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That is right, it is time for
the Monday menace, and this Monday our menacing creature is none other
than Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson who is currently in a pretty tight race for
his seat.
This is again one of the seats that Democrats are hoping to flip with
Democrat Mandela Barnes.
We'll get into some of that very interesting polling a little bit later.
But why is he the Monday menace?
Well, because he was speaking to local Wisconsin news and
effectively admitted that yeah,
he had something to do with the January 6th alternate slate of electors.
But not that much, a little bit, whatever, it's not even relevant.
So he was asked whether or not he would testify to the January 6th committee and
he said this quote, what would they ask to testify about?
Johnson said when asked if he would testify before the committee,
I had nothing to do with the alternate slate.
I had no idea anybody was going to ask me to deliver those.
My involvement in that attempt to deliver span the course of a couple of seconds.
When a crime is done like quickly they call it a quick crime and
therefore it's like not a crime.
Did you ever hear that defense has gotten many, many people off,
I'm surprised you are not versed in that.
So he said it was just a little bit, just a few seconds.
He did have and we can go to these shots.
Now, he did have, remember when he's been asked about his
role in the alternate slate of electors, what he was doing.
This is how he usually responds.
Here he is pretending to be on the phone.
>> How much did you know about what your chief
of staff was doing with the alternate slates of electors?
>> I'm on the phone right now.
No, you're not.
I can see your phone, I can see your screen.
Senator, can you explain what your chief of staff was doing?
>> I see the screensaver, your kids are there, I don't know where you guys are.
You're in Machu Picchu, it looks like a Tinder profile.
So that was him.
This is in June, pretending not to hear the reporters,
pretending to be on the phone.
Then later he's like, all right, the jig is up, I'm gonna respond.
And here's what he ultimately said.
>> This was a staff to staff exchange and I was basically unaware of it.
And the chief staff contacted the Vice President's staff said, do you want this?
They said no and we didn't deliver it.
And that's the end of story.
>> But why was he even asking for that?
>> Cuz somebody delivered this to our office and
asked to deliver that to Vice President.
>> Did you support his efforts to try to get those slates to the Vice President?
>> No, I had no knowledge of this.
>> Somebody just delivered something to my office and so I just passed the message.
I am merely the messenger.
Again, let's revisit what that message was supposed to be.
And remember that according to the times the Trump plan began with that effort to
persuade republican officials in targeted states, Arizona Georgia,
Michigan Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
To help draft or at least put their names on documents that declared Mr.
Trump to be the victor.
Once the false pro-Trump slate of electors had been created, Mr. Trump and his
allies turned the second part of the plan, strong-arming vice president Mike Pence
into considering them during the joint session of Congress on January 6th.
The point was to persuade Mr. Pence to say that the election was somehow flawed or
in doubt or to delay the certification of the electors count.
And again, the third part of the plan was just storming the capitol.
We saw how that went down.
Dan, before I could get to you, let's remember what the January 6th committee
revealed, which was sex messages from the Chief of Staff and
Ron Johnson's office and someone working for Mike Pence.
[LAUGH] So this is between Sean Riley and Chris Hodgson.
We don't have it here.
But this begins with sup from Chris Hodgson, which is my favorite ever.
Sean says Johnson needs to hand something to VPOTUS, please advise.
Chris Hodgson, what is it?
This is by the way, noon January 6th.
Sean Riley alternate slate of electors for Michigan and
Wisconsin because archivists didn't receive them.
[LAUGH] That's funny, Chris Hodgson, do not give that to him.
No, yeah, no bye, block.
And that was it.
And so here you have a direct staff member with Ron Johnson,
someone working with Mike Pence.
These are in the wind aiming our mob literally amassing at the door.
Here was the last alternative I guess and it didn't work.
So you stick to the mob.
Dan, Ron Johnson, we're gonna get into the polls, but what do you think about this?
Do you think he's gonna be asked to testify?
>> I mean he should be compelled to testify.
Those text messages are pretty damning.
He said his part in January 6 only took a few seconds or lasted a few seconds.
He was originally saying that he had nothing to do with January 6.
So apparently his statement that he had nothing to do with January 6 last even
less than his supposed influence are part in that event.
But the back and forth is constantly trying to make it very clear that he's
trying to hide the possible accountability from here.
The Republicans keep playing this game where January 6 is at the same time,
not a big deal, but also something they don't wanna touch and
be related towards cuz they fear it might be toxic for them.
