Archive for the ‘Tea Party’ Category

Pressing On with Press-On Nail Art During The Pandemic – KQED

Have you ever wanted nail art that highlights your favorite Disney Movie? Maybe nails that show Mulan below a cherry tree, or Alice at her Wonderland tea party, or maybe you want to see Stitch getting into shenanigans across your hands... Whatever your preference, Vivian Xue Raheyhas you covered.

These conversation pieces are clear fan favorites online. Vivian's Pamper Nail Gallery has hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok, and millions more views.

And they do more than just Disney; they paint everything from popular anime shows to pop singers. It's a unique art form. And their business is growing.

Since the start of the pandemic, Vivian, has switched up her "Disneyland of Nails" business model: moving from appointments in the salon where nails are painted on site, to an e-commerce model where you can order press-on sets that ship to your doorstep already bedazzled and painted with scenes from your favorite flick.

Since the switch to press-ons, Vivian says, "now we can do it at a larger scale, faster!"

Vivian, who had been concerned about her ability to retain employees through pandemic, says she's started to hire more artists from across the country.

Despite changes to the model, the company is staying true to the vision she first described to me in the spring of 2019. Today, we're revisiting that conversation with the CEO of Pamper Nail Gallery, and hearing how this art-based business not only stayed afloat, but expanded in the midst of a global pandemic.

Rightnowish is an arts and culture podcast produced at KQED. Listen to it wherever you get your podcasts or click the play button at the top of this page and subscribe to the show on NPR One, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Pressing On with Press-On Nail Art During The Pandemic - KQED

As ‘9/11 Kids,’ We Only Have The Stories Other People Tell Us About Our Dad – WBUR

Editors' Note:On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Dennis Cook was where you'd expect to find him on a Tuesday morning at work. He was a 33-year-old bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald, which had its offices on the top floors of the World Trade Center.

Dennis was killed that day, when a hijacked plane crashed into the North Tower. More than 650 of his coworkers also died that morning.

He left behind a wife, Dana, and two young daughters Sophia, who was 3, and Lindsay, who was just 6 months old.

Research shows that most of us dont have memories before the age of 3. Sophia and Lindsay are young women now, and theyve spent their lives coping with the loss of a father they cant remember.They cant outrun the tragic and violent death of their dad the nation has been trained to "never forget" but they want a say in how it defines their lives. And, more than anything, they want to understand who their dad was, and which parts of him live on in them.

This is Sophia and Lindsay Cook, in their own words.

LINDSAY: I'm definitely a "9/11 kid." I know some people don't like the title, but I guess if the shoe fits ... I'm still figuring out how much, what percentage, what fraction of 9/11 is part of me. I'm 20 on the 20th anniversary, and I've still been figuring out what that means to me.

SOPHIA: I think that's something that my mom did a really good job of ... that she never wanted us to see that as part of our identity. She wanted us to, you know, it's something that happened to us. It's very, very sad. But you can still be your own person.

SOPHIA: So on Sept. 11, 2001, it was my first day of preschool. My mom was going to drop me off, and when she was in the parking lot she heard on the radio a plane had crashed into the twin towers. She obviously didn't know what was happening, but you had to assume the very worst. And that's kind of how that day began and unfolded for her in the middle of what would have otherwise been a very regular, normal day.

LINDSAY: One day she was living with an infant and a 3 year old, and she had her husband by her side. And then the next day, she didn't.

LINDSAY: We didn't talk about my dad a lot growing up, not in the sense that he was hidden or something,but maybe that was my mom's way of coping. She couldn't talk about my dad all the time and keep herself steady and keep everything really normal.

But now, I have all these questions that I don't always know how or when to ask. And very recently she said, I wish I'd talked about your dad more growing up, because she'll realize there are these things that she thinks we know, but we don't know.

A song will come on in the car and she'll say, this song reminds me of your dad. So now when I'm out and I hear, Come On, Eileen I turn to my roommate and say, My dad. My dad liked the song. This song reminds my mom of my dad.

