Letter to the Editor: Beware!

Last week, a dapper Ron Johnson released his first television ad announcing his intent to run for a third term in the U.S. Senate, thereby breaking his principled promise to limit himself to two terms. He says he must run to save the country from dangerous “Democrat policies.” The danger lies primarily in inflation, caused by excessive pandemic spending in 2021, and he is compelled to run because he loves his country. I don’t believe a word of it. Do you?

Has he forgotten that the first and largest bill to prevent another Great Recession was passed in 2020 while his party held dizzying power?

Economists will likely argue for years about which factors have led to phenomena as complex as inflation, but most of us have lived through many cycles of it without losing our country. In 2021, the economy grew by the largest percentage in decades; it seems unlikely to collapse from inflation. 

Of course, we all claim to love our country, but how can Wisconsinites forget that Johnson has publicly supported the actions of people who threatened the lives of elected officials and assaulted the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021? He has also organized meetings in Wisconsin that have undermined the work of long-serving election officials who certified a fair election – a judgment amply supported by judges who were confirmed by the U.S. Senate! 

Amendment 14, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution says clearly that no one who has supported an insurrection or rebellion against the Constitution “may hold any office, civil or military.” Ron Johnson should step aside. 

Estella Lauter

Fish Creek, Wisconsin