Outspoken conservative rocker Ted Nugent made an announcement Thursday on WABC Radio's "Curtis & Eboni" that sent shockwaves through the media. In response to the gunman opening fire on GOP congressmen in Alexandria, Virginia, Nugent said he wouldn't engage in violent rhetoric anymore.
"I have reevaluated my approach," Nugent said, giving credit to his wife Shemane for helping him reach this pivot point.
Having previously called President Obama a "sub-human mongrel" and asserted Clinton should suck on the end of his machine gun, Nugent described how he intends to handle future opportunities to slam those with whom he disagrees.
"I'm going to take a deep breath, and I'm going to back it down, and if it gets fiery, if it gets hateful, I'm going away," he said. "I'm not going to engage in that kind of hateful rhetoric anymore."
Lest anyone think this new approach implied he was abandoning his beliefs, Nugent doubled down on his conservative position.
"I have to clarify, we really are angry," he said. "We don't believe --- we cannot believe --- that people on the left don't want secure borders. This is crazy to us!"
He went on to articulate the difference between passionate speech and violent rhetoric.
"I can still hold the ground and I can be feisty, I can be fiery, I can be passionate, but I will avoid anything that can be interpreted as condoning or referencing violence," he said.
Declaring his commitment to Constitutional principles, Nugent promised not to back off the fight and increase his activism, as evidenced in his recent video rant on Facebook Live.
He concluded the interview with a challenge: "Here's the battle cry for America --- zero violence."
Listen to the full interview below.