John Nichols: A Victory for Wisconsin’s Real Democrats

John Nichols: A Victory for Wisconsin’s Real Democrats

John Nichols: A Victory for Wisconsin’s Real Democrats

Despite the Republican strategy to recruit fake democrats to run in Wisconsin’s primary elections, real Democrats won 70 percent of the vote.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

Last night in Wisconsin, a real primary of fake candidates took place—in other words, the Republicans recruited "fake" Democrats (allegedly Democratic candidates with a GOP agenda) and ran them in the elections against actual Democrats. Wisconsin Republicans furiously campaigned for 36 hours before the election, desperately trying to convince the state’s Democrats not to vote for their candidates. Nevertheless, real Democrats won 70 percent of the primary vote and are now in a good position to take on Governor Scott Walker’s union-busting agenda later this year.

The Nation‘s John Nichols joined MSNBC’s Ed Schultz last night to explain what the victory means for the Wisconsin’s Democrats, and puts this primary in the context of the state’s upcoming general election. 

Anna Lekas Miller

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

I urge you to stand with The Nation and donate today.

Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

Ad Policy
x