Herschel Walker's 'Prop' Badge Debate Moment is Like 'SNL' Meets 'Mad TV'

By Andrew Roberts

Former Georgia Bulldog and NFL running back Herschel Walker took another strange turn in his campaign for Georgia's senate seat. Incumbent Raphael Warnock is facing off against Walker, with the pair meeting for their first and likely only debate after this moment.

Walker, a friend of Donald Trump with the former president's backing, wanted to be sure people knew he was serious about law and order during the debate. It's not the TV show either, it's the real thing. Sadly, his proof was not real and it made for an awkward and cringe-inducing moment you might see on Mad TV or SNL.

During the debate, Walker accused Warnock of empowering criminals that now think "they're more powerful than the police." This led to Warnock firing back about Walker's relationship with the truth, leading to a moment it's hard to forget happened.

"One thing I have not done, I've never pretended to be a police officer," Warnock said, referencing Walker's many false claims that he "worked in law enforcement" or trained with the FBI. It's sorta like that kid in school that can't tell the truth and makes up elaborate lies, which leads to Walker going to the next logical step and pulling out his badge.

"I am work with many police officers," Walker says, while pulling out a badge that the moderator referred to as a "prop." While the moderator likely meant prop in the frame of the debate rules, as it turns out, the badge is literally a prop in the false sense. Walker was not deterred, though, adding, "It's not a prop, this is real." The audience responded with boos.

Missing was Walker sticking the badge in his mouth and testing the metal to further sell his decision as legitimate. It's the culmination of years of claims by Walker where he claimed to be a "special deputy sheriff" and "honorary agent" that served the blue "for many years."

As Deadline notes, Walker once told an audience of U.S. servicemen and women that he "worked in law enforcement" and he had a gun. In 2017 he claimed similar, referencing the Cobb County Police Department. Then in 2019, he informed soldiers at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washing that he "spent time at Quantico at the FBI training school" before adding, "Y'all didn't know I was an agent?"

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, he is not and never was. This was confirmed by the Cobb County Police Department, who said they have no record of Walker being employed at the department. They also could not confirm Walker's campaign claiming he was "honorary."

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