‘Stretch that rope’: Prominent right-wing activist suggests Colorado Gov. Polis should be hanged
A prominent right-wing activist with ties to many Colorado Republicans on Friday called for the mass executions of politicians he said were “traitors” to the country, including Gov. Jared Polis and many U.S. senators.
Joe Oltmann, founder and president of the activist group FEC United and host of the “Conservative Daily” podcast, made a series of comments about the hanging of political opponents on his show throughout the week.On Friday, Oltmann listened as his co-host, Max McGuire, read aloud the names of the 19 Senate Republicans who this week voted with Democrats to approve an 11-week stopgap spending bill, amid far-right demands to force a government shutdown over federal vaccine mandates for employers.
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“There’s your list of 19 traitors to the American people, along with all the other traitors to the American people,” Oltmann said in response. “I want people to go out there and get some wood. The gallows are getting wider and longer. We should be able to build gallows all the way from Washington, D.C., to California.”
“We just have a line of executions of traitors through the United States of America,” Oltmann continued. “If you guys don’t think that’s funny — I think it’s kind of funny, actually.”
“This talk makes me incredibly nervous,” replied McGuire.
Later in Friday’s show, Oltmann talked about an online post responding to Polis, in which he said he’d called the governor a liar and a traitor.
“So that’s what I sent to Gov. Polis. Gallows. I had to stretch that rope,” Oltmann said.
“Oh boy,” McGuire said.
“I’m being funny,” Oltmann replied. “Why can’t you be a little funny? I wish all the traitors good luck.”
Oltmann, a Douglas County resident, is a leading figure among far-right election deniers and was instrumental in spreading a baseless conspiracy theory that Denver-based Dominion Voting Systems helped rig the 2020 election. Oltmann is a defendant in a defamation lawsuit filed by a former Dominion employee.
Kristi Burton Brown, currently the chair of the Colorado Republican Party, served as the president of Oltmann’s FEC United group as recently as November 2020, according to a deposition Oltmann gave in the defamation case. Burton Brown was elected state GOP chair in March 2021.
George Brauchler, a former district attorney for the 18th Judicial District and former GOP candidate for attorney general, responded in a September podcast interview to concerns about his ties with Oltmann. PIN Business Network, a data services company formerly run by Oltmann, has been an advertiser on Brauchler’s own radio show.
“Joe is a friend,” Brauchler said at the time. “We disagree on the election stuff. … I’m not running away from Joe, I still am friendly with Joe.”
Oltmann’s comments on Friday followed statements about a looming “civil war” made by conservative militia leader John Tiegen on an FEC United livestream this week. “I see a war coming, if we don’t stand together,” said Tiegen, founder of the United American Defense Force, which is affiliated with FEC United.
In previous episodes of “Conservative Daily” posted earlier this week, Oltmann and McGuire further discussed the executions of their political opponents.
“I went out and bought some lumber this weekend, Max, so I could build the gallows,” Oltmann said on Dec. 1. “So pretty soon we’ll have gallows being built all over the country, we can take care of all these traitors to our nation.”
“I went and bought a bunch of rope,” he added. “That way I can pull people behind my car when their body parts fall off, so it’s far enough behind, doesn’t get any blood on it. I don’t know if I’m allowed to say that on here.”
“I don’t know why I’m going to give you this advice, I probably shouldn’t,” said McGuire, before explaining to Oltmann that soldiers executing prisoners of war in World War II needed to stretch ropes for days to make sure that they didn’t snap.
“I’m telling you that just as a nice little history lesson, not as an accessory to whatever’s going on in your back yard,” McGuire said, laughing.
“I’m not being very good today,” Oltmann said. “I almost feel like I’m maybe getting a little too graphic on the fact that I want to hang them from the neck till they’re dead.”
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