SOPHIA: A lot of what I know of my dad is stories. It's not my own personal memories because I was so young. My dad's name was Dennis Cook, and he is from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

LINDSAY: People say Sophia looks a lot like my dad and that I'm a mix of my mom and my dad. I feel like I'm constantly looking at pictures of my dad, trying to pull out myself in him. He was often described as a funny, fun-loving guy. But I've never heard a joke he's told. That's just what everybody tells me. I want so badly for people to tell me, not bad things about him, but ...

SOPHIA: But, like, more human character traits.

LINDSAY: Yeah. Like the real trouble he got into when he was in college. They weren't going to tell me the stuff when I was 8 years old. What was your dad like? He was very nice, Lindsay. Give me the dirt. Give me the inside scoop.

SOPHIA: One of my favorite pictures with my dad is us having a tea party. And it's at one of those teeny tiny little kiddie tables. I fit perfectly in the chair and everything's my right size. And it's funny because my dad sitting there, this big man, sitting at this tiny little lady table.

LINDSAY: I have four or five good pictures with my dad. In one of them, hes holding me; in one of them, I'm in the stroller and you can't see me; in another, it's me fresh in the hospital; and there's one at my baptism and that's about it. It's different not having anything tangible, not having anything concrete no memories that are my own.

DENNIS: I, Dennis. Take you, Dana. To be my wife. I promise to be true to you. In good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.

LINDSAY: I heard my dad's voice for the first time. A few years ago, when I found my mom's wedding video. I took it and I watched it alone.

DANA: Id especially like to thank my parents for the best night of our lives, and Id like to thank Dennis's parents for all the love and support.

DENNIS: Hi, Mom and Dad.

DANA: Thanks, Mom and Dad.

LINDSAY: I was 17 and I had spent the past 17 years of my life puzzle piecing my dad together.

DANA: And Lets say hello to our future kids. Look how young we look! Dont we look good?

DENNIS: Dennis Jr., not little Alfie.

DANA: Well see

DENNIS: All my ushers. I'd like to thank you guys. Dave and Pat, you did a great job tonight.

LINDSAY: Watching that video I was definitely trying to get a piece of the demeanor that everybody told me about the fun-loving guy who's a great time to be around. It's getting to see that in motion.

DENNIS: Uncle Mike, Karen... and everybody that came by that gets to see this video. I hope you had a good time tonight. And thanks for coming.

DANA: Yeah, we thank you all. Thank you!

LINDSAY: It wasn't just a wedding video to me. It was so much more. I feel like I've dealt with it internally, on my own time, and I've been figuring out what it means to miss somebody who you never knew.

LINDSAY: Sophia and I have kind of talked before about how, we can see our friends with their dads and you don't really expect it. But just in little ways and little interactions, you feel that little pang of pain and you just move on from it.

SOPHIA: In 2004, my mom got remarried. So my dad" is technically my stepdad, I call him dad. My younger siblings are my half-siblings, but that's never been how it rolls. We're full siblings.

LINDSAY: Thinking about some other alternate universe feels so wrong, but it's so natural to think, What would this life have been like? What would he have been like?The "what ifs." But sometimes thinking about the "what ifs" feels wrong.

SOPHIA: People have asked: do you ever just wish it never happened? You know, you could just go back and stop that day? And that's probably one of the most difficult things and a very hurtful thing for someone to ask. Of course, I wish it didn't happen. But also, you're asking me to give up the lives of other people that came into the world only because it did. I think that's really how my mom and Lindsay and I look at it. We lost so much, we gained a lot more.

LINDSAY: I think about my dad a little bit every day. That doesn't mean I'm sad every day or grieving every day. I can think about him and be happy. But I never know where my mind is going to take me. It's just something that I've come to accept.

This piece was produced by Cloe Axelson and Frannie Carr Toth, with help from David Greene and Paul Calo.

