Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson is officially launching his campaign for re‐election with a tour around the state. Johnson, a Republican, will face Democrat Russ Feingold this fall in a rematch from six years ago when Johnson unseated the veteran lawmaker in the tea party wave election of 2010.
At a campaign stop in Green Bay, Monday, Johnson said it’s “crucial” that Congress stay in Republican control.
“This election is not only about the direction of the country, it’s about the direction of the (U.S.) Supreme Court,” Johnson said. “Another liberal justice is going to flip the court, probably be hostile to your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.”
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Johnson reiterated his belief that the Senate should not vote on President Barack Obama’s Supreme
Court nominee, and should instead wait for the next president to put someone forward.
The Feingold campaign issued a statement calling Johnson “a partisan shill.”
“It’s good that in his sixth year in office he’s starting to tour the state,” Feingold added. “When I was a senator, I toured it every year.”
Johnson meanwhile is working to cast Feingold as a Washington insider despite his own status as the race’s incumbent.
“I am the outsider in this race. I am the guy who really does understand how to grow our economy. All Senator Feingold knows is how to grow government,” Johnson said Monday.
Polls in recent months have consistently shown Feingold leading Johnson.
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