Dallas-area Republican congressional candidate Stephen Broden is trying to unseat a Democratic incumbent in a deep-blue district. In case that doesn't pan out, however, he says violent overthrow of the government is "on the table." You know, just in case.

Broden is a South Dallas pastor running against incumbent Democrat Eddie Bernice Johnson, who has her own problems, like that one where she directed federal scholarship money to her relatives. Surely Broden could've been more effective by keeping the attention on Johnson's ethical failures instead of, say, talking about violent overthrow of the government in a televised interview last night (via the Dallas Morning News):

In the interview, Brad Watson, political reporter for WFAA-TV (Channel 8), asked Broden about a tea party event last year in Fort Worth in which he described the nation's government as tyrannical.

"We have a constitutional remedy," Broden said then. "And the Framers say if that don't work, revolution."

Watson asked if his definition of revolution included violent overthrow of the government. In a prolonged back-and-forth, Broden at first declined to explicitly address insurrection, saying the first way to deal with a repressive government is to "alter it or abolish it."

"If the government is not producing the results or has become destructive to the ends of our liberties, we have a right to get rid of that government and to get rid of it by any means necessary," Broden said, adding the nation was founded on a violent revolt against Britain's King George III.

Broden was very clear, however, that bloody overthrow is not the "first option" towards addressing problems one has with governmental policies. Wimp.