Wisconsin

Democratic donors prop up far-right candidates, including Wisconsin gun activist in Senate race

Published

1 month ago

October 1, 2024

Democratic donors prop up far-right candidates, including Wisconsin gun activist in Senate race

WASHINGTON (AP) — David Steinglass, a wealthy donor, has supported scores of Democrats running for office and calls himself an activist for transgender rights.

So his donation earlier this year to a far-right candidate in Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate race seemed wildly out of character. He gave the maximum $3,300 to help get a man on the ballot who had these items in his background: He was investigated in the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, he is a gun rights activist and he has called for banning some gender-affirming treatments for minors.

Far from an anomaly, the donation is part of a larger design. Steinglass’ contribution to “America First” candidate Thomas Leager, and thousands more he and his wife gave to other far-right independents in key congressional races, is supporting a plan to boost Democrats and siphon votes from Republicans, an Associated Press examination found.

As the election cycle enters an urgent, final five weeks, both Democrats and Republicans are engaging in questionable tactics that threaten to subvert the democratic process by trying to shape the ballot through deceptive means.

“Whether it’s congressional or presidential races, this kind of activity is a real problem and it undermines the functioning of democracy,” said Edward B. Foley, a law professor who leads Ohio State University’s election law program.

Leager told the AP he was recruited last year to run by operatives who said they were with the Patriots Run Project. That group promoted itself as a pro-Trump grassroots movement that attacked both parties and urged conservatives to run for office as independents. The AP found the group was supported by Democratic firms and donors who worked to install several pro-Trump independent candidates in key House races. Most of them were disabled, retired or both.

Records show Democrats have given tens of thousands of dollars seeking ballot access for the far-right candidates. The supporters include Steinglass and his wife, Liz, who have given more than $5 million to support Democratic political groups, and others who have contributed to and worked for Democratic candidates.

While the strategy hasn’t always worked, Leager is among the candidates who qualified for the Nov. 5 ballot and could complicate Republicans’ efforts to reclaim the Senate. He’s running as a right-wing alternative to GOP nominee Eric Hovde, who is challenging two-term Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin.

The AP’s findings triggered a criminal investigation in Iowa and prompted a conservative group to file a legal complaint with the Federal Election Commission alleging that it had violated political disclosure laws.

The Patriots Run Project came under scrutiny after the AP reported that one of its candidates in a House race in Iowa suspected he’d been tricked and removed his name from the ballot last month.

The man, Joe Wiederien, who is impaired after suffering a stroke, said an Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation agent visited him last week and he filed an election fraud complaint.

“Whoever it is, I think that project is going down sooner or later,” said Wiederien, who was among several recruited to run through the group’s network of now-shuttered Facebook pages.

What to know about the 2024 Election

The Patriots Run Project is not a registered business, nonprofit organization or political committee. After AP’s report last month, the group moved even further underground, disabling its account for X, formerly Twitter, and websites. More than 10 donors and consultants supporting its efforts haven’t returned messages.

Liz Steinglass declined comment when a reporter visited her at the family’s Washington, D.C., home. Her husband, a retired private equity fund manager, didn’t return a message. The couple has given at least $9,900 to three candidates who said they were recruited by the Patriots Run Project, records show.

When an operative for Patriots Run Project called him last summer and urged him to enter the Senate race in Wisconsin, Leager said he told the group that he would be a controversial candidate because of his association with some of the men charged in the 2020 plot to kidnap Whitmer. He was not among several defendants charged in state and federal court, and he has said he never discussed plans to kidnap her. Court documents show he was among 16 others listed by the Michigan attorney general’s office as an unindicted co-conspirator.

But the Patriots Run Project nonetheless arranged roughly $20,000 in donations from Democratic donors to gather the signatures needed to qualify for the ballot, which went to a firm that usually works for Democrats.

Leager was subpoenaed to testify at a 2022 trial for four defendants and exercised his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination after a judge found he had legal exposure. A prosecutor said at that hearing Leager was “under investigation for a similar plot involving a different” politician, had encouraged violence against the FBI on his podcast, and had invited armed protesters to appear outside a courthouse in an effort to intimidate jurors. Leager has denied supporting violence.

