President Obama formally endorsed former Sen. Russ Feingold in his bid to retake his old seat from Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., on Thursday.
Feingold is the only Democrat in the race, unlike the other two Senate primaries in which Obama and Vice President Biden have made their preferences known.
Earlier this month the duo chose former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland to run against Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Rep. Patrick Murphy to be the Democratic nominee pursuing the seat being vacated by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. Rep. Alan Grayson is also seeking the Democratic nod in Florida. Strickland won his primary Tuesday.
Obama has campaigned for Feingold previously, most notably in 2004 before Obama even won his own Senate seat and was still an Illinois state senator.
Feingold enjoys double-digit leads over Johnson in most polls.
“Russ is an honest, independent-minded public servant who’s not driven by what’s politically expedient; he’s drive by what he knows is right for the people of Wisconsin,” Obama stated.
Both Obama and Biden served in the Senate with Feingold.
Republicans immediately tried to use the Obama-Biden endorsement against Feingold.
“It should be no surprise that Washington politicians like President Barack Obama are getting behind Senator Feingold,” the Wisconsin Republican Party stated shortly after Obama announced his support. “After 18 years in Washington and a dedication to the President’s agenda from Obamacare to his flopped foreign policy doctrine, Feingold has cast aside his now infamous claim of independence.”
The National Republican Senatorial Committee has been hammering Feingold for supporting the nuclear deal with Iran, Obama’s plan to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay and his opposition to the USA Patriot Act.
“Senator Russ Feingold finally got rewarded for serving as the cheerleader and chief surrogate for Barack Obama’s big government policies and foreign policy failures,” the NRSC stated.
