him. She told ABC News in 2008 that Walker had pointed a pistol at her head before threatening to kill her.
  • Walker told Axios in December that he is “accountable” for his actions toward Grossman but declined to discuss specifics.
  • The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last year that Walker’s ex-girlfriend told police in 2012 that when she tried to end her relationship with him, he threatened to “blow her head off” and then kill himself. Another woman has alleged Walker threatened and stalked her in 2002. No charges were filed in either of those cases, and Walker denies the accusations.

Herschel Walker’s Stumper on Evolution: ‘Why Are There Still Apes?’

New York Magazine, 3/15/22

  • Donald Trump’s and Mitch McConnell’s candidate for the U.S. Senate from Georgia, football legend Herschel Walker, doesn’t have much of a profile on major issues of public policy, having never run for public office or participated in major public venues other than Celebrity Apprentice. So far, his Senate campaign has been a tightly wrapped package. As the front-runner for the Republican nomination, Walker has declined to debate opponents and has limited public and media appearances to very friendly audiences. But he did make news at one of those softball encounters over the past weekend, an interview with Pastor Chuck Hill of Sugar Creek Church in suburban Atlanta. As an amazed Amanda Terkel of HuffPost reported, Walker waxed philosophical about the theory of evolution:
  • Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker cast doubt on the theory of evolution in recent remarks, saying the fact that apes and humans coexist disproves accepted science.
  • “At one time, science said man came from apes, did it not? … If that is true, why are there still apes? Think about it.”
  • Terkel did, and set the record straight for readers: Humans did not evolve from the apes that you see at the zoo. Rather, humans and apes have a common (and now extinct) ancestor that lived roughly 10 million years ago. Technically, all humans are apes, but that doesn’t mean that chimpanzees are one step away from becoming people. Walker’s summary of evolution is incorrect, and there’s nothing incompatible about humans coexisting with other apes.
  • Evolution and Christianity also aren’t necessarily at odds, and a number of prominent Christians have said it is possible to believe in both God and the science of evolution.
  • I’m beginning to understand why Walker has limited his speaking appearances. Luckily for him, he needs no real introduction to Georgia voters. But if he hopes to defeat his Democratic opponent, incumbent Raphael Warnock, in November, he should keep in mind that the Reverand Warnock has spoken on religious topics at length every Sunday for many years. Walker would be smart not to compete on that playing field.

Herschel Walker Says Evolution Can’t Be Real Because Apes Still Exist

Daily Beast, 3/15/22

  • Herschel Walker, a Republican candidate in Georgia for the U.S. Senate, is at it again, this time with an extremely dubious argument against evolution. “At one time, science said man came from apes, did it not?” he said during an appearance at a church on Sunday. “If that is true, why are there still apes? Think about it.” 
  • The statement, which does not prove the theory of evolution false, nonetheless landed well among the congregation. “Now you’re getting too smart for us, Herschel,” the church’s pastor said. 
  • Walker doubled down on his damnation of science, falsely arguing that science alone cannot be responsible for the creation of a baby. “They’re still trying to do that, but they can’t, because there has to be a God,” he said. Walker is the GOP frontrunner to compete against Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) in November.

Herschel Walker wants to know why there are still apes

NY Daily News

  • Herschel Walker is skeptical about evolution.
  • The Georgia senate candidate shared his confusion during a Sunday visit to Sugar Hill Church in Georgia. His inquiry came just under an hour into a service that lasted roughly 82 minutes.
  • “At one time, science said man came from apes, did it not?” Walker asked churchgoers.
  • As Encyclopaedia Britannica explains, human evolution is “the process by which human beings developed on Earth from now-extinct primates.”
  • But Walker seems to be under the impression scientists believe modern-day apes turn into people.
  • “If that is true, why are there still apes?” the Republican candidate wondered. “Think about it.”
  • Walker is the front-runner to challenge freshman Sen. Raphael Warnock in November. He was a football star at the University of Georgia where he won the Heisman Trophy in 1982. In December, Walker’s campaign website removed the false claim that the hard-running student-athlete had earned a degree in criminal justice after the Atlanta Journal-Constitution learned otherwise.

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