A Wisconsin newspaper has drawn cheers from liberals and jeers from Republicans after calling incumbent Wisconsin Republican Senator Ron Johnson "the worst" since Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Editorial Board branded Johnson, who has held his seat since 2010, and "election deceiver, science fabulist," and "billionaire benefactor" before calling for Wisconsin citizens to vote him out of office in favor of Democrat Mandela Barnes.
But it was the comparison to McCarthy, who led the ruinous and fascistic McCarthy Hearings during the 1950s hysteria over communism he helped inflame, that has most stuck in the minds of people online.
The Journal Sentinel pulled no punches in calling Johnson out as one of the worst influences on the US Senate.
Before itemizing a list of his most egregious stances, the Editorial Board wrote:
"For years, Ron Johnson has demonstrated that he should be retired to his family's seaside Florida home—and not representing Wisconsin in the U.S. Senate. Voters should send him packing this November."
The paper went on to list how Johnson jumped on every MAGA Republican-led bandwagon he could over the years, from denying the 2020 election to propagating absurd conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and vaccines.
Johnson has also vigorously defended the rioters who participated in the January 6 coup attempt on the Capitol, absurdly calling them "people ... [who] would never do anything to break the law."
And the list goes on and on.
He was an instrumental part of former Republican President Donald Trump's schemes to overturn the election, is a vociferous climate change denier, and has shilled for the billionaire class at every opportunity.
And as the Journal Sentinel pointed out Johnson has run a campaign against Barnes—a Black man and the state's Lieutenant Governor—focused mostly on racist dog-whistles.
As the Editorial Board put it:
"You'll notice Johnson is not touting a long record of accomplishments in his ads for re-election. Instead, he and his supporters have attacked his opponent — a Black man — as 'different' and 'dangerous.'"
The Editorial Board summed it up by comparing him to McCarthy, a man who destroyed the lives of countless people he wrongfully accused of having political ideas he didn't like or being POC or Jewish.
They wrote:
"Ron Johnson is the worst Wisconsin political representative since the infamous Sen. Joseph McCarthy."
"Johnson in the past promised to serve no more than two terms. Voters should hold him to that pledge in November."
On Twitter, many applauded the Journal Sentinel's straight talk.
After trailing Barnes throughout most of the election season, Johnson now leads him by nearly three points.
Here's hoping the Journal Sentinel's editorial makes a difference.
