Feingold Says He Supports Second Amendment, Except When He Has to Vote On It

[Oshkosh, WI] Senator Russ Feingold’s vote in support of Elena Kagan’s confirmation is yet another example that Wisconsin residents cannot trust him to defend the right to keep and bear arms as protected by the Second Amendment.

“Supporting Elena Kagen’s confirmation highlights another low in Russ Feingold’s record of support for extreme, activist judges who are outside the American mainstream and who present a threat to our Second Amendment rights,” said Juston Johnson, Campaign Manager for Ron Johnson for US Senate. “Americans cannot trust Elena Kagan to protect their right to keep and bear arms, and Wisconsin voters cannot trust Russ Feingold when he claims to be a defender of the Second Amendment.”

This is not Feingold’s first vote to support a Supreme Court nominee who threatens the Second Amendment. Senator Feingold voted to confirm two of the four dissenting Supreme Court Justices in District of Columbia vs. Heller, a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm for private use within the home. Feingold had voted to confirm the dissenting Ginsberg and Breyer.

In addition, Senator Feingold voted to confirm three of the four dissenting Supreme Court Justices in McDonald vs. Chicago, as the Court held that the right of an individual to keep and bear arms protected by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution applies to the states. Feingold had voted to confirm the dissenting Ginsberg, Breyer, and Sotomayor.

Senator Feingold voted to filibuster and reject the nomination of Justice Samuel Alito, one of the five votes in the majority for both Heller and McDonald.

“Wisconsinites want a conservative in the Senate who will protect their Second Amendment rights with his judicial votes,” Johnson said. “Time and again with his judicial votes, Russ Feingold has proven he is no friend of the Second Amendment.”

Ron Johnson supports our Second Amendment rights and would not vote for activist judges who do not.

The “Show-Me State” Shows ObamaCare

In case you missed it, on Tuesday night, residents of the State of Missouri overwhelmingly voted to approve “Proposition-C,” which asked voters in the state if they wished to prohibit the federal government from forcing an individual mandate to buy health insurance on them.  The measure passed by a whopping 71 percent to 29 percent.

Liberals as high up as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs are dismissing the Missouri vote as ‘Nothing.’ Simply put, they are wrong.  While legally the Missouri vote is not binding, it sends a message for what could be in store for supporters of what is continually being shown to be a badly-contrived law which strips layer after layer of our personal freedoms away.

Nationally, 59% of Americans favor the repeal of ObamaCare, while here in Wisconsin, polling from this summer shows anywhere from 51% to 55% want to see the health care law repealed.

Instead of Listening To Constituents, Feingold Funds Project to Listen to Ants

[Oshkosh, WI] In 2009, Russ Feingold voted for a stimulus bill he said would create jobs and pontificated that the funds should be spent wisely. But since that time Wisconsin has lost 82,000 jobs, Feingold is defending his vote, and a new report details 100 egregious examples of unwise stimulus spending.

For example, the report found taxpayer dollars were used to fund a $1.9 million research project to capture, photograph, and analyze exotic ants in the Southwest Indian Ocean Islands and East Africa. The California Academy of Sciences says of the project, “Everyone has run into ants…now we need to listen to them.”

After both saying stimulus dollars should be spent wisely and subsequently defending his vote, it looks like Russ Feingold approves of projects that are a total waste of taxpayer resources while failing to provide real solutions to Wisconsin’s economic crisis.

“Russ Feingold funded a study to listen to ants while rejecting the calls of his own constituents to stop spending their money,” said Juston Johnson, Campaign Manager for Ron Johnson for Senate. “A majority of Wisconsinites who oppose the stimulus bill, and oppose spending $2 million to listen to ants, will be heard loud and clear on November 2nd.”

The Johnson Campaign will be highlighting wasteful stimulus spending projects Russ Feingold believes are getting the job done for Wisconsin families until Election Day.

