Vulnerable GOP senator to speak at Trump rally
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is slated to speak at Donald Trump’s rally in Wisconsin on Tuesday evening, representing their first joint campaign appearance of the 2016 cycle.
Brian Reisinger, a spokesman for Johnson’s campaign, said the senator will speak at a Trump event in Eau Claire, Wis., along with other Wisconsin Republicans “about what his campaign has been all about.”
{mosads}That includes “focusing on areas of agreement, taking on Washington dysfunction, and stopping Hillary Clinton and Senator [Russ] Feingold, two career politicians who are in it for themselves,” he added.
Tuesday’s rally comes as Johnson heads into the final week of his Senate campaign trailing his Democratic challenger by nearly 7 points, according to the RealClearPolitics polling index.
Feingold’s campaign immediately pounced on the announcement Tuesday, questioning why Johnson would campaign with Trump after his controversial remarks on women.
“Is Senator Johnson comfortable campaigning with a man accused of sexually assaulting women for decades, and does he plan to say anything to Donald Trump privately about his degrading comments and predatory actions toward women?” Feingold spokeswoman Amelia Penniman said in a statement.
Johnson, like most Senate Republicans, continued to support the GOP presidential nominee after a 2005 tape surfaced last month showing Trump discussing groping and kissing women without their consent. The Wisconsin Republican has repeatedly said he is supporting Trump though he’ll publicly speak out on areas where they disagree.
The two were scheduled to campaign together for the first time last month, along with Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), at a joint campaign event in Wisconsin. Trump, however, was dropped from the event in the wake of the 2005 type.
Asked about the Feingold campaign’s comments, Johnson’s spokesman fired back, “how can Senator Feingold stand by Hillary Clinton when she remains under FBI investigation for mishandling some of America’s most sensitive national security secrets?”
Johnson is one of a handful of GOP senators running in states that President Obama previously won. Republicans are defending 24 seats and Democrats need to pick up five, or four if they retain the White House, to win back the majority.
Trump’s stop in Wisconsin comes as Clinton is currently leading him by nearly 6 points on average in the state, according to the RealClearPolitics polling index.
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