Daily Wire commentator Matt Walsh raised [1] questions this week about how Democrats and the media would respond if a string of violent incidents had been carried out by conservatives instead of left-wing attackers.
In a widely shared post on X, Walsh argued that the reaction would be far more severe if the political affiliations were reversed.
Walsh’s post, which has been viewed millions of times, presented a hypothetical scenario in which a conservative-leaning individual targeted high-profile liberals and institutions.
He used the example to illustrate what he believes would be a dramatically different reaction from Democrats, the press, and government officials.
“Imagine that we have a Democrat administration. Now imagine that a right wing radical shot and killed one of the most influential liberals in the country on live TV. Now imagine that thousands of other conservatives shamelessly celebrated the assassination and called for more of them. Now imagine that in the same week another right winger shot up a country club while shouting ‘MAGA’ and another one shot up a news station and left behind a manifesto complaining about liberal bias in the media,” Walsh wrote.
He then expanded the scenario to include an attack on a Planned Parenthood facility.
“Now imagine that a week after all of those attacks, a conservative sniper perched on a rooftop fired into a Planned Parenthood clinic, killing or injuring multiple people. And imagine that this Planned Parenthood attack was just the latest in a string of them stretching back several months,” Walsh continued.
According to Walsh, there is no question about how Democrats would respond if those circumstances unfolded.
“Is there any doubt how the Democrats would respond? Is there any doubt that they would wage a full scale war on conservatives and have people like me frog marched in front of cameras in handcuffs and leg irons? Is there any doubt that they would declare martial law and label all right wing expression incitement? Is there any doubt that they would be rounding up conservatives by the bus load and shipping us to Gitmo?” Walsh wrote.
He further argued that conservative media organizations would face immediate consequences.
“Is there any doubt that they would have Fox News and every other conservative media company shut down and its executives arrested or sued into bankruptcy?” he added.
Walsh said his aim was not to encourage Republicans to mirror such actions, but rather to highlight the uneven treatment he believes conservatives receive.
“I am not even advocating for the right to do what the left would do,” Walsh said.
Instead, he suggested the Trump administration should take proactive steps in response to the current environment to protect lives and ensure accountability.
Imagine that we have a Democrat administration. Now imagine that a right wing radical shot and killed one of the most influential liberals in the country on live TV. Now imagine that thousands of other conservatives shamelessly celebrated the assassination and called for more of…
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) September 24, 2025 [2]
His post has prompted discussion across political and media circles, with supporters pointing to what they see as a double standard in how political violence is covered and addressed depending on the perpetrator’s ideology.
The scenario outlined by Walsh follows a string of recent violent incidents that have drawn national attention.
His commentary is part of a broader debate about how political violence is defined, reported, and prosecuted in the United States.
Walsh concluded that his thought experiment should serve as a reminder of the different standards he believes are applied by Democrats and the press.
By imagining the situation in reverse, he argued, Americans can better understand the imbalance in political and media responses to violence.
“When people stop talking, that’s when you get violence.” -Charlie Kirk pic.twitter.com/NNIORdF3lk [3]
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) September 12, 2025 [4]