Republican 2022 Arizona Attorney General loser and current AZ-8 US House candidate Abe Hamadeh tells the Arizona Republic he isn’t really read up on El Salvadoran autocrat Nayib Bukele’s ongoing crackdown on civil liberties, despite calling him a “philosopher king” in a Twitter post and praising him at a rally with fellow 2022 loser and current Senate candidate Kari Lake.

“I’m not aware of his methods. All I know are the results of his actions. El Salvador used to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world, to now one of the most safest in the western hemisphere. That’s a good thing. I’m not going to wade into the methods that another country employs in order to make sure that their people are safe,” Hamadeh told a reporter. “The rule of law is what we are all bound to. Of course, you can have the whim of the people wanting a dictator, but regardless, you are bound to the constitution and to the rule of law.”

On December 19th Hamadeh tweeted “Our Founding Fathers would be ashamed of us for what we’ve put up with over the past few year. As a former prosecutor I’m appalled at this lawfare. They are trying to steal your vote before a ballot is even cast. President Trump is up against the machine… and I’m honored to join the fight. 🇺🇸💪,” a statement that – among others – is sort of at odds with praise for a leader who abrogated his country’s constitution to remain in power, declared martial law, rigged elections for his party. and has jailed at least one percent of his country’s populace, so it’s kind of understandable that Hamadeh would want to play dumb about why he’s so hard for Bukele.