John Schneider Calls For Joe Biden to Be Executed

Actor John Schneider has called for the execution of President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

Recently unveiled as the Donut on reality show The Masked Singer, Schneider took to X, formerly Twitter, to share his violent views.

"Mr. President, I believe you are guilty of treason and should be publicly hung.
Your son too. Your response is..? Sincerely, John Schneider," the actor wrote in a reply to a post by President Biden.

Joe Biden had written: "Trump poses many threats to our country: The right to choose, civil rights, voting rights, and America's standing in the world. But the greatest threat he poses is to our democracy. If we lose that, we lose everything."

Threats to the president are considered a federal felony under code 18, section 871, and include anyone who "knowingly and willfully... threat to take the life of, to kidnap, or to inflict great bodily harm upon the president of the United States". Anyone convicted under the law could be fined or imprisoned for up to five years, or both.

In a statement to Newsweek, Schneider played down the severity of his post.

"Seriously, folks? This is my final comment on this. I neither said nor implied any such thing. Despite headlines claiming otherwise, in my post, I absolutely did not call for an act of violence or threaten a U.S. president as many other celebrities have done in the past. I suggest you re-read my actual post and pay attention to the words before believing this nonsense," he said.

"It's my position, which I am entitled to have, that some of our nation's leaders in Washington have lost their way, and corruption runs rampant, both on our nation's borders and abroad. Transparency and accountability must happen in order for our constitutional republic to survive. There is no threat implied or otherwise in that statement."

The response to Schneider's post was mixed but heated.

"Just here for the ratio and to let you know that it's "hanged," not "hung." Also, there's zero evidence of 'treason.' Step out of the Fox News bubble," wrote investigative journalist Victoria Brownworth.

A second response added: "Wow! You're calling for the execution of a sitting President. May the Secret Service show up at your door with a reply."

And Vulture's West Coast TV editor, Joe Adalian, posted: "John Schneider took off more than one mask tonight. Fox gave this guy a platform tonight. I'm truly sorry for the loss of his wife, but that doesn't excuse calling for the public execution of POTUS."

Schneider lost his wife Alicia Allain, 53, in February this year after a battle with cancer, which he announced on social media at the time.

Some people, however, supported Schneider's post about the Bidens.

"John Schneider is an American hero," wrote one person on X.

Another posted: "John is a true man & patriot. The U.S. Constitution must be protected & our liberties upheld. This country is falling fast due to the vast corruption plaguing us thru self-seeking (bipartisan) politicians & powerful corporations. Our founding fathers would be ashamed.

And a third commented: "Smallville is my favorite show of all time. Thank you John you are a real Patriot."

The 63-year-old actor is best known for playing Beauregard "Bo" Duke in the vintage TV series, The Dukes of Hazzard and also competed on the 2018 season of Dancing With The Stars.

He has long been vocal about his beliefs on social media and a critic of President Biden.

In 2022, he criticized the president for not saying "Jesus" in his Christmas speech.

"This man has got to face his maker and explain why he can't say 'Jesus Christ' is my Lord and savior and I will run my country under his guidelines," he said during a Newsmax interview at the time.

Update 12/21/23, 6:00 a.m. ET. This article was updated to include additional information.

Update 12/22/23, 2:46 a.m. ET. This article was updated to include Schneider's comment.