Randy Bryce, the ironworker, Army veteran, and cancer survivor running to take on House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., next November, has earned viral fame among progressives, restoring at least some measure of faith in the Democratic Party’s ability to recapture the support of working-class voters.
In fact, Bryce’s $1.5 million in contributions places him 31st among all House candidates running in 2018, and leaves him with more money than “any other non-incumbent running for a House seat, excluding self-funding candidates,” according to an October report from the Center for Responsive Politics.
But Bryce has also banked dozens of endorsements from politicians and advocacy groups in his bid to run against Ryan. Progressive House members such as Reps. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., Ted Lieu, D-Calif., Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Gwen Moore, D-Wis., have all lined up behind Bryce, who’s also secured the endorsements of United Auto Workers, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the Service Employees International Union, and Blue America, among other groups.
Bryce earned all this cash and support more than one year before the general election and roughly ten months before the primary.
Speaking of which, while he’s hanging out with Chelsea Handler, Bryce is also competing against Cathy Myers in the race to secure their party’s nomination. How’s that going?
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed on Tuesday that Bryce was delinquent on paying child support for almost two years in recent times. “The state placed a lien on Bryce’s meager property holdings in September 2015 because he had fallen behind on his child support payments,” Daniel Bice reported. “Bryce paid off the $1,257 debt on Aug. 31, two months after launching his congressional bid.”
“Campaign aides said the Democratic candidate fell behind when money was tight but that Bryce and his ex-wife made sure they met all of their son’s obligations,” the story noted.
But that didn’t satisfy Myers. “When my ex-husband got behind on his child support, I had to take a second job,” she told the paper. “I put my personal interests aside and focused all my attention on providing for my family.”
Bryce’s struggles with cash also resulted in his filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 1999, according to the Journal Sentinel.
The ironworker’s meteoric rise to Trump-era progressive stardom is not entirely dissimilar from those enjoyed by special election candidates Jon Ossoff and Rob Quist. With his youth and charm, Ossoff raked in millions of dollars and secured support from numerous celebrities in his bid to represent a congressional district in suburban Atlanta, all without bothering to move into that district. Despite his own hefty cash advantage, Ossoff lost. Quist, the mustachioed folk singer running to fill Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s seat in Montana, earned his share of progressive popularity, but also lost the election after reports of his own financial troubles surfaced. It turned out he played a few gigs at a nudist resort over the years as well, but who cares about that anyway.
But now it’s Quist’s playbook Bryce may want to follow. Speaking of his financial woes, the musician explained in March, “These are issues that everyday Montanans face and quite frankly, I’ve been wanting to talk about this. I’ve been up front with it since day one when I first made my speech,” adding, “I think it’s really important that the people of Montana have somebody who has gone through the same issues that they have.”
Bryce appears to be gunning in that direction. While it’s hard to imagine him losing the primary at this point, there’s a long way to go. Regardless of the outcome when he faces off with Myers in August, either candidate’s chances of unseating Ryan are slim at best.
All that said, as Democrats wander through the wilderness of Trump’s presidency, having spent the past decade losing power in down-ballot races around the country, it’s starting to seem as though desperation is inspiring some questionable decisions. Their donors are now eagerly coalescing around untested and barely vetted candidates in Trump Country because they complement their progressive platforms with a nice smile or a great mustache, rather than strong track records that portend good leadership in office. It may not prove to be a winning strategy.