Will it be ultimately toxic for them?
I don't know cuz I think there's a large part of the base that does believe that
Trump even if he didn't win, should have been declared the victor at all costs.
I still think that Ron johnson should be compelled to testify because there's
clearly something he's hiding and he needs to be on the record.
>> Absolutely, and as good as reporters I think are doing hounding him,
trying to make sure that he they know [LAUGH] he knows that they know he's on
a fake phone call and such.
Or a local news outlet, obviously covering his race and
just asking him, hey, this is kind of the biggest thing in national news right now,
what was your involvement with that?
And he's like, it's a nothing burger.
At some point, he's gonna have to answer for this.
And at some point, you got to be honest, so what is it?
Either you did know about it and you did help and
there was a plan or you're an idiot.
And these folks are doing this under your nose,
using your office to do it to send these alternate slate of electors.
Folks who have been investigated now by the January 6th committee and
even some by the FBI.
We're talking serious crimes here and he's like, well, either I what,
no, okay, but a little bit I did, but not really, but kind of,
and that answer doesn't fly when you're sitting in front of Congress.
By the way, he is part of Congress, he is a senator, but maybe not for long.
So according to a Fox News, that's right.
A Fox News Poll published recently, Mandela Barnes is edging
Johnson in the Wisconsin Senate race with 50% if the election
were today choosing Mandela Barnes over Ron Johnson.
Huge Johnson's 46% seems like Barnes has obviously less
name recognition, there's less overall excitement.
But of course, we know knowing that your current senator is a lying idiot,
effectively will move you to vote for the other person whether or
not Mandela Barnes is like a household name or not.
But the other part of this obviously is Roe versus Wade and
protecting abortion rights in Wisconsin.
Majority of Wisconsinites, 55% disapprove of the US Supreme Court's overturning
of Roe v Wade, and those voters largely back Barnes by 67 points.
Those approving of the Dobbs decision 37% widely favored Johnson by 83 points.
So there you have it.
One of those issues in addition to we're gonna get into some polling later on,
what else is driving people to the polls?
I don't love to get too excited about polls because after 2016,
I literally believe no one and I've said this before, Dan.
But like it says a lot that Mandela Barnes is effectively now in multiple polls and
this is a Fox News Poll is beating Ron Johnson.
>> Yeah, I'll also sprinkle a little bit of cynicism in there with you Francesca,
that that pole has a 3% margin of error and he's leading by four points.
That's a tie and it's August, so, >> Don't look closely Dan.
What I mean, if a lot of changes, I mean,
what if he comes if he's called to testify, that only helps Barnes.
>> I think so too.
But also I reminisced to a lot of these cases where you
have high profile Republicans that Democrats really want to unseat.
And so there's a lot of money that gets poured into those races,
even though those candidates may or may not be the strongest ones.
I think at the end of the day, look, Ron johnson said, hey, listen,
I received something.
So therefore I was just gonna be the messenger and
pass it along to the vice president if his constituents don't actually believe that,
that's how Ron johnson works.
Not just in a, I got something, I just handed something,
I'm not gonna vet it at all.
Is Ron Johnson doing that with his constituents?
Is he doing that with the people who voted him into office?
Is he just taking the things that they're saying and I don't know, I just saw this,
I'm gonna pass it along to the people I'm running with or in power with.
I don't know if that's the case here and so
that's ultimately what's gonna come down to.
Do the people of Wisconsin feel that Ron Johnson is best representing their
interests and I would be happy with any [LAUGH] Senate flip honestly,
given this year and how it's supposed to go.
So my fingers are crossed, but I'm not gonna hold my breath for this.
>> Absolutely, and I mean, it just shows how far we've slid to
the right in this country when basic bodily autonomy, rights, and
democracy are the two biggest things driving people to the polls.
We didn't think it would get this dark.
I mean, maybe we did, but here we are.
And suddenly it's like, well, do you, or don't you believe in the election process?
And do you, or don't you believe that people shouldn't bleed
out from miscarriages and not be able to say when they wanna be parents?
I mean, it's basic stuff.
It's just [LAUGH] do we like fascism or not?
Yeah.
>> I was gonna say one more thing.
Maybe or maybe not there Senator Ron Johnson, may or may not have done as
what George Blues called light treason [LAUGH] in arrested development.
That might be something they want their senator to be a part of or not a part of,
I don't know, we'll let the people in Wisconsin decide.
I hope they decide right.
>> Amen.
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