Sen. Ron Johnson has taken the early lead for the most detestable Republican in the Senate this cycle thanks to his endless lies about voter fraud, relentless spreading of conspiracy theories and dangerous medical misinformation about COVID-19, undying defense of Donald Trump, and the positively, jaw-droppingly cynical BS that has come out of his mouth over the last few days especially.
It’s a real murderer’s row of monstrous quotes and decisions. Johnson yelled at Mitt Romney for daring to voted to call witnesses in the impeachment trial, suggested it was Antifa that are the real riotous villains in this country, and most egregiously, said what happened on January 6th at the Capitol “wasn’t an armed insurrection.”
He deserves to be called out for all of it, which is exactly what Tom Nelson, a progressive Democrat and long-time Wisconsin lawmaker challenging him for his seat in 2022, did with a billboard right in Johnson’s hometown of Oshkosh.
The billboard went up last week — I’m working with the campaign and helped set it up — and yesterday, Johnson complained about it on a right-wing talk radio station:
It’s pretty unbelievable. This guy spends his days spreading lies, inciting violence, and hurting people with bad medical information, and he has the audacity to complain about a billboard? It just goes to show his priorities — instead of trying to help out with the mountain of problems facing this country, he spends his time calling into right-wing talk radio shows from vacation in Colorado to complain about a billboard.
Republicans are so thin-skinned that you can see right through them and see their lack of spine. So of course we’re going to keep the billboard up and try to put up more. We just need to raise the money.
It’s not just about attacking Ron Johnson, either. Tom is a very legit leader and candidate in his own right. He was the State Assembly Majority Leader for a time and has been the County Executive in Outagamie County, near Green Bay, for nearly a decade. It’s a solidly red area, but he’s managed to win by being a popular populist, connecting with people in ways no other candidates can boast. He’s in favor of Medicare for All and very focused on unionizing and supporting workers, which also separates him from others that might run.
Giving his background, his reputation, and his willingness to take risks (see above), he’s going to be the most electable candidate in this race. But with two potential self-funding rivals (including the 34-year-old son of a billionaire), he needs to raise money ASAP. I’d be so grateful if you’d chip into the campaign — he didn’t ask me to do this, but I’m so psyched about what’s happening that I just couldn’t help myself.
CLICK HERE to Donate to Tom Nelson’s campaign via ActBlue!
P.S. I also have a political newsletter called Progressives Everywhere, which focuses on health care, voting rights, workers’ rights, and criminal justice reform—especially in red states. We’ve raised over $5.8 million to help flip seats in tough districts and red states. A few weeks ago, I did a big story on progressive ballot initiatives in red states with a leader of the ballot movement. Two weeks, I reported this feature on fixing the Supreme Court. Last week, I reported on the Covid cover-up scandal in New York. I’ve helped put the spotlight on then-unknown progressive candidates like AOC, Mondaire Jones, Katie Porter, and many others during their primaries. It’s news you won’t find anywhere else—or at least, it’ll be in the newsletter before you’ll find it anywhere else.
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