The Folkbum Endorsement:
Russ Feingold for U.S. Senate

Yes, yes, I know there seems to be a pattern: Somebody buys a Blogad on my site and, suddenly, they get a nice long endorsement post. It's not quite that easy.

At first blush, a Feingold endorsement seems like a no-brainer. Hell, second and third blushes, too. But this is important: Russ has never been a big winner in his Senate contests, and this year promises to be no different.

One of the most bizarre things about this election season is that the Republicans seem to be recruiting self-financing candidates all over the country, people like Pete Coors in Colorado and Russ Darrow and Tim Michels here in Wisconsin. Some of it could have to do with some very wise RSCC people figuring out that the Whopper™ would have an incredible burn rate and would have to keep all his fundraising to himself.

This is a real danger, as Feingold believes in the kind of campaign financing that his eponymous bill requires. In fact, last time around, he had even stricter controls on his financing and spending. As a result, the race was startlingly close: Russ only pulled in 50.5% against fundie Mark Neumann. Even in his first race, back in 1992, he only pulled in less than 53%. And this in a state where Democrat Herb Kohl wins with better than 60% every time.

Here's what I like about Russ:
• He used to teach at the college I went to. Unfortunately, I started in 1992, after Russ had moved on to politics.
• He has never been afraid to take unpopular stands.
• He won his first Senate campaign by painting his campaign platform on his garage. (You can see vintage Feingold ads at his website!)
• And, in what may be his most daring vote, Russ was the one in the 99-1 vote for the USA PATRIOT Act. It is that vote that the Republican candidates seem to be hinging their campaigns on. Get this--they are calling him a coward. I mean, how can being the one in a 99-1 vote be the cowardly thing to do?

Russ Feingold is probably the blogosphere's favorite senator. Sadly, the blogosphere isn't voting here. (Well, I am. And Stacie. And Scott. But that's about it.) You can help, though. Take a moment to click through the ad on your right. You don't have to contribute--it would be nice, yes--but sign up on his email list. Check out the shirt that will make you erstwhile Deanies smile. Join the Russ Meetup, and meetup with Russ fans in your town. For god's sake, don't just sit there. Russ stands up for us--it's time to stand up for him.