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As '9/11 Kids,' We Only Have The Stories Other People Tell Us About Our Dad - WBUR

Tea party 2.0? Conservatives get organized in school battles across nation – The Columbian

MEQUON, Wis. A loose network of conservative groups with ties to major Republican donors and party-aligned think tanks is quietly lending firepower to local activists engaged in culture war fights in schools across the country.

While they are drawn by the anger of parents opposed to school policies on racial history or COVID-19 protocols like mask mandates, the groups are often run by political operatives and lawyers standing ready to amplify local disputes.

In a wealthy Milwaukee suburb, a law firm heavily financed by a conservative foundation that has fought climate change mitigation and that has ties to former President Donald Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election helped parents seeking to recall Mequon-Thiensville school board members, chiefly over the boards hiring of a diversity consultant. A new national advocacy group, Parents Defending Education, promoted the Wisconsin parents tactics as a model.

In Loudoun County, Va., a Justice Department spokesperson in the Trump administration rallied parents in a recall effort sparked by opposition to a district racial equity program. In Brownsburg, Ind., a leader of a national network of parents opposed to anti-racist school programs helped a mother obtain a lawyer when the districts superintendent blocked her from following his Twitter account.

This growing support network highlights the energy and resources being poured into the cauldron of political debate in the nations schools. Republicans hope the efforts lay the groundwork for a comeback in congressional elections next year. Some see the burst of local organizing on the right as reminiscent of a movement that helped power the GOP takeover of the House 10 years ago.

It seems very Tea Party-ish to me, said Dan Lennington, a lawyer with the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, which has offered free legal advice to several parent groups pursuing or weighing school board recalls, including the one in Mequon. These are ingredients for having an impact on future elections.

Lenningtons group is funded in part by the Bradley Foundation, a Milwaukee-based nonprofit that supports conservative causes. The foundations secretary, GOP lawyer Cleta Mitchell, advised Trump as he sought to overturn the 2020 election results and has since worked to push for tighter state voting laws.

Like the Tea Party movement, the groups have been labeled astroturf by some opponents activism manufactured by powerful interests to look like grassroots organizing.

Outsiders are tapping into some genuine concerns, but the framing of the issues are largely regularized by national groups, said Jeffrey Henig, a professor at Teachers College at Columbia University, who has written on the nationalization of education.

But the advocates and their outside backup argue theyre harnessing real outrage and working to counter the disproportionate influence of liberal groups in schools.

Theres a misconception out there that this is part of some national right-wing agenda, said Amber Schroeder, a 39-year-old parent of four who is helping lead the Mequon recall. Were the ones pushing back on our own here against an extreme liberal agenda by the teachers union.

The political tracking website Ballotpedia counts about 30 active school board recall efforts nationwide. Some are focused chiefly on disputes over anti-racism training and education in schools, often labeled critical race theory. Others were prompted by debates over school policies on transgender students and pandemic public health measures.

Local parent activists are quick to claim credit for that work, and the outside groups offering legal help, research, organizing tools and media training are often reluctant to discuss their role.

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Tea party 2.0? Conservatives get organized in school battles across nation - The Columbian

PHOTOS: Painting of Mad Tea Party Roof for 50th Anniversary Resumes at Magic Kingdom – wdwnt.com

A month ago, the turret atop Mad Tea Party in Magic Kingdom was painted dark blue, indicating the attraction would be getting a makeover ahead of its 50th anniversary. The roof went mostly untouched since then, but today more dark blue paint has overtaken the old teal green color.

The roof has eighteen triangular panels, and four of them have now been painted.

The colorful streamer-like designs were also repainted on the panels.

The trim between each panel has also been painted purple, having previously been the same color as the roof.

This trim holds the lights that give the attraction carnival illumination at night.

The trim has even been updated between panels that have yet to be painted.

The new color palette is similar to the purples and blues associated with Walt Disney Worlds 50th anniversary.

Many attractions and buildings in Magic Kingdom have been repainted and refurbished recently so the park is looking its best by the time The Worlds Most Magical Celebration begins on October 1.

What do you think of Mad Tea Partys new coloring? Let us know in the comments.

