You ever have a moment of just pure satisfaction? Yeah, I don’t have them very often, either. But tonight was one of those rare occasions in which I could do nothing but smile.
Why?
Because I found out that I really pissed off Ron Johnson, who said as much in public. Allow me to explain:
Over the past few months, Sen. Johnson tripled down on his apparent conscious effort to become the most hated man in government in this post-Trump era. He helped incite the Capitol insurrection with his support for Trump’s Big Lie, blamed the riots on Antifa, and then claimed they were no big deal anyway.
And that’s just the start of it.
A few Fridays ago, Johnson went on a right-wing radio show and said that he wasn’t scared during the insurrection because the (almost entirely white) rioters “loved this country.” On the other hand, Johnson said, had it been Black Lives Matter protestors at the Capitol, he would have been terrified.
He kept going, too, insisting this week that his comments weren’t racist — even though he prefaced them by saying “this is going to get me in trouble.”
As I’ve written here before, I’m right now working with former WI State Assembly Majority Leader and Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson, who is running for the Democratic nomination to take on Ron Johnson in 2022.
We’ve been going after Ron hard for the horrible things he’s been saying, and obviously, something as terrible as what he said about BLM and the insurrection deserved a loud call-out.
So we put up another billboard just a few miles from his home in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. We couldn’t let him get away with being so bluntly awful and needed to remind him that he wasn’t speaking for the vast majority of people in the state of Wisconsin.
Fast forward a few days later and a Milwaukee reporter puts up a video of Johnson speaking to a hotel ballroom filled with (unmasked) supporters, moaning about being called out for his racist comments. Less than a minute into it, he specifically mentions our billboard. You can watch it below:
We’ve put up billboards before, including another one calling on him to resign for his active work to undermine American democracy. He hated it, too, which we know because he actually complained about it on right-wing radio. So clearly, we’re living rent-free in his head.
The funny thing is, Tom Nelson isn’t a showboat politician — he’s a pretty humble guy, but he’s got no time for injustice. He’s running one of the bigger counties in Wisconsin right now, overseeing vaccinations and handling a big economic stimulus while speaking with the media and overseeing policy development for the campaign. While making videos like this one, too:
Tom is going to be the most progressive and electable candidate in the race given his support for Medicare for All and workers rights as well as his appeal to rural and red voters — he’s been elected six times to lead an otherwise Republican county. Tom a few weeks ago came out with a Kirkus star-reviewed book about how he worked with a local union to save a paper mill that had powered the local economy for more than a century, which helps underscore his credentials.
We’re going to keep punching above our weight financially — he’s the only candidate who can’t self-fund — to get under Ron Johnson’s skin, making him perform more gaffes (he just won’t let people forget his racist remarks!) and reminding his constituents and the rest of the country how awful he is. It’d be awesome if you wanted to pitch in to help us do it:
CLICK HERE to Donate to Tom Nelson’s Campaign via ActBlue
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