U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold pulled double duty Friday, promoting both the Kerry-Edwards campaign and touting his own resume for his senatorial battle with Tim Michels during a rally on Library Mall.
Appearing with Cate Edwards, daughter of Democratic vice-presidential candidate John Edwards, Feingold tailored his speech to the students who came out to see him on the sunny afternoon. He thanked students for their support throughout his 12 years in the Senate.
“I love this campus, and I love you guys. You are the backbone of my career,” said Feingold, a University of Wisconsin graduate. “You got me in 1992, you stood in line in 1998, and you better believe I need you to do it again in 2004.”
Edwards and Feingold urged students to consider the impact they can have on such a tight election.
“In 2000, in Florida, 537 votes decided who the president would be,” Edwards said. “That’s the size of a dorm.”
Although polls have shown slight leads for George W. Bush in the Badger State, Feingold argued it would be premature for Republicans to label Wisconsin a victory.
“This state is at the very core of this election. The Republicans think they have sewed up this state,” he said. “I don’t believe it. Because I know we’re going to see the longest lines in the polling places we’ve ever seen on this great campus when you guys get the job done Nov. 2”
Feingold defended his votes on a number of controversial issues, starting with his work on the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform act. The senator said the multitude of the 527 ads on television cannot be attributed to the bi-partisan act, while claiming opponents of campaign reform “can’t stand” the fact that corporations and unions can no longer give unlimited contributions to candidates and parties.
Turning towards his duel with Michels, Feingold lambasted the Republican’s position on the USA Patriot Act. Feingold said Michels, who has repeatedly stressed support for the act, had changed his hard-line stance recently towards renewing the act.
“Yesterday [Michels] said, ‘Well…maybe we ought to tweak [the Patriot Act],'” said Feingold, who cited civil liberty concerns in being the only member of the U.S. Senate to vote against the measure.
“Tweaking when you’re talking about the Constitution of the United States? That bothers me,” Feingold continued, adding that his Patriot Act alternative, the SAFE Act, has garnered support from an increasing number of legislators.
Feingold and Michels will engage in six debates between now and Nov. 2, including an Oct. 22 showdown in Madison. Feingold has also proposed that Michels agree to a “clean campaign pledge” promising to refrain from personal attacks and misrepresentations of the opponent’s positions and record.
It is a pledge that the former Army Airborne Ranger has no intention of signing.
“Tim said he’s trained to be an officer and a gentleman, and he doesn’t need to sign it because he has given his word (to campaign on issues),” said Michels’ campaign spokesman Tim Roby.