As always, keep following WDWNT for all of your Disney Parks news, and for the absolute latest, follow WDW News Today on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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PHOTOS: Painting of Mad Tea Party Roof for 50th Anniversary Resumes at Magic Kingdom - wdwnt.com

Sen. Ron Johnson’s evolution from Tea Party insurgent to conspiracy theory promoter :: WRAL.com – WRAL.com

By Sara Murray and Jeff Simon, CNN

CNN As Sen. Ron Johnson grapples with whether to run for a third term, it seems there's no controversy the Wisconsin Republican is unwilling to wade into.

"The science tells us that vaccines are 95 percent effective. So if you have a vaccine, quite honestly, what do you care if your neighbor has one or not?" Johnson told conservative radio how Vicki McKenna in April. "So why is this big push to make sure everybody gets a vaccine?"

At a GOP gathering in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, in early June, Johnson dismissed climate change. "I don't know about you guys, but I think climate change is -- as Lord Monckton said -- bullsh*t," Johnson said, mouthing the expletive and referencing British conservative climate change denier Lord Christopher Monckton. "By the way, it is."

And the senator recently suggested -- without any evidence -- that the FBI had more inside knowledge than it let on about Capitol insurrection. "I don't say this publicly," Johnson told constituents in late July. "So you think that the FBI had fully infiltrated the militias in Michigan and they didn't know squat about what's was happening on January 6 and what's was happening with these groups?"

Johnson's outspoken takes have run the gamut from vaccine skepticism to climate change denialism to downplaying the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol. His evolution from a conservative businessman to two-term senator apparently willing to deny facts and spread conspiracies has left some in the state wondering: What happened to Ron Johnson?

Johnson declined an interview for this story. In response to questions from CNN, his spokeswoman Alexa Henning said the senator is pro-vaccine, but believes researchers should also look at therapeutics like ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, even though they have not proven effective in treating Covid-19 and can have dangerous side effects. Johnson has insisted he's not a climate change denier, although he has a long track record of questioning humans' role in climate change, which runs counter to the scientific consensus. And when it comes to the FBI's knowledge of January 6, "The senator is simply asking questions that many don't want to hear or answer," Henning said, a common explanation from the senator when he is wading into views that run counter to expert consensus. "The senator continues to call on the FBI and DOJ to be transparent. To date, they have not been."

He had a good grasp on reality 'and then Trump happened'

Mark Becker, the former head of the Brown County Republican Party, is one of a handful of Republicans in the state who have not only turned against former President Donald Trump but also against Johnson.

"He was our guy," Becker said of Johnson in an interview. "He was hyper-focused on the national debt, and he was the budget guy. He came to our events, and he was so well-liked. And he, it seemed, had a pretty good grasp on reality, and then Trump happened."

While Becker supported Johnson's first Senate run in 2010, he was actively campaigning against Johnson and Trump by 2016. When the 2020 election rolled around, Becker was persona non grata in Johnson's world. But Becker was so frustrated to see Republicans, including Johnson, casting doubt on the 2020 election results that he reached out to Johnson anyway.

"I'm like, 'He's not going to call me back, but I'll leave him a message and we'll leave it at that.' Well, then he called back, and I was like, 'Holy sh*t,'" Becker said.

Becker said he expressed his concerns about the doubt Republicans were sowing around the 2020 election results.

"I said, 'Ron, Joe Biden won the election.' He said, 'Yes, but 1.5 million people voted for Donald Trump. I'm not stupid. I'm not going to piss those people off,'" Becker said. "So it's like, okay, so serve them red meat, lie to these people, and then you can save face and you can say, 'I had his back.'"

Becker went on to write a column about his phone call with Johnson and continued to press the senator to publicly stand up for the integrity of the 2020 election results.

The day after the insurrection at the US Capitol, Becker says he got a response.

"He said, 'Mark. It is my sincere hope to never have to see or speak to a lowlife weasel such as yourself again. Please stop trying to contact me,'" Becker said, sharing the message with CNN. "So, they're still picking up glass on the floor of the Capitol and that's what he's concerned about. It tells a lot."

