Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) known to be a stalwart supporter of President Trump and the efforts to audit the highly suspect 2020 election was caught on hidden camera by a well-known left-wing activist in a nuanced but highly controversial take on the election that is being deceptively framed and misinterpreted everywhere. Leftist mainstream media outlets have run with the worst possible interpretation of Johnson’s comments, absent any nuance. And that’s not what we’re going to do here, nor will we do the opposite and try to paint him in the best possible light. We’ve painstakingly transcribed the full video to provide maximum context and highlighted Senator Johnson’s key points. Many of which most conservatives will disagree with. But If you’re going to disagree with him, it’s important to know why.
Watch the full video put out by The Undercurrent’s Lauren Windsor and you can judge for yourself. Senator Johnson’s take is highly nuanced and has some valid points though most conservatives aren’t going to agree with all of it, especially the part where he claims that a Biden victory is “believable”. But let’s look at the Senator’s words as they are, in full and weigh them appropriately.
Here are a few of Johnson’s key points that many Republicans will (rightfully) reject:
- “The only reason Trump lost Wisconsin, is that fifty-one thousand Republican voters didn’t vote for him. They voted for other Republican candidates-“
- “it’s certainly plausible there’s nothing obviously, nothing obviously skewed about the results.”
- “Trump lost by 20,000, if Trump got all the Republicans, if all the Republicans voted for Trump the way they voted for the assembly candidates that are, he would have won. And he didn’t get 51,000 votes that other Republicans got. And that’s why he lost.”
- “I don’t see anything obvious in terms of the vote totals that, ‘oh, this was an unbelievable result,’ it’s very believable.”
- “The whole counting of the electoral votes really is more of a ceremonial thing.”
- Q: Nothing that Mike Pence could have done? Johnson: “No, no. Mike Pence was right.”
- “I think it’s probably true that Biden maybe got 7 million more popular votes. That’s the electoral reality. So to just say for sure that this was a stolen election, I don’t agree with that, ok?”
- “If we were to overturn this election, all of a sudden it’s Congress that decides who the President is, time and time again. It would be an awful, awful precedent.”
And a few that many will agree with:
- “we should be focusing on the Wisconsin Election Commission, the balloting in the park, the curing of the ballots, what Zuckerberg did, central counting in Milwaukee. The [ballot] dump in Milwaukee, yeah. Yeah. That’s what we need to concentrate on.”
- “the central vote count in Milwaukee is a real problem and I’m saying focus on that for 2022 as opposed to focusing on something that’s not gonna yield anything.”
- “I objected, I joined groups, to talk about the very serious issue of unelected officials circumventing the responsibility and the constitutional responsibility of state legislatures to set the times, place, and manner of elections. I was the one that said, we need to object to Arizona because the 9th Circuit overturned a thirty-year (old) election law and we had that debate.”
- “There is a bunch of fraud but again, there’s a process we follow.”
Here’s the video:
And The Entire Hidden Camera Video Transcribed:
LAUREN WINDSOR: We Just wanted to talk to you about the audit. Are you supporting doing an audit in Wisconsin?
SENATOR JOHNSON: Yeah, I’m the only guy that had a hearing on the irregularities of the [muffled], so -Which was great- But also understand, I come from the accounting world, an audit is what you define it to be. I mean, people thing that there’s some magic thing called a forensic audit. In my mind, I know what things I would concentrate on. And I’ll tell ya, the last thing I’d really focus on would be the machines, ‘cause we have paper ballots, we have the machine logs, we’ve got the machine totals, we should be focusing on that.
And then we should be focusing on the Wisconsin Election Commission, the balloting in the park, the curing of the ballots, what Zuckerberg did, central counting in Milwaukee. The [ballot] dump in Milwaukee, yeah. Yeah. That’s what we need to concentrate on. I really do think there’s too much concentration on the machines. I’ve talked to Dominion, I’ve talked to tall these guys, ok? And I’ve also talked to the Sidney Powells and the Russ Ramslands, I’ve met with those guys.
LAUREN WINDSOR: You know, you know that Joe Biden didn’t win this election. I mean, in my heart of hearts, I just, he didn’t win. Do you think that Joe Biden won this election?
SENATOR JOHNSON: In Wisconsin do you know the vote totals? So without knowing the vote totals, you can’t even state that opinion. So let me give you the vote totals.
LAUREN WINDSOR: I know that there was a late-night dump in Milwaukee, a vote dump, I don’t remember exactly what the numbers were.
SENATOR JOHNSON: But we’ve done a recount in Milwaukee. Prior to this election, I was the number one vote-getter statewide with just under 1.5 million votes, ok? This election Trump got a million, six-ten (1,610,000), no Republican has ever cracked 1.5 million. Numerous Democrats have gone over 1.6 and 1.5. so now for the first time in history, you have a presidential candidate, beating my vote total by a hundred and three thousand votes. Collectively, the state assembly candidates, just Republican state assembly candidates, got a million, six-sixty-one (1,661,000). The eight congressional candidates also got a million, six-sixty-one, so, we obviously counted enough Republican votes. The only reason Trump lost Wisconsin, is that fifty-one thousand Republican voters didn’t vote for him. They voted for other Republican candidates, so-
LAUREN WINDSOR: But, you’re telling me that Joe Biden won this state fair and square? ‘Cause I don’t see it, I don’t believe it.
