Joe Walsh (Illinois politician) facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Joe Walsh
Official portrait, 2011

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 8th district
In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2013
Preceded by	Melissa Bean
Succeeded by	Tammy Duckworth

Personal details
Born	William Joseph Walsh (1961-12-27) December 27, 1961 (age 63) North Barrington, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Republican (until 2020) Independent (2020–present)
Spouses	Laura Walsh (m. 1987; div. 2002) Helene Miller (m. 2006)
Children	5
Education	Grinnell College University of Iowa (BA) University of Chicago (MPP)

William Joseph Walsh (born December 27, 1961) is an American politician and a host on talk radio. He used to be a social worker and even ran for president in 2020 as a Republican. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives, representing the 8th district of Illinois.

Walsh grew up in the Chicago metropolitan area. He started his career helping students in low-income areas learn job skills. This made him more interested in politics. He tried to get elected to Congress in 1996 and to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1998, but he didn't win. However, in 2010, he was elected to the U.S. House, beating Melissa Bean. Even though his own party didn't support him much, he was popular with the Tea Party movement. In the 1990s, he was a moderate Republican, but he later became a conservative and a Tea Party activist.

While in Congress, Walsh was known for criticizing members of the Democratic Party and President Barack Obama. He believed the U.S. and Israel were no longer close allies and that the country was going bankrupt. Walsh wanted to avoid any tax increases and always voted against raising the national debt. He also wrote a plan for a balanced budget amendment to the United States Constitution. Walsh did not agree with the scientific consensus on climate change and wanted stronger border control. Later, during his presidential campaign, he said he regretted some of his past comments and views.

After the 2010 U.S. Census, the voting districts were redrawn in 2012. Walsh's district changed, and he decided to run in the new 8th district against Tammy Duckworth. He lost to Duckworth in the election on November 6, 2012. After leaving Congress, Walsh started hosting a talk radio show. He first supported Donald Trump strongly, but then became very critical of him. On August 25, 2019, Walsh announced he would run for president against Trump. He stopped his campaign on February 7, 2020, after not doing well in the Iowa caucus, and then left the Republican Party. He later supported and voted for Democratic candidate Joe Biden, who won the election.

Early Life and Education

Walsh was born on December 27, 1961, in North Barrington, Illinois. He was the fifth of nine children. His father, Charles Melville Walsh, was a real estate banker. Joe graduated from Barrington High School in 1980. There, he was the student body president and played sports.

He went to Grinnell College and then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Iowa in 1985. In the mid-1980s, he studied acting in New York City and Los Angeles. He later earned a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy Studies in 1991.

Early Career and Community Work

As a social worker, Walsh helped high school dropouts in Chicago learn basic school and job skills through the Jobs for Youth program. He also taught American government and history at Oakton Community College and the Hebrew Theological College.

Walsh led the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund, which gives scholarships to low-income students for private high schools. He also raised money for groups that support school choice, like the American Education Reform Council. He helped the Fabretto Children's Foundation, an international charity, raise almost $1 million to help children in Nicaragua.

Walsh also worked on government policy for The Heartland Institute, a libertarian research group. He helped start conservative groups that aim to limit government and elect fiscally conservative politicians. He also advised a group that helps elect Republican state lawmakers in Illinois.

Before becoming a politician, Walsh raised money for new and small businesses. Reports showed he earned about $30,000 to $40,000 a year. In 2010, he had more debts than assets.

Early Political Campaigns

Running for Congress in 1996

In 1996, Walsh ran for Congress in Illinois' 9th congressional district. He was the Republican candidate against the long-serving Democrat, Sidney R. Yates, who was 87 years old. Walsh rode his bicycle through the district to campaign. He did some unusual things, like offering money to the doorman at Yates's building if he was the first to see Yates in his district. He also threw a birthday party for Yates with a cake that had 87 candles. Walsh said he wasn't trying to make Yates's age an issue. Yates won the election with 63% of the votes.