According to Johnson's spokeswoman, the senator has said Becker called him "under false pretenses. I was kind enough to engage in a lengthy conversation with him that I had every expectation would remain private. Months later, he went public with what he claims the conversation was about and what I had said. Anyone who would do that is a low-life weasel, and nothing they say should be given any credence."

A number of former Johnson allies have found themselves aghast at the senator's behavior around the 2020 election.

"I think that he's the same in some ways but a little more disappointing," one former staffer said of Johnson's political evolution. The most disappointing part being his actions surrounding the election, the former staffer said.

Johnson -- then the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee -- held a hearing in December highlighting what he claimed were many "irregularities" during the 2020 election.

"He would say, 'I'm just asking questions,' but framing that as a way to almost keep spreading the big lie about elections," the former Johnson staffer said. "That was the time when we needed people to most step up and say the election was legitimate. He of all people should have been in a position to say he knew how these elections worked and everything went right."

Johnson made headlines again this week when a liberal activist secretly filmed the senator admitting Trump lost the state of Wisconsin.

"The only reason Trump lost Wisconsin is that 51,000 Republican voters didn't vote for him," Johnson said in the video. "There's nothing obviously skewed about the results. There isn't."

But his private admission that Trump lost hasn't stopped him from publicly sticking by his claims of irregularities.

"This supposed undercover recording by a Democrat political operative at a public event is consistent with what I've been saying publicly on the 2020 election, no need for hidden cameras and secret recordings, if the press were honest they would accurately report that," Johnson said in a statement. "There were many irregularities that have yet to be fully explained, fully investigated, and solutions passed to restore confidence in future elections, which is why I held a Senate hearing on Dec. 16, 2020. I've investigated many of the irregularities, explained some, and have not gotten answers on many."

In the statement, Johnson noted that he acknowledged Biden as president-elect as far back as December 2020. He failed to note that after admitting Biden won, Johnson backtracked in January and was one of a handful of GOP senators who signed on to a January letter vowing to object to the Electoral College votes in "disputed states" ahead of the January 6 certification.

"That doesn't mean by objecting, by raising these issues that we're doing anything dangerous," Johnson said in a January Newsmax interview. "That's what drives me nuts in this process. My investigation's been termed dangerous. It's not dangerous, it's what's required."

Two days later, a mob stormed the US Capitol. After that, Johnson voted to certify the results.

The rise of Ron Johnson

As far as Michelle Litjens is concerned, Johnson is the same guy he was when she took him to give his first public speech at a Tea Party event in 2009.

"He's always been a frank talker," said Litjens, who was already involved in Wisconsin GOP politics when she met Johnson and went on to serve in the state assembly. "He doesn't skirt around issues. He is not looking to make friends necessarily all the time. He wants to make a difference."

Litjens invited Johnson, who ran a local plastics manufacturing company, to join a roster of speakers at the upcoming event.

"Ron Johnson gets up to speak and he does not speak about business. He actually starts telling a story about how his daughter was born with a rare birth defect and how she wouldn't be alive today if they would not have been able to find a heart specialist to help his daughter, and that wouldn't be possible if we had government run healthcare," Litjens said.

At a time when the GOP backlash to Obamacare was reaching a crescendo, the message resonated.

"When Ron spoke, you could've heard a pin drop," Litjens said. "When he did that, you just knew something special was happening."

Even so, Litjens was skeptical when Johnson came to her months later and confided that he wanted to challenge Democratic incumbent Sen. Russ Feingold in the 2010 race.

"I said, 'Yeah, I don't think you really want to do that,'" Litjens said. "Ron is not political. He wasn't from politics. He ran a business. And a campaign is county fairs and dairy breakfasts and shaking hands. It's seven days a week, 24 hours a day."

