Baldwin fires up delegates, bashes ‘special interests’
OSHKOSH - U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin took an unusual stance Friday night at the opening of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin convention.
Baldwin didn’t namecheck the two Republicans battling to face her in the fall: state Sen. Leah Vukmir of Brookfield and Delafield businessman Kevin Nicholson.
Instead, she lobbed salvos at out-of-state billionaires.
In a measured speech, Baldwin called out “powerful special interests” who are “pouring millions of dollars into Wisconsin because they want a bought-and-paid-for senator.”
“These out-of-state billionaires think they can buy a U.S. Senate seat, as if they aren’t getting enough already from Washington,” she told 800 delegates gathered at the Oshkosh Convention Center.
The first-term senator is the state’s highest-ranking Democrat.
Without naming Illinois resident Richard Uihlein, a big backer of Nicholson’s, or the political network controlled by the Koch brothers, Baldwin said the out-of-state billionaires “want someone to do their bidding in Washington.”
“Whether it’s taking people’s health care away, privatizing the VA, gutting Social Security and Medicare, or gifting even more tax breaks to the wealthy and well-connected,” she said.
“That’s why out-of-state special interests have made me their top target,” she added.
The race is already awash with more than $11 million in outside spending, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Nicholson has benefited from $6 million in outside spending, with $1.5 million supporting Vukmir and $1 million in favor of Baldwin.
In addition, $3 million in outside spending has gone against Baldwin.
Baldwin has a powerful fundraising operation with a national reach. More than half of her itemized contributions from individual donors has come from out-of-state supporters, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Overall, she has raised $17 million in this cycle, compared with $2.3 million for Nicholson and $1.3 million for Vukmir.
She called on delegates to “come together and put these Washington special interests and out-of-state mega-donors on notice.”
Earlier Friday, Vukmir came to Oshkosh to make the case that Baldwin is out of touch with the state’s voters.
“Senator Baldwin’s embarrassing record, in which she has supported some of the most ludicrous policy initiatives I’ve frankly ever come across, indicates that at her core, she just doesn’t get it,” Vukmir said. “Should we really prioritize protecting Wisconsinites from certain school mascots more than protecting them from sex offenders in their communities? I will not sit quietly while Baldwin attempts to hide her seriously misguided positions.”
Baldwin’s speech was sandwiched between five-minute addresses from the 10 Democrats running to challenge GOP Gov. Scott Walker.