Leager is former executive director of Wisconsin Gun Owners Inc., which takes a maximalist position on the Second Amendment. In 2020, he organized protests for ReOpen Wisconsin, which included armed demonstrations opposing government closures and mandates intended to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Through his activism he became acquainted with Stephen Robeson, with whom he later broke after correctly suspecting he was an FBI informant. Leager attended a field training exercise in Cambria, Wisconsin, where investigators alleged the idea of attacking government officials was discussed.

Leager said he was an associate of alleged kidnapping plot leader Barry Croft, who is serving a lengthy prison term. Croft argues he was entrapped by government informants and is asking for a new trial.

“I was the Wisconsin target for the FBI in the Whitmer case. We just happened to slip through their nets,” Leager said in March on “The Free Men Report,” a show he streams on Rumble.

Leager said an operative calling himself “Johnny Shearer” told him Patriots Run Project had seen his work and he was the exact type of candidate they wanted, saying the group was impressed “that I had not caved under pressure from the feds.”

Six donors gave Leager the maximum $3,300 donation. In addition to David Steinglass, they include venture capitalist Richard Thompson of Wyoming and political consultant Joe Fox, a veteran of Democratic campaigns and House Majority PAC, congressional Democrats’ super PAC.

Leager said their money paid for signature-gathering efforts by Urban Media LLC, a Milwaukee firm that usually works for Democrats and has done work for Vice President Kamala Harris and Baldwin.

The Steinglass family, Fox and Thompson also donated to independent conservative candidates Robert Reid and Thomas Bowman in House races in Virginia and Minnesota, records show.

A small network of Democratic donors also supported the three candidates as well as Vann Whitley, who unsuccessfully sought ballot access as a Libertarian in a Colorado House race.

Leager said he was “suspicious a little bit” of the group’s motives but that he ultimately didn’t care. “I was like, ‘if this gets me on the ballot, that’s the main point.’ I wanted to get in the game,” he said.

Leager said the Patriots Run Project had no other “real influence” on his campaign but he was angry to have been misled.

Hovde has alleged publicly that Leager is a “Democrat plant” intended to take votes from him.

Baldwin’s campaign said it had no role in getting Leager on the ballot.

Leager rejected the allegation that he would hurt only Hovde, saying he expects to take votes from both sides.

“They are trying to say I am some kind of Democratic operative, which is silly because I am more conservative than Hovde is,” he said.

___

Foley reported from Iowa City, Iowa. AP news researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York contributed to this report.

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Wisconsin

What channel is Wisconsin vs Iowa on tonight? Time, TV schedule to watch Week 10 game

Published

10 hours ago

November 2, 2024

Press Room

What channel is Wisconsin vs Iowa on tonight? Time, TV schedule to watch Week 10 game

After losing to No. 3 Penn State at Camp Randall last weekend, the Wisconsin Badgers (5-3) are one of five teams at 3-2 in the Big Ten Conference. Their opponent Saturday, Iowa (5-3, 3-2), is in the same bunch.

With games left vs. No. 1 Oregon, at Nebraska and vs. Minnesota after the bye week, Saturday’s matchup is an important swing game for the Badgers in league play.

A victory also makes the Badgers bowl-eligible for the 23rd season in a row and the 28th time in 29 seasons.

Watch Wisconsin vs Iowa on Fubo (free trial)

Brendan Sullivan will be making his first start at quarterback at Iowa after replacing Cade McNamara in a 40-14 victory over Northwestern after McNamara went out with a concussion. The Hawkeyes scored 37 consecutive points last week with Sullivan under center.

Here’s how to watch and listen to the game:

What channel is Wisconsin vs Iowa on tonight?

Wisconsin vs. Iowa will broadcast nationally on NBC in Week 10 of the 2024 college football season. Noah Eagle (play-by-play) and Todd Blackledge (analyst) will call the game from Kinnick Stadium. Streaming options for the game include the Peacock app and Fubo, which offers a free trial to new subscribers.