But Johnson was insistent, so Litjens helped him make inroads with conservative operatives and talk radio show hosts. That included an introduction to Charlie Sykes, then a prominent conservative radio host in Wisconsin, who helped Johnson gain name recognition in the state. Sykes, who has since soured on the senator, said this year he was "embarrassed" he ever supported Johnson.

Back in 2010, though, Johnson crafted his campaign around being a Washington outsider who was dedicated to shrinking government, tackling the national debt and boosting economic growth. He poured millions of dollars of his own cash into his campaign and ran buzzy ads highlighting his manufacturing and accounting background.

In one such ad, Johnson stands in front of a white board tallying the number of lawyers in the Senate at the time, compared to the number of manufacturers (zero) and accountants (one).

"There are 100 members of the U.S. Senate," Johnson said in the ad. "Fifty-seven of them, including Russ Feingold, are lawyers. That'd be fine if we had a lawsuit to settle. But we have an economy to fix."

The strategy worked. Johnson won his first Senate race, ousting Feingold in a GOP wave election.

Democrats were so convinced Johnson's victory was a fluke -that Feingold ran again in the 2016 race in an attempt to win back his seat.

In the run up to the election, Johnson was lagging behind in public polls.

"At one point, he'd been kind of abandoned by his own party nationally in terms of funding," said Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Washington Bureau Chief Craig Gilbert, who has been covering politics since the 1980s and Johnson since he arrived in Washington. "That was something that I don't think he forgot very quickly. But everybody had kind of left him for dead politically."

Once again, Johnson surprised political observers, notching his second victory, this time alongside Donald Trump.

Political strategists and former staffers said Johnson always had an independent streak and an inclination to speak his mind, no matter how controversial the topic. But his surprise back-to-back victories may have only emboldened those instincts.

"He came out of nowhere and people really doubted him and so he was always sort of used to that mindset, and 2016 did nothing but deepen that," a former staffer said. "I think he came into the Senate feeling like he fought his way back from the dead, he'd earned it, he owed nothing to anybody. And, you know that that has sort of continued to show itself ever since."

To Johnson, 'there's a lot of truth out there'

To Johnson's critics, he appears to be a power-

hungry politician that is willing to peddle conspiracies to keep his grasp on the Trump-loving base of the party.

To them, Johnson's office offered a statement from the senator: "I promised my constituents two things, that I would never vote with my re-election in mind and I would always tell the truth. Just because the mainstream media and their allies in the Democrat party don't like to be questioned does not mean I will stop holding them accountable."

Johnson's allies, however, see him as a guy who has always stayed true to the GOP grassroots and remained eager to question the establishment. The issues may have shifted, but his allegiances have not, they said.

"Before he was that guy on conservative talk and on TV, he was that guy, listening to conservative talk and yelling at the TV. He's still that guy," said a former staffer. "He's remained the same guy. And as he's developed these additional priorities, he hasn't ditched his old ones."

Republican strategist Brian Schimming -- one of the senator's many GOP allies in the state -- said Johnson simply likes to raise questions and ensure different points of view are presented to the American public.

"For Ron Johnson, for him, there's a lot of truth out there, let's put it that way," Schimming said. "And he wants to make sure people are exposed to it."

When it comes to Covid-19 vaccines, for instance, Johnson has questioned the safety of the vaccines and used public events to highlight rare adverse side effects. He has also touted alternative drugs like hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin that have not proven effective in treating the virus.

Days after the FDA warned Americans not to take ivermectin as a Covid-19 treatment, Johnson was back to touting it.

"I'm very agnostic. I don't care what drug will work, try a bunch of them, particularly the ones that are safe," Johnson told Washington Times opinion editor Cheryl Chumley in a late August podcast, adding, "There's growing evidence that ivermectin can be effective."

Johnson has also repeatedly warned of the risk of death from the vaccines, often citing data that shows thousands died in the days after vaccination. That data, though, is unverified and does not prove a causal effect between vaccination and death.

"If you question anything about January 6 or if you question anything about the Covid pronouncements from the Covid gods, you are a potential domestic terrorist," Johnson told conservative radio host Vicki McKenna in late August. "So I guess I'm double that."

