Sen Klobuchar tweets Sen Hawley is joining 'a coup attempt,' Walmart apologizes for tweet to Hawley

Sen. Josh Hawley on Wednesday announced his intention to object on Jan. 6 amid the Electoral College certification process, a move that Sen. Amy Klobuchar described as joining "a coup attempt."

"I cannot vote to certify the electoral college results on January 6 without raising the fact that some states, particularly Pennsylvania, failed to follow their own state election laws," Hawley, a Missouri Republican, said in a statement. "And I cannot vote to certify without pointing out the unprecedented effort of mega corporations, including Facebook and Twitter, to interfere in this election, in support of Joe Biden. At the very least, Congress should investigate allegations of voter fraud and adopt measures to secure the integrity of our elections. But Congress has so far failed to act." 

"For these reasons, I will follow the same practice Democrat members of Congress have in years past and object during the certification process on January 6 to raise these critical issues," Hawley said.

Electoral College votes will be counted and the results declared during a joint session of Congress presided over by the vice president on Jan. 6, according to Congressional Research Service. If a minimum of one member from each congressional chamber objects in writing to the returns of a state, each chamber will separately debate the issue for up to two hours and then vote on the objection: "An objection to a state's electoral vote must be approved by both houses in order for any contested votes to be excluded," according to Congressional Research Service.

Responding to news of Hawley's intent to object, Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar tweeted: "This is how you run for President on the Republican side in 2024. You join a coup attempt. Democracy will prevail. As lead Dem on Rules Com. I will guarantee it. There’s a bipartisan group of electeds who will put our country first. See you on the 6th!" 

Walmart issued a statement apologizing to the senator after the company's official Twitter account posted a tweet related to Hawley's announcement, calling the U.S. senator a "#soreloser."

"Go ahead. Get your 2 hour debate. #soreloser," the now-deleted Walmart tweet said in response to a tweet on Hawley's account about his intention to object on Jan. 6.

Hawley fired back at Walmart on Twitter: "Thanks ⁦@Walmart ⁩for your insulting condescension. Now that you've insulted 75 million Americans, will you at least apologize for using slave labor?" Hawley tweeted. "Or maybe you'd like to apologize for the pathetic wages you pay your workers as you drive mom and pop stores out of business," he added in another tweet.

"The tweet was mistakenly posted by a member of our social media team who intended to publish this comment to their personal account," a Walmart spokesperson said in a statement, according to reports. "We have removed the post and have no intention of commenting on the subject of certifying the electoral college. We apologize to Senator Hawley for this error and any confusion about our position."