Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) isn’t the only politician named Ron with a target on his back. Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI3) is already the subject of an political attack ad for the 2022 election cycle.
The ad, sponsored by the Republican National Congressional Committee (RNCC), is part of their campaign targeting a “exit list.”
“Kind’s reward for making the list is a paid media campaign reminding Wisconsin voters that he voted to funnel over $7 million to his own campaign account, and wants to force the American public to foot the bill for his attack ads, fundraisers, and even first-class plane tickets,” according to a statement from Mike Berg, a spokesman for the RNCC, posted on their website.
The ad:
The reference to the first-class plane tickets is about the uncontrolled types of spending that can occur with taxpayer dollars if public financing of campaigns becomes a law.
Kind is seen as especially vulnerable after the results of the 2016 and 2020 elections. In both elections, Kind won in a congressional district that was also won by President Donald Trump. In 2020, Kind won in a surprisingly competitive race, 51.3% to 48.6%.
Ironically, while Kind may be among the first Democrats to be under attack in the 2022 election cycle, it’s the 2020 election that may haunt him. Congressional Democrats are considering seating Democrat Rita Hart in Iowa’s 2nd congressional district over the certified winner, Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks. Miller-Meeks was declared the winner by just six votes, but Democrats in the House of Representatives are considering counting 22 ballots that were discounter which would give Hart the win.
Update! Hart has withdrawn her challenge, according to Reuters.
If Kind votes to seat Hart, Republicans will remind voters of Kind’s statements regarding Republican attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, painting Kind as a hypocrite.
Kind’s vulnerability as a congressional candidate may be a moot point, however. Kind has said he is considering running for U.S. Senate against Wisconsin’s other vulnerable Ron, Senator Ron Johnson.
