Wisconsin U.S. Senate Race: Those Who Know Kevin Nicholson Best...

About half a year ago, many Americans-- including many Wisconsinites-- met Kevin Nicholson for the first time. He popped up, seemingly out of nowhere, to try to grab the GOP nomination to run against Senator Tammy Baldwin. At the time, I noted that "not many voters in Wisconsin know who Nicholson is but, like Paul Ryan 2 decades ago, he appears to be a readymade, prefab candidate invented to carry a right-wing message: 'With his Hollywood looks, military pedigree, Ivy League smarts and private-sector proficiency, Nicholson could have been built in a GOP laboratory.' The same GOP laboratory that turned out Ryan. Never mind that he's never won a vote for anything before (other than when he ran for president of the College Democrats of America), with Ryan's sheen irrepairably tarnished, the Uihleins and other behind-the-cutain Republicans see Nicholson as an eventual presidential contender. 'He is, for comparison’s sake, a wealthier, better-looking and more charming version of Senator Tom Cotton. Kevin is even more impressive in person than he is on paper,' gushes David McIntosh, the former [very, very, very far right] congressman and Club for Growth president." Nicholson was a DNC hack and spoke, boringly, at the Democratic Convention-- touting his commitment to abortion and Al Gore. He was a typically clueless, anti-progressive conservaDem in the mold of garbage like Joe Lieberman. He 'felt fundamentally betrayed by modern liberalism and went searching for something else,' emerging in the GOP as a right-wing nut. Plenty of offal-eating Blue Dogs have done the same thing over the years.

Others have noted that "Nicholson has wanted to be president since he was a teenager and has few core convictions; that he saw the demographic winds shift during his time in D.C. and decided the clearest path to public office as a straight, white man in Wisconsin would be as a Republican."

Nicholson was embarrassed a couple of weeks ago when his parents maxed-out to Baldwin's campaign. Donna and Michael Nicholson each contributed $2,700, the legal maximum. (Donna Nicholson has also contributed to Randy Bryce's campaign to beat Paul Ryan this year.)

This week it has come to light that Nicholson's brother, Scott, has also maxed out to Baldwin, $2,700 on December 31.

Kevin Nicholson is a total slickster and he's tried to turn his family's stunning rejection of his political ambitions into a plus by putting out a press release saying "I’m a conservative today not because I was born one, but because of the experience I earned as a Marine in combat, my experience as a husband and father, my choice to be a Christian, the schools I chose to attend and the decision to pursue the career that I have." The most recent primary polling in Wisconsin shows Nicholson crushing Republicans Leah Vukmir and John Schiess. Vukmir is generally being backed by the state party establishment, while Nicholson is backed by national extremists like Steve Bannon, John Bolton, Ted Cruz, Club for Growth and FreedomWorks. Blue America hasn't endorsed many Senbate candidates but Tammy Baldwin is one of them. If you'd like to contribute to her campaign-- and help Nicholson's family keep him out of the Senate-- just tap the thermometer on the right.