Wisconsin vs Iowa time tonight

Date: Saturday, Nov. 2
Start Time: 6:30 p.m. CT

The Wisconsin vs. Iowa game starts at 6:30 p.m. from Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa.

Wisconsin vs. Iowa predictions, picks, odds

Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Saturday

Mark Stewart: This has the makings of a great bounce-back game for Wisconsin. The Badgers didn’t play poorly last week but it wasn’t good enough to win. The experience, however, of facing a top-three opponent sets up UW nicely for the rigors of winning on the road. Wisconsin 24, Iowa 20

JR Radcliffe: This feels like a massively important game for quarterback Braedyn Locke, who has struggled to get through a game this year without committing at least one turnover. Is he the future at quarterback for this program? If he is, this would be an opportunity to showcase it, leading Wisconsin in a difficult but winnable road game against a team down their own starting quarterback. The defense already slowed down one powerful rushing opponent (Rutgers), but Iowa is the best in the Big Ten in that department, led by Kaleb Johnson. It’s another close call, but I think Iowa has just a little extra. Iowa 28, Wisconsin 23.

ODDS: Iowa by 2.5

O/U: 41.5

Wisconsin vs Iowa on radio tonight

Radio: FM-97.3 and AM 920 in Milwaukee and AM-1310 and FM-101.5 in Madison, plus a statewide network of stations.
Matt Lepay (play-by-play), Mark Tauscher (analyst) and Patrick Herb (sideline reporter) will be on the call.

Wisconsin vs Iowa on SiriusXM Radio

The Wisconsin broadcast is on Channel 391. The Iowa broadcast is on Channel 85.

Wisconsin football schedule 2024

All times Central

* Denotes Big Ten game

Aug. 30: vs. Western Michigan, W, 28-14
Sept. 7: vs. South Dakota, W, 27-13
Sept. 14: vs. Alabama, L, 42-10
Sept. 21: Bye
Sept. 28: at USC*, L, 38-21
Oct. 5: vs. Purdue*, W, 52-6
Oct. 12: at Rutgers*, W, 42-7
Oct. 19: at Northwestern*, W, 23-3
Oct. 26: vs. Penn State*, L, 28-13
Nov. 2: at Iowa,* 6:30 p.m.
Nov. 9: Bye
Nov. 16: vs. Oregon*
Nov. 23: at Nebraska*
Nov. 29: vs. Minnesota*, 11 a.m.
Record: 5-3 (3-2 Big Ten)

Iowa football schedule 2024

All times Central

* Denotes Big Ten game

Aug. 31: vs. Illinois State, W, 40-0
Sept. 7: vs. Iowa State, L, 20-19
Sept. 14: vs. Troy, W, 38-21
Sept. 21: at Minnesota*, W, 31-14
Oct. 5: at Ohio State*, L, 35-7
Oct. 12: vs. Washington*, W, 40-16
Oct. 19: at Michigan State*, L, 32-20
Oct. 26: vs. Northwestern*, W, 40-14
Nov. 2: vs. Wisconsin*, 6:30 p.m.
Nov. 8: at UCLA*, 8 p.m.
Nov. 23: at Maryland*
Nov. 29: vs. Nebraska*, 6:30 p.m.
Record: 5-3 (3-2 Big Ten)

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Wisconsin

US DOJ sending staff to monitor Wisconsin election Tuesday

Published

20 hours ago

November 1, 2024

Press Room

US DOJ sending staff to monitor Wisconsin election Tuesday

The U.S Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division will post election monitors in four Wisconsin locations Nov. 5. The news comes as Wisconsin’s top elections administrator says local clerks have been preparing for any potential election day problems since 2020.

The DOJ announced Friday it will “monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws” in the cities of Milwaukee, Wausau and the Rusk County Towns of Lawrence and Thornapple during Tuesday’s presidential election.

The DOJ sued the Towns of Lawrence and Thornapple in September, accusing local officials of breaking federal law for not making at least one accessible voting machine available to voters with disabilities during elections in April and May. The Town of Thornapple is currently appealing a preliminary injunction requiring it to bring the accessible voting machine back for the upcoming election.