Henning, the senator's spokeswoman, said the senator is an advocate for early treatments. While serious negative reactions to the vaccines are extremely rare, Henning said the senator believes those who experience them "have the right to be seen, heard and believed, especially by federal health authorities who to date do not seem to have taken adverse events seriously." And she said the senator believes the death tallies he so often cites "should be taken seriously and thoroughly investigated."

But as US health officials continue to battle vaccine hesitancy -- an issue that has been more pronounced among Republicans -- they have warned that false claims about the vaccine are only making it more difficult to convince Americans to get the shot.

"We've heard false claims that Covid-19 vaccines cause infertility, contain microchips and cause Covid-19. And worse, we've heard false claims that thousands of people have died from the vaccine," Dr. Peter Marks, director of the US Food and Drug Administration Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in late August. "Let me be clear: These claims are simply not true. Getting a Covid-19 vaccine can save your life."

Eying a third term

During Johnson's last race, he vowed to the voters that he was a two-term kind of guy.

"I'm gonna serve one more term. That's it. Two terms. More than enough time! 12 years. Feingold's there for 18 years!" Johnson said at a 2016 campaign event.

Lately, he's been wavering on that promise, still undecided on whether he will seek a third term. If he does, seasoned political observers were split on Johnson's reelection odds.

"It's unusual to have a member of the Senate from a 50-50 state as conservative as Ron Johnson is, and it's probably even a little bit more unusual to be as, kind of, much of a lightning rod," the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Gilbert said. "It's not necessarily great general election politics to be, kind of, to be where Ron Johnson has been on some of these issues."

There's no doubt Wisconsin is a battleground state. It went for former President Barack Obama twice before flipping to Trump's column in 2016, only to trend blue again for Biden in 2020. And between Johnson and Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin, there is perhaps no other state with such philosophically opposite representation in the Senate.

A former Johnson staffer said people don't fully grasp the state's political landscape -- and that leads them to underestimate Johnson's appeal.

"The reality is that Wisconsin is not a purple state. Wisconsin is two states: A red state and a blue state, with deeply hardened bases, and then a very thin sliver of the swing vote," the former staffer said. "It's something that people have understood in Wisconsin for a long time, which is that you maximize your base as much as possible, and you find a way to carve off that swing vote."

Johnson's allies bet that Wisconsin voters will see beyond the raft of negative headlines he's faced recently. When he generates controversy, they say he simply likes to ask questions. And they blame the media, saying he's being taken out of context.

"I think the people of Wisconsin appreciate that Ron Johnson is a straight shooter," said Ben Voelkel, Johnson's former communications director. "They might not always agree with him, but what he told them the first time he ran and how he continues to act is that he's always going to be straight with them."

For Democrats in Wisconsin, Johnson's straight talk is easy campaign ammunition.

Nearly a dozen Democrats have jumped in the race for Johnson's seat, including high-profile names like Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, Wisconsin's Treasurer Sarah Godlewski and Milwaukee Bucks executive Alex Lasry.

And they're already using his words against him.

Earlier this year, Johnson went on a media tour insisting he never felt threatened on January 6.

"I knew those were people that loved this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law. So, I wasn't concerned," Johnson said on the Joe Pags Show. "Had the tables been turned, and President Trump won the election, and those were tens of thousands of Black Lives Matter and Antifa protesters, I might have been a little concerned."

Johnson's office said he has condemned the violence on January 6, but he distinguishes those who stormed the Capitol from those who engaged in legal protests.

Still, Godlewski has already used a portion of those remarks in an ad against him.

Barnes also took aim at Johnson's remarks, telling CNN, "He's a person who has morphed into the guy who's gonna say the racist part out loud. We're talking real Archie Bunker here now, on top of the conspiracy theories."

There's little sign Democrats plan to let up.

"I feel that, honestly, he says these things in order to get attention, to bring attention to himself. Because he hasn't delivered for people," Barnes said. "He speaks his truth, and unfortunately, he's delusional.

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