There are few more committed Big Hat Aficionados on the national political landscape than Sheriff David Clarke. The former Milwaukee sheriff has few rivals, apart from public lands freeloader Cliven Bundy—another inexplicably prominent figure in Our National Dialogue. So when Clarke saw a political rival in a big old western hat—and a bright red one, no less—the good sheriff felt the need to assert himself on the issue.

Congresswoman Frederica Wilson made national news this week when she relayed that, on a condolence call, President Trump told the widow of a fallen soldier that "he knew what he signed up for." Wilson attacked the president, and she wears a big hat without Sherriff Clarke's blessing. Something had to be done.

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.@realDonaldTrump calling Frederica Wilson “whacky” is putting it mildly. The woman is a buffoon. Look at her. https://t.co/GlpIyCTAqY pic.twitter.com/ov3gFCtmjC — David A. Clarke, Jr. (@SheriffClarke) October 20, 2017

It's good to see the president's drones speaking his language. It's also great to see they've inherited his lack of self-awareness. Clarke may think Wilson is "a buffoon," but he's the one who wears a bunch of shall-we-say unofficial medals on his uniform to make himself look like a four-star general. (Clarke says the ribbons "have very significant emotional and real value to me.") Clarke is also the guy from Milwaukee who wears a cowboy hat because his uncle played for the Dallas Cowboys, because that is definitely a thing. Clarke is also the one who plagiarized parts of his master's thesis. Clarke also said Black Lives Matter, a civil rights protest movement, would soon join forces with ISIS, an international terrorist organization. And, like any good law enforcement officer, he has called for mob violence when he didn't like what the media was reporting:

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It's incredible that our institutions of gov, WH, Congress, DOJ, and big media are corrupt & all we do is bitch. Pitchforks and torches time pic.twitter.com/8G5G0daGVN — David A. Clarke, Jr. (@SheriffClarke) October 15, 2016

But mostly, Clarke is the one who ran a jail in Milwaukee that became a hotspot for preventable deaths. The mortality rate there was three times the national average in 2016, according to Huffpost. A baby died there shortly after being born to a mentally ill woman, "unbeknownst to the staff." And one mentally ill man died of dehydration there a week after officials cut off water to his cell. In May, jurors recommended charges against Clarke's employees for that last one.

But by all means, Sheriff, tell us about the buffoonery. The purpose, of course, is to try to undermine Wilson in the national media, just as the president has been doing.

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The Fake News is going crazy with wacky Congresswoman Wilson(D), who was SECRETLY on a very personal call, and gave a total lie on content! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 20, 2017

Except Wilson heard what the president said because his call was on speakerphone, so the entire family of the fallen soldier, La David Johnson, could hear while they rode in a limousine to the Miami International Airport to receive his remains. Moreover, Wilson runs a mentoring program in South Florida that Johnson joined as a child, has a longstanding relationship to the Johnson family, and has a record of grieving with her constituents. It is in no way shocking that she was so closely involved. But mostly, there's the fact that Johnson's mother has backed up Wilson's account, which Trump still maintains is fabricated.

No amount of public smearing and rage tweeting can change that. Wilson has already signaled that it hasn't, as far as she's concerned:

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Sticks and stones... — Rep Frederica Wilson (@RepWilson) October 20, 2017

And it won't change the answer to the question of whom among Wilson and Clarke is a buffoon in a big hat.

Jack Holmes Politics Editor Jack Holmes is the Politics Editor at Esquire, where he writes daily and edits the Politics Blog with Charles P Pierce.

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