Running for State Representative in 1998

In 1998, Walsh ran for a seat in the Illinois House of Representatives. He challenged the Democratic leader, Jeffrey Schoenberg. Walsh drove a yellow school bus during his campaign to highlight public school funding. He lost to Schoenberg, getting 38% of the votes.

Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives

2010 Election Victory

On September 28, 2009, Joe Walsh announced he would run for the United States House of Representatives in Illinois' 8th district. This district included parts of northwest Chicago suburbs. It was usually a Republican area, but in 2004, Democrat Melissa Bean had won the seat.

In February 2010, Walsh won the Republican primary election, getting about 34% of the votes among six candidates. The Republican Party didn't expect him to win against Bean. Walsh described himself as a Tea Party conservative and received support from Tea Party groups.

The national Democratic and Republican parties didn't spend much money in this district. Walsh's campaign raised much less money than Bean's. Even so, Walsh narrowly defeated Bean by only 291 votes. The election results were not final until two weeks after Election Day. A Green Party candidate, Bill Scheurer, received many votes, which may have affected the outcome.

2012 Re-election Campaign

After new district lines were drawn in 2011, Walsh's home was moved into a different district. He first thought about running in the 14th district against another Republican, Randy Hultgren. However, he later decided to run in the redrawn 8th district, where he would likely face Democratic candidate Tammy Duckworth.

The campaign between Walsh and Duckworth was very intense. In July 2012, Walsh criticized Duckworth for talking about her military service and injuries, which cost her both legs in the Iraq War. He later said she was a "true hero" but should not talk about her service so often. Walsh decided not to attend the 2012 Republican National Convention.

Walsh's campaign received a lot of money from outside groups called Super PACs. Over $6 million was spent to support Walsh and oppose Duckworth. Despite spending more money, Walsh lost to Duckworth on November 6, 2012, with 45% of the votes to her 55%.

Time in Congress

Walsh speaking at a Tea Party rally on March 31, 2011

Before he officially became a congressman, The New York Times newspaper criticized Walsh for accepting donations from political groups. After being sworn in, Walsh said he would not accept government health care benefits, as he was against government-provided health care.

In his first months in Congress, he strongly criticized the Democratic Party and President Obama's money policies. He made a video saying President Obama was bankrupting the country. He promised not to add more debt unless the government changed how it spent money. He often appeared on TV, saying he would not compromise on reducing the national debt and would not agree to any tax increases for wealthy people. He always voted against raising the national debt limit and proposed a balanced budget amendment. Walsh also made comments about President Obama's election, which some found controversial.

In September 2011, Walsh was among 19 members of Congress criticized for ethics issues in a report. In November 2011, a video showed Walsh getting angry and using strong language with a woman during a meeting with his constituents. He later apologized for being "too passionate."

Walsh held many meetings with people from his district, more than any other member of Congress.

Committee Roles in Congress

During his time in the 112th Congress, Walsh had important roles on several committees:

Committee on Homeland Security
- Subcommittee on Transportation Security (Vice Chairman)
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Committee on Small Business
- Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax and Capital Access (Chairman)

Other Group Memberships

Walsh was also part of several other groups in Congress, including:

Congressional Hockey Caucus
House Republican Israel Caucus
Republican Study Committee
Tea Party Caucus

After Congress

On March 25, 2013, Walsh started his own radio show, The Joe Walsh Show, in Chicago. It was a conservative political commentary show. His show later aired in other major U.S. cities. In February 2017, his show became nationally syndicated. In May 2018, Walsh joined Newsmax TV. After announcing his presidential campaign in August 2019, he lost his radio show. He returned to radio in June 2020 but lost that show too in May 2021, saying it was because he was "anti-Trump."

In October 2021, Walsh started a new podcast called White Flag.

Controversial Statements and Views

Walsh has made several statements that were seen as controversial by many people.

