After midnight on Saturday, first-term state Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-10th, struck sparks on social media for the second time in three weeks — this time on Twitter, and with very different results.

Reacting to a story by The Hill about violent protests in St. Louis after the acquittal of a former police officer accused of murdering a black man, Bernstine staked out another fiery position.

“If anyone EVER tries to stop my car on a highway with negative intentions ... I will not stop under any conditions,” Bernstine's tweeted.

The backlash was swift and widespread. Bernstine sent his tweet at 12:26 a.m. on Saturday, and as of Monday afternoon, Bernstine's tweet had more than 2,200 replies, more than 300 likes and 253 retweets.

The vast majority of responses were negative. People called on Bernstine to delete his Twitter account, accused him of fomenting fear and violence and of espousing white nationalist views, and called on the Republican Party to repudiate his comments.

A full report will appear in the Butler Eagle.