MILWAUKEE — Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes opened his debate with Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) intent on dispelling his image as a soft-on-crime Democrat, an indictment by Republicans that was bolstered by his own words, making him the underdog in the Wisconsin Senate race.
Early in his televised faceoff with Johnson, Barnes used a question to the candidates about “bail reform” related to last November’s Christmas parade killings in Waukesha, Wisconsin, to declare his position on the “sensationalized” and “mischaracterized” issue — even before the senator could go on the attack. “I really appreciate this question,” the lieutenant governor declared, moving proactively to recast the narrative surrounding his opposition to cash bail requirements for alleged criminals.
“If you want to reduce crime, first of all, you have to fully fund the police,” Johnson said. “And, of course, my opponent is opposed to fully funded police budgets.” Barnes was none too pleased, quickly moving to rebut the senator before being cut off by the debate moderator.Barnes is on shaky ground with little more than a month to go before Election Day despite a monster third-quarter fundraising haul of $20 million.
“It’s closer than it should be. But I get the sense that ultimately, with voter turnout, I think he will pull it out,” said James Mousigian, 62, a traveling charcuterie salesman who on Friday evening attended a modest rally for Barnes and waved one of the lieutenant governor’s campaign signs in downtown Milwaukee, outside of the PBS affiliate hosting the debate.
Perhaps the lieutenant governor’s biggest obstacles are his past rhetoric and record in the Wisconsin Legislature. Barnes is an outspoken critic of “mass incarceration.” His signature issue is bail reform — making it easier for suspected criminals to avoid jail time pretrial. That’s a problematic resume at a time when Milwaukee is enduring a crime wave and many Badger State voters remain rattled by the 2020 Kenosha riots and 2021 Waukesha Christmas parade massacre.
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