On Wednesday, Trumpist-nihilist senator Ron Johnson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that "There’s no mention of the governor in the state's Constitution. It says state legislatures, and so if I were running the joint-- and I’m not-- I would come out and I would just say, 'We’re reclaiming our authority. Don’t listen to the Wisconsin Elections Commission anymore. Their guidances are null and void.'"
As you may know, Blue America has endorsed Outagamie County Executive, Tom Nelson to replace Johnson. Please read his guest post below and consider helping his campaign raise the money it needs to get his progressive message out and take the battle to Johnson with a real choice for Wisconsin voters-- no Republican-lite gobblygook. I asked Tom what he thought was behind Johnson's latest unhinged statement and what he thinks about it. This is what he told me this morning:
It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn
-by Tom Nelson
The Wisconsin state capitol was an unqualified disaster yesterday. It has been eleven years since I served in the state Assembly and I haven’t been on the floor since. If I was there today it would be completely unrecognizable. It is the wild west of democracy. There is no adherence to rules, the minority party has no say whatsoever and the GOP majority is a product of extreme gerrymandering. The same crew that undercut the Governor and undermined the local response to the pandemic was at it again. Republicans rammed through gerrymandered redistricting maps that once again will be one of the most partisan legislative maps in the country, thereby securing a near GOP super-majority for at least another decade.
While legislative Republicans were undermining our democratic institutions my campaign was blessed to be the first U.S. Senate campaign in the country to receive the endorsement of a state hub of the Sunrise Movement. In my estimation it is one of the more important endorsements a Senate campaign could receive. Sunrise was responsible for winning Ed Markey’s come-from-behind primary victory in Massachusetts last year. They almost helped Charles Booker pull off a win in Kentucky. In short, they can make the difference in a hotly contested primary like that of Wisconsin.
More importantly, the Sunrise Movement represents one-half of a generational contract. As a Gen Xer I hold a moral responsibility to leave my community, state and country in a better spot for Gen Z and Millenials who constitute Sunrise. My generation has dumped on their laps a climate crisis, health crisis, racial injustice and unprecedented wealth inequality. I have an obligation to right those wrongs.
The juxtaposition between the Sunrise endorsement and the reprehensible actions of the GOP state legislature could not be more stark. On one hand, you have a cabal of politicians that have rigged an entire decade of elections. On the other hand, a partnership between generations was made; one that resolved to do all that can be done to reverse climate change, establish universal health care, end racial injustice of every manner and achieve economic security for all. I am proud to be on the right side of history.
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