But his initial statement riled some Montana veterans and elicited strong opinions, even if they didn’t have a full grasp on the circumstances.

“That’s the reason he cheated on a test? Give me a break. That’s the limpest damn excuse I ever heard in my life. I don’t buy that at all,” Navy veteran Don Malsam said in a telephone interview from American Legion Post 4 in Billings.

Malsam acknowledged he was not a Walsh supporter even before the plagiarism allegations, but was adamant that they will seal Walsh’s fate.

“I think he’s done,” he said.