In the weeks leading up to Election Day, Mandela Barnes’ supporters felt frustrated. They believed in Barnes as the best Democrat to take on Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), and election forecasts all but guaranteed a Johnson victory. That frustration gave way to fury, however, once the ballots were counted on …
Read More »Ron Johnson (R-FeverSwamp) Ekes Out Another Term in the Senate
Ron Johnson once said climate change is caused by sunspots. He said Covid could be treated by gargling mouthwash. He asserted the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol had been instigated by “fake Trump supporters,” even as the two-term Senate Republican reportedly tried to supply Vice President Mike Pence with …
Read More »This Democrat Has Less Than A Week to Save Democracy
OSHKOSH, WIS. —As state assembly candidate Lori Palmeri knocked on the doors of old Victorians here last Sunday, Ben Wikler stood beside her and watched. There wasn’t much to see, at least to the casual observer: At each stop, Palmeri recited what’s known as a “mobilization” script, a brief exchange …
Read More »'Dig Up That Birth Certificate': Obama Takes Shot at Trump's 'Birtherism' During Midterm Stop
Former president Barack Obama traveled to Milwaukee on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 29, to campaign on behalf of another “Democrat with a funny name”: Mandela Barnes, Wisconsin’s Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate. It was an opportunity for Obama to take a swipe at former president Donald Trump, who dogged him throughout …
Read More »The Hot New Strategy for Unseating Trump Republicans: Don't Make It About Trump
There was a time when one could often find Mandela Barnes on MSNBC. His hits peaked in late summer 2020, when Wisconsin’s 33-year-old lieutenant governor took to the liberal airwaves to register his outrage over a police shooting in Kenosha. Those appearances left a strong impression, as Barnes — young, …
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