OSHKOSH – In 2018 during his run for Lt. Governor, Mandela Barnes had a message for voters that may have voted for Obama and then Trump: get lost. Now Barnes is scurrying to reclaim lost ground by inviting Obama into Wisconsin to campaign on his behalf. “It’s not about the Obama-Trump voters. If they voted for Obama then they voted for Trump, and they’re still with him, they can – you can keep ’em,’” Barnes said in a 2018 interview. That’s a harsh message for residents of the 22 Wisconsin counties that supported Barack Obama for president twice before backing Donald Trump twice.
“Lt. Gov. Barnes has told former Obama supporters he doesn’t want their votes and he thinks Wisconsin is full of secret racists. It really makes you wonder why Lt. Gov. Barnes wants to represent our state at all.” – Johnson campaign senior advisor Ben Voelkel
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