Yesterday we noted that North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue, a Democrat, had called for the unconstitutional suspension of Congressional elections, supposedly in order to allow Congress to “stimulate” the economy without fear of political repercussions.

Following public outrage, Perdue’s spokesman insisted the governor was joking. You know, despite the fact the statement she made contained no punch line and seemed quite serious. In fact, she said, “I really hope that someone can agree with me on that.”

Well, Raleigh News and Observer was apparently at the event and captured audio of her speech. Her tone is completely serious and there’s no indication of a joke. As the spokesman for the North Carolina Republican Party said:

 “If it was a joke, what was the set-up?,” Lockwood adds. “What was the punch-line? Where was the pause for laughter? It took them three hours to say it was a ‘joke,’ but when that flopped it became ‘hyperbole.’ We’ll just call it an unconstitutionally bad idea.”

Indeed. It should also be noted there was no laughter from the audience and not once did she pause for laughter. She just kept talking and talking. The “suspend elections” bit was just part of her speech. Not a joke. Perhaps a Freudian slip. But not a joke.