A conservative radio host suggested a bizarre conspiracy theory involving shuttered Walmarts and martial law could become a campaign issue for Republicans.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a 2016 GOP presidential candidate, appeared Tuesday on a talk radio program hosted by Jan Mickelsen, reported Right Wing Watch.
The host brought up fears surrounding the Jade Helm 15 military exercise planned for this summer in seven southwestern states, saying he receives email about it every day.
“Are you up to speed on that?” Mickelsen asked the senator. “Do you know what this is all about?”
“You know, I’ve gotten a few questions on it on the road, and I really don’t – I’m not sure about exactly what is going on with that,” Paul admitted.
“It’s making some people nervous, but it doesn’t take much to make people nervous nowadays,” Mickelsen said. “So if you get a chance, I’d like to know what the rest of the story is on that.”
Paul promised he would examine the issue, along with others raised by the talk show host.
The military exercise, one of the largest of its kind, has sparked fears that special operations troops will be moved through underground tunnels between five Walmart stores allegedly closed over plumbing issues.
Some variations of the theory speculate Russian troops are building “death domes,” while others warn that Obama plans to impose martial law during the exercise and round up gun-toting dissidents into FEMA camps.
But military officials insist the drill is "just a regular training exercise," and not part of a foreign or domestic plot.