Like it or not, Tammy Baldwin is poised to return to Washington for a third term in the Senate after a controversial victory over Republican challenger Eric Hovde.
The last votes were counted on November 8, and the final tally was Baldwin defeating Hovde by 29,116 or by 0.9%. The Associated Press called the race on November 6. Tammy Baldwin declared victory on the same day. Hovde has yet to concede.
Many of Hovde’s supporters are calling for a recount after two suspicious incidents in Milwaukee. First, after counting 31,000 absentee ballots on election day, workers discovered the security seals were broken on all 13 vote tabulator machines and had to start over. Then, at 3:30 in the morning, a ballot dump at central count instantly gave Baldwin a lead over Hovde by tens of thousands of votes.
Emotions are also running high because Hovde had to contend with two third-party challengers from the right who together garnered 71,068 votes, providing a huge advantage for Baldwin. (One of those candidates, Thomas Leager, was even funded by Democrat donors.)
Barring some unprecedented turn of fortune, Baldwin will serve a third term in the US Senate, starting on January 3, 2025. If it’s anything like her previous two terms, Wisconsin residents shouldn’t expect much benefit from it.
Baldwin rarely sponsors, cosponsors, or offers any amendments on issues that are important to Wisconsin voters. Nothing she took credit for in her campaign ads originated in her office.
Instead, over the past six years, she introduced legislation that would rename a post office, authorize a location to commemorate the women’s suffrage movement, and require federal agencies to assess survey methods related to asking questions on sexual orientation and gender identity.
In a Marquette Law School poll conducted last month, the top issue for registered voters (38 percent) in the state was the economy. That's not something Baldwin has spent much time on over the past 12 years as a Senator. Instead, she is a reliable vote for massive spending legislation packages, such as the so-called ‘Inflation Reduction Act.’ This legislation is anticipated to add an unprecedented $1.2 trillion to America's $35 trillion national debt. Of course, when there is more government spending, there will be more inflation for Wisconsin and the rest of the country.
Another 13 percent of state voters said that immigration and border security was their top concern. Baldwin doesn't seem to care much about that issue either. She has consistently supported amnesty and other protections for illegal aliens, including the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021. This legislation never passed, but would have provided a pathway to citizenship to at least 11 million lawbreakers, including thousands with criminal convictions, living in the country. There is little reason to believe that Baldwin would reverse course and prioritize enforcement of our laws and public safety.
Those examples are typical of Baldwin’s politics. In general, she is considered one of the nation’s most liberal lawmakers. Heritage Action for America, the political arm of The Heritage Foundation in Washington DC, recently gave Baldwin an abysmal lifetime score of 6% for her support of conservative policies.
GovTrack.us—another Washington-based tracker of Congress—ranked Baldwin as the 24th most liberal senator in the country based on her legislative record during the 117th Congress (Jan 3, 2021-Jan 3, 2023).
In Washington, Baldwin is seen as an opportunistic Democrat among congressional offices and think tanks. She is known for being exceptionally calculated and only reaches across the aisle for tactical, deceitful purposes. There are also numerous concerns over her relationship with Maria Brisbane—a Wall Street executive making millions of dollars from Baldwin’s political decisions. The two also reportedly share a condo in New York City—thousands of miles from the state Baldwin represents.
But it’s more than just her failed legislative record and her conflicts of interest. As previously reported by MacIver, Baldwin has often fabricated her legislative accomplishments while serving in office. Trust and transparency remain an area of concern for her.
She lied about protecting the American steel industry as she never passed a single law related to the issue. Baldwin also claimed to have protected union pensions, but the reality is she voted for a law that threatened the payments. And most recently, Baldwin deceptively touted her role in legislation defending veterans’ healthcare. The problem is that she did not sponsor, cosponsor, or offer any amendments to the legislation.
Baldwin’s track record of failed public policy and stolen valor may be seen again in her third term. Fortunately, with President-elect Donald Trump’s reelection to the White House and Republicans taking the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, Baldwin’s actions can be better kept in check. Given her history of hiding in the shadows of her party, that will probably suit her just fine.
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