Stay informed on the latest news

In Wausau, the Wisconsin Department of Justice has taken over an investigation into whether the city’s mayor broke the law by removing a ballot drop box outside city hall Sept. 22.

Wisconsin’s top elections official says clerks have prepped for potential election day problems since 2020

Also on Friday, Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe said early, in-person absentee voting remains stronger than expected with more 801,000 ballots cast thus far. That represents around a 48 percent increase in early, in-person turnout compared to the same time in 2020.

Wolfe also said slowdowns with the WEC’s computer system that caused delays for clerks trying to print absentee ballot labels have been resolved.

“Also, importantly, the label printing function is not a function that is used on election day. It is only an optional function that’s used during in-person, absentee voting,” Wolfe told reporters at a media briefing.

When asked whether Wisconsin clerks had reported any issues seen in other states, like absentee ballot drop boxes being set on fire or disruptions at early voting sites, Wolfe said they have not.

Wolfe said clerks have been preparing for the upcoming election since 2020. That’s when former President Donald Trump began falsely claiming his loss to President Joe Biden was due to voter fraud, driving up public concerns about election integrity.

“We always hope that a bad day in elections never happens, but if something should occur, I think our local election officials have truly been preparing for those possibilities for the last four years,” Wolfe said. “And they take it very seriously that they want to ensure that their voters can feel safe and secure when they go to vote using whatever method they choose.”

Wisconsin Elections Commission spars over guidance spawned GOP allegations of noncitizens voting

The elections commission held a meeting after Wolfe’s briefing. Things grew heated between some of the six voting members of the commission during a discussion on clerk guidance tied to Republicans’ recent focus on the potential of noncitizens voting in the presidential election.

While research has found that illegal voting by noncitizens is exceedingly rare, documents prepared by commission staff said they’ve received “many questions from clerks.”

The guidance notes that the state Legislature, which is controlled by Republicans, changed state law in 2016 to allow “Limited Term” and “Non-Domiciled” drivers licenses and ID cards to be used to vote in Wisconsin. Those cards are issued to people who were legal residents but not yet citizens when they applied for the credentials.

The guidance states that clerks or elections inspectors who are notified a person presented a “Limited Term” or “Non-Domiciled” card at a polling place should challenge their eligibility to vote unless they provide citizenship documentation. During a challenge, the prospective voter is placed under oath and asked if they are U.S. Citizen. The the answer is no, a ballot cannot be issued.

Republican Commissioner Bob Spindell, who posed as a false elector during Trump’s 2020 attempts to overturn his loss to Biden, claimed he’s heard that some noncitizen driver’s licenses don’t include the phrase “Limited Term” or “Non-Domiciled.”

He contended that if birth dates and expiration dates on drivers licenses do not match, it could be an indication that the holder is not a citizen. And he asked whether birth dates and expiration dates on licenses could be matched in order to tell if a person was a citizen or not.

“So I was wondering if the (WEC) staff has any more information on that, because this is a question that has been put forth,” Spindell said. “It’s my understanding the Republican Party of Wisconsin has instructed the paid poll workers and also the observers that this is something that needs to be looked at and could possibly be a reason for challenge.”

Democratic Wisconsin Elections Commission Chair Ann Jacobs scoffed at Spindell’s statement and question.

“Are you saying that you’re asking this commission to order poll workers across the state to examine every single driver’s license?” Jacobs said. “That’s the millions of voters who are going to vote on election day that they’re supposed to be analyzing these expiration dates, because you’re telling us it’s possible that one of those identifications could be someone who might not be a citizen?”

Spindell backtracked slightly but said if a poll worker notices inconsistencies there should be commission guidance. “Because I hate to see a whole bunch of challenges.”

Wisconsin Elections Commission Chief Legal Counsel Jim Witecha told members that DOT attorneys told him the only time the situation is referring to would happen is on the “Limited Term” and “Non-Domiciled” cards.

Democratic Commissioner Mark Thomsen called Spindell’s claims “outrageous.”

