GOP Sen. Ron Johnson says if reelected and Republicans regain control of the U.S. Senate, he would likely chair the permanent subcommittee on investigations within the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
“I’ve said I would be like a mosquito in a nudist colony,” Johnson said on WISN’s “UpFront,” which is produced in partnership with WisPolitics.com. “It would be a target-rich environment. But I think we need to take a look at what happened with the miserable, failed response to COVID. I know Sen. Rand Paul may be chair of the full committee. He certainly wants to find out where this all originated. Listen, we’ve seen horrible corruption within the FBI, I would say partisanship within the Department of Justice. I think we need to find out more about that.”
Johnson was also asked if he would support former President Donald Trump if he runs in 2024.
“Listen, I’m worried about this election, this cycle,” Johnson responded.
Johnson, who has proposed a referendum on abortion asking, “at what point does society have the responsibility to protect the life of an unborn child?’ wouldn’t answer how he would vote.
“Exactly where I stand is irrelevant,” Johnson said, but added he would push Republican state lawmakers to get a referendum on the ballot.
“I will use every ounce of my influence to convince the governor and the Legislature to move forward on a single issue referendum,” Johnson said.
Also on the show, Dem U.S. Senate candidate Mandela Barnes wouldn’t say specifically whether he’d support putting the question of abortion rights before voters in the form of a referendum.
“Well I think the people of Wisconsin are already pretty clear on where they are,” Barnes said. “Seventy percent of people of this state agree. I support making Roe v. Wade the law of the land, as a majority of people do.”
Previously, Barnes wouldn’t specifically say whether he supports any restrictions on abortion access.
“That’s a decision that should be made between a woman and her doctor,” Barnes said.
Barnes, in these final days, is honing a message on the economy as inflation remains a top concern among Wisconsin voters.
“In the short-term, we need to make sure we offer working-class families some relief,” Barnes said. “That means a middle-class tax cut, expanding the earned income tax cut, making the child tax cut permanent so people can keep more of what they earned.”
Claire Woodall-Vogg, executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission, says increased security will be present at the city’s central count location at The Wisconsin Center on Election Day.
“I’ve taken extra security measures to make sure if there was some type of bad actor, it wouldn’t affect those city of Milwaukee votes,” Woodall-Vogg said. “We have more behind-the-scenes security, but anyone who’s coming to central count to work or observe on Election Day will also have to go through a metal detector.”
Woodall-Vogg gave “UpFront” a rare look inside poll worker training.
Both Democrats and Republicans have nominated partisan poll workers in increasing numbers. Johnson has urged fellow Republicans to vote early and volunteer to be election observers on Election Day.
“We really focused on, in our chief training, (on) observers, how to maintain control of the polling places and just reminding them of their job,” Woodall-Vogg said. “It’s just become routine, honestly, in making sure they are not only feeling well-trained on complicated election law but they also feel prepared to ensure their own safety on Election Day and the safety of voters as well. And much of that is making sure if there are any disruptions, they’re addressed immediately. If they have to call law enforcement, they have the ability to do so.”
Eve Hall, president and CEO of the Greater Milwaukee Urban League, told UpFront get-out-the-vote efforts are intensifying in the final days, including collaborations with the National Urban League.
“I think there’s a lot of just frustration with what is occurring in our cities,” Hall said when asked about Wisconsin’s Black voters. “We look at the issues of safety. We’re now looking at issues around affordable housing, health issues, education. Because people have been frustrated; they’re looking for things to happen more quickly.”
Former President Barack Obama’s visit to Milwaukee on Saturday underscored Democrats’ push to rally Black voters.
“I think all of us have to look at both parties, look at what is being offered, what is being promised,” Hall said. “But the end game needs to be accountability.”
See more from the show:
https://www.wisn.com/upfront