Stimulus Facts:

Feingold Said “Stimulus” Must Be Spent Wisely. “Now that the economic recovery package has been signed into law, our focus must be on the challenges ahead, including getting our fiscal house in order and making sure that there is strong oversight of these taxpayer dollars. These funds must be spent wisely if they are to truly work for Wisconsin’s families.”  (Editorial, “Russ Feingold: Stimulus Package Makes Sense,” La Crosse Tribune, 2/25/2009.)

Three days prior to the signing of the stimulus, Senator Feingold issued a press release saying the stimulus would create 2.4 million jobs in the first year, and about nine million jobs in the first three years. (Senator Russ Feingold, ”Statement of U.S. Russ Feingold On The Economic Recovery Package,” Feingold Press Office, February 10, 2009.)

Feingold Provided the 60th Vote for the Stimulus Package. (H.R. 1, 2009 Roll Call #64: Adopted 60-38, 2/13/09, Feingold Voted Yea)

The National Economy has lost over 2.2 Million jobs since the stimulus was signed. (Source, Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, Accessed July 27, 2010.)

Since the Stimulus was signed, the State of Wisconsin has lost 82,000 jobs. (Source, Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, Accessed July 27, 2010)

Feingold Defends Stimulus Vote. “I don’t apologize for those votes. Those were the right votes.” (“Feingold defends voting record, Hudson Star Observer, 7/28/2010)

New Report Details Misdirected Stimulus Spending. “Stimulus money is going toward iPods for high school students in Utah, cell phones for smokers trying to quit in Washington, D.C., and advertising devoted to the promotion of … the stimulus. The findings are part of a 74-page report put out by a pair of Republican senators who contend the $862 billion program is fraught with needless spending.” (“New GOP Report Details Misdirected Stimulus Spending, Associated Press, 8/3/2010)

Cook Political Report Says Johnson Makes Race a Toss Up

[Oshkosh, WI] The non-partisan Cook Political report moved Wisconsin from “Lean Democrat” to “Toss Up” today, putting 18-year incumbent Russ Feingold on notice that Wisconsin voters realize the self-proclaimed maverick is just another Washington insider who sides with his party leaders and their big spending, big government policies.

“Even non-partisan reports are putting Russ Feingold on notice,” said Juston Johnson, Campaign Manager for Ron Johnson for Senate. “It’s been evident for months voters have had enough of politics as usual from the 18-year incumbent and his failed policies, and it’s no secret Feingold is going to have a battle ahead this fall—not only from Ron Johnson, but from every voter who is concerned about the direction of our country.”

###

Read the non-partisan Cook Political Report

The Dangerous Lame Duck

Oshkosh, WI…Proposals like cap-and-trade, card check, and tax hikes could be coming down the pike after the election if Democrats view it as their last opportunity to ram through their expensive and job-killing policies. Known as a “lame duck session,” politicians without accountability are emboldened to pass legislation contrary to the will of voters. Russ Feingold openly opposed “The Dangerous Lame Duck” in 2006, penning an editorial, saying, “It would be a huge mistake to overlook the potential for damage in the lame duck session.”

Will self-proclaimed maverick Russ Feingold denounce a lame duck session when his own party is in power and with job-killing proposals on the table? Don’t bet on it.

“Russ Feingold’s willingness to follow the lead of Washington Democrats on job-killing bills the American people oppose such as the stimulus and health care bills is a good indication he won’t be denouncing a lame duck session now that his party is in control,” said Juston Johnson, Campaign Manager for Ron Johnson for U.S. Senate. “However, along with the voters of Wisconsin, we’re still holding out hope Russ Feingold will condemn this dangerous lame duck session and the reckless policies far-left liberals would like to advance.”

Johnson said Oshkosh manufacturer and U.S. Senate Candidate Ron Johnson would do everything in his power to stop proposals like cap-and-trade, card check, and tax hikes in their tracks to prevent further harming the economy.

“As a small businessman and a manufacturer, Ron Johnson is going to lead the efforts on job creation, and that starts by stopping job-killing policies like cap-and-trade, card check, and tax hikes in their tracks,” Johnson said.

###