“We used this law in 2016 when Donald Trump won, and we used it in every election since, and this hasn’t been an issue,” Thomsen said. “We just heard it’s a non issue. We should not put out anything publicly to any poll worker that what they’ve been doing for years is wrong or that it should be challenged, and especially a few days before the election.”

The GOP focus on alleged non-citizen voting has led to two referendum questions that will appear on ballots Tuesday.

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Wisconsin

Harris narrowly leads Trump in Pennsylvania, Michigan Wisconsin, Marist polls find

Published

1 day ago

November 1, 2024

Press Room

Harris narrowly leads Trump in Pennsylvania, Michigan Wisconsin, Marist polls find

WASHINGTON ― Vice President Kamala Harris holds narrow leads in Pennsylvania, Michigan in Wisconsin four days from the presidential election, according to new polls of the three “blue wall” states released Friday by Marist College that show the Democratic nominee gaining with independent voters.

In Pennsylvania, Harris is ahead of Republican nominee Donald Trump 50%-48% among likely voters, Marist found, and leads Trump 51%-48% in Michigan and 50%-48% in Wisconsin.

The polls − some of the most encouraging surveys for Harris in recent days − were taken Oct. 27 to Oct. 30. Each result is within the polls’ margins of errors of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points in Pennsylvania, 3.5 percentage points in Michigan and 3.4 percentage points in Wisconsin.

Harris is buoyed in the polls by independent voters shifting her direction. In Pennsylvania, Harris leads 55%-40% with independents, Marist found, a turnaround after Trump had a 4-point advantage with Pennsylvania’s independent voters in September. Harris leads among independent voters 52%-46% in Michigan and 51%-46% in Wisconsin.

Harris underperforming with Black voters, but gaining with white voters

Reflecting a defining trend of the 2024 election, the polls found large gender gaps, with Harris faring better among women and Trump with men.

In Pennsylvania, Harris is ahead 53%-45% with likely women voters, while Trump leads likely male voters 51%-47%. Harris leads likely Michigan women voters 55%-44% over Trump and likely Wisconsin women voters 55%-43%. Trump is ahead with likely Michigan male voters 52%-46% and likely Wisconsin male voters 53%-44%.

Despite Harris’ polling leads, the vice president is underperforming with Black voters compared to President Joe Biden’s performance in the 2020 election, Marist found.

Harris leads Trump 84%-16% among Black voters in Pennsylvania and 75%-25% among Black voters in Michigan. Biden won support from 92% of Black voters in 2020. Harris has support from 63% of non-white voters in Wisconsin, while Biden had support from 73% in 2020.

Yet Harris is overcoming the lagging numbers with Black voters by doing better than Biden performed with white voters. Trump leads Harris 51%-47% with white voters in Pennsylvania, below the 57% Trump garnered with this group in 2020. Trump leads white voters 51%-48% in Michigan, a narrower margin that his 55%-44% performance four years ago. Trump leads Wisconsin’s white voters 50%-48% after carrying the state’s white voters by 6 points in 2020.

What is the blue wall?

The polls, conducted through a combination of phone interviews, texts and on online, used samples of 1,642 Pennsylvania voters, 1,429 Michigan voters and 1,549 Wisconsin voters.

Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan − each carried by President Joe Biden in 2020 − have voted as a bloc in every presidential election since 1988, with one of the presidential candidates sweeping all three. Trump flipped the three “blue wall” states to the Republican column in 2016 en route to his defeat over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

If Harris carries all three “blue wall” states in the Nov. 5 election, then she would likely secure enough electoral votes to win the presidency even if she loses the four other battleground states − North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada. That’s assuming Harris wins Nebraska’s 2nd congressional district, where she is polling ahead, and all other states she is heavily favored to win.

For Trump, a victory in any of the “blue wall” states − particularly Pennsylvania, which has 19 electoral votes, the most of any battleground − would open a path for him to secure the necessary 270 electoral votes by pairing that win with victories in the Sun Belt states, where he is polling stronger.

Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly Twitter, @joeygarrison.

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