In August 2012, while in Congress, Walsh spoke about the dangers of "radical Islam" and suggested that Muslims were "trying to kill Americans every week."

In June 2014, Walsh was briefly taken off his radio show for using offensive language. The radio station said he used the words as examples, not to be insulting, but they have a policy against such words.

In January 2015, after the Charlie Hebdo shooting, Walsh made a satirical tweet calling for reporters to be "beheaded" for not showing cartoons of the prophet Muhammad. He later said not showing the cartoons would lead to more attacks.

In July 2016, after five police officers were shot in Dallas, Walsh tweeted, "This is now war. Watch out Obama. Watch out Black Lives Matter punks. Real America is coming after you." Some people saw these comments as threats. Walsh later deleted the tweet and said he was not calling for violence. He explained he meant protesting and civil disobedience.

In 2018, on the TV show Who Is America?, Walsh appeared to support a fake program that would train toddlers with guns.

In August 2019, he admitted that he had said "racist things on Twitter" in the past, though he did not consider himself a racist.

2020 Presidential Campaign

On August 25, 2019, Walsh announced on TV that he would run for president in the 2020 Republican primary race. He wanted to challenge the current president, Donald Trump. Walsh said that Trump's actions made him decide to run. He also admitted that some of his past comments might have "helped create Trump" and made him think about what he had said before.

After his announcement, the Salem Radio Network canceled his national radio show. Walsh said, "No more radio show, but that's OK. I'm going to campaign full time." On February 7, 2020, Walsh announced he was ending his presidential campaign because he only received a small percentage of votes in the Iowa caucuses. He called the Republican Party a "cult" and said he was leaving the party. He later suggested he would likely support the Democratic candidate in the general election.

Political Views

Walsh speaking at CPAC in 2011

Economy and Taxes

Walsh believed in keeping the Bush tax cuts, getting rid of the estate tax, and lowering taxes on investments and businesses. He thought that businesses were not hiring because they were unsure about tax policies.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Walsh supported the idea of businesses getting paid if they had to close due to lockdowns.

Social Security and Medicare

Walsh believed that changes needed to be made to Social Security and Medicare. He said that everyone would have to make some sacrifices for these programs to be reformed. Walsh was against extending unemployment benefits, saying they had been extended for too long. He also said that he did not believe there should be a social safety net because it is not mentioned in the Constitution.

Environment

On the topic of global warming, Walsh initially said that the science behind it was "not definitive." He believed that U.S. economic interests should be the most important factor in any discussions about climate agreements.

By 2019, Walsh changed his mind and accepted that climate change is real.

Immigration

Walsh also criticized President Obama's immigration policies. He said the president had not done enough to secure the borders. In May 2011, Walsh even joked on the House floor that he would support tough border laws, even if it meant building moats with alligators.

Personal Life

Walsh has been married twice and has three children and two stepchildren. His second marriage in 2006 was to Helene Miller, who also served as an Illinois state representative. He is Catholic.

After Walsh won the Republican primary in 2010, it was reported that a bank had taken back his condo. He and his family were living in a rented house at the time. A spokesperson for the Republican Party said that voters might understand Walsh's financial difficulties.

In July 2011, a newspaper reported that Walsh's ex-wife, Laura, was suing him for money she said he owed for child support. Walsh's lawyer said he did not owe that much. Walsh and his ex-wife later settled the issue in April 2012. As part of the settlement, they both agreed that Joe was not a "deadbeat dad" and did not owe child support.

In August 2011, it was reported that Walsh's driving license was temporarily suspended because his car insurance had expired. Walsh criticized the newspaper for focusing on his driving record instead of government spending.

In February 2013, after leaving Congress, Walsh asked to stop paying child support, saying he was unemployed and could not afford it.

Images for kids

Official portrait, 2011
Walsh speaking at a Tea Party rally on March 31, 2011
Walsh speaking at CPAC in 2011