Barnaby Joyce apologises for 'bullet' comment at rally

The Nationals MP was one of several speakers who urged hundreds of attendees to weaponise their votes against Labor politicians.

In his surprise visit to the region, Mr Joyce told a crowd "your greatest weapon" in opposing the turbines is "to turn up in numbers" in Canberra and Sydney.

"And the bullet you have is a little piece of paper, it goes in the magazine called the voting box. It's coming up," he said.

"Get ready to load that magazine.

"Goodbye, Chris. Goodbye, Stephen. Goodbye, Albo."

Whitlam MP Stephen Jones said these remarks, two weeks after the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump, were extraordinary.

"It's outrageous that a former deputy prime minister thinks it's alright to travel the country, using violent language and encouraging that sort of talk," Mr Jones told ACM's Illawarra Mercury.

"Right around the world we've seen where that leads to and it's not a part of the Australian political culture, and we don't want it to be."

Mr Joyce has since apologised for the comments, telling Sunrise on Monday morning: "I apologise for using that metaphor."

"Barnaby, do we need to be using 'bullet' in the lead-up to an election?" host Natalie Barr asked.

Mr Joyce was initially defensive over the use of the word, however eventually obliged that he shouldn't have used the metaphor.

"The ballot paper is the weapon you have - It shouldn't be a bullet, It should be a ballot paper and the ballot box," Mr Joyce said.

"I'll tell you what my best line down there (was) ... This idea that wind towers have efficacy and are environmentally beautiful."

Mr Joyce compared the wind turbines to dog faeces in a yard to illustrate a point about wind turbines impacting the view of the coastline.

"When you get to the top of Bulli Pass, you'll look down and see all the wind turds ... Look at them all just rotting out there in the salt water," he told the crowd on Sunday.

Mr Joyce explained on Sunrise that "it's like saying the fertilising capacity and the beauty of dog turd on your lawn in the middle of the morning works well ... (It's) absolutely disgusting. Nobody wants them."

NDIS Minister Bill Shorten also expressed concern over Mr Joyce's bullet comments, saying "Barnaby feels very passionately about wind towers, but if he had his time again, he shouldn't be using the metaphor of bullets and magazines".