SENATOR JOHNSON: Well, look at the totals, it’s certainly plausible there’s nothing obviously, nothing obviously skewed about the results. There isn’t-
LAUREN WINDSOR: There’s nothing skewed about the results?
SENATOR JOHNSON: About the results in Wisconsin. Now I’m not saying that’s what’s happening in Maricopa County (Arizona), I don’t know what’s happening in Fulton (County, Georgia) look at the numbers again. Collectively, collectively-
LAUREN WINDSOR: Come on. Wisconsin, Georgia, and Arizona?
SENATOR JOHNSON: Listen, listen, you’re not listening. So listen. Collectively, Republicans got 1.661 million votes. 51,000 more votes than Trump got. Trump lost by 20,000, if Trump got all the Republicans, if all the Republicans voted for Trump the way they voted for the assembly candidates that are, he would have won. And he didn’t get 51,000 votes that other Republicans got. And that’s why he lost.
LAUREN WINDSOR: Ok, well, I always thought, I mean, for me, from what I’m seeing in Maricopa County, from what I’m seeing in Georgia, this Milwaukee vote dump-
SENATOR JOHNSON: Those are two different states. And yes, the central vote count in Milwaukee is a real problem and I’m saying focus on that for 2022 as opposed to focusing on something that’s not gonna yield anything. I don’t think is the machines. I have looked into this in detail, ok, I’ve looked into this in detail. I’m an accountant, I’m an auditor. I know how to look into these things. I’m saying, we’ll look at the machines,
LAUREN WINDSOR: If you told me that Joe Biden won Wisconsin fair and square, I’ll believe you because you’re the one…
SENATOR JOHNSON: I can’t say, there’s fraud that occurs in Wisconsin, so, you know, my guess is it’s true. I don’t see anything obvious in terms of the vote totals that, ‘oh, this was an unbelievable result,’ it’s very believable.
LAUREN WINDSOR: But so, you’re behind the lines, I’m gonna believe you if you say that’s what happened it Wisconsin. I just don’t believe it everywhere, but-
SENATOR JOHNSON: Listen, I don’t know what happened in Georgia. What I am hearing behind the scene is the forensic audit in Maricopa County, (AZ) is not coming up with enough, which is kind of surprising because there was only a 10,000 vote differential, so. And there were more odder things that happened there than there were here. So, again-
LAUREN WINDSOR: We’re just wondering though, like why- you were there on January 6th, we were there outside with these other patriots fighting for our president. Why couldn’t you do more to stop it? Like why couldn’t you stop (the steal)?
SENATOR JOHNSON: Because I actually respect our constitution, I respect the states because that’s where elections are decided, they’re the ones that certify the Electoral College votes for president. Each individual state does that. I respect that. It’s a very dangerous road, if we start going down the road that just a hundred Senators can actually decide the election. Trust me, I understand the frustration but when the Electoral College spoke that was the result of the Election. Barring some other legal, some other constitutional, legal intervention. The whole counting of the electoral votes really is more of a ceremonial thing. Now, what happened over time is people could object, I objected, I joined groups, to talk about the very serious issue of unelected officials circumventing the responsibility and the constitutional responsibility of state legislatures to set the times, place and manner of elections. I was the one that said, we need to object to Arizona because the 9th Circuit overturned a thirty-year (old) election law and we had that debate. But I wasn’t intending to overturn any electors, I wanted to have the debate, ok?
LAUREN WINDSOR: I don’t know about overturning, I’m just saying that, like , the process couldn’t be stopped even though it was clearly fraudulent in all these states?
SENATOR JOHNSON: So, fifty states that vetted their election process are disagreeing with you, ok? And that’s the process we have, that’s the process we have. I mean, they don’t certify election flippantly. There’s a process, they follow it. Counties certify it. Precincts certify it… So it’s a process. And then they’ll certify the electoral results.
LAUREN WINDSOR: So there’s nothing you could have done?
SENATOR JOHNSON: No.
LAUREN WINDSOR: Nothing that Mike Pence could have done?
SENATOR JOHNSON: No, no. Mike Pence was right. What the president should have done and he’d be in a much better position today. Had he just, when the electoral college voted, said ‘I don’t agree with it, I think there’s still fraud but I accept the results of the constitutional process and the Electoral College’, ok?
LAUREN WINDSOR: Thank you for sharing what you know, I thought that all this fraud occurred-
SENATOR JOHNSON: There is a bunch of fraud but again, there’s a process we follow.
LAUREN WINDSOR: But I thought there was more than enough fraud to prove that this was an illegitimate election-
SENATOR JOHNSON: I think it’s probably true that Biden maybe got 7 million more popular votes. That’s the electoral reality. So to just say for sure that this was a stolen election, I don’t agree with that, ok?
LAUREN WINDSOR: Thank you so much. Thank you for talking to us., I really appreciate it
SENATOR JOHNSON: Again, I respect your viewpoint. But I hope you understand kind of where I’m coming from too.
LAUREN WINDSOR: Look, I feel very strongly about this president. I hadn’t gotten engaged in politics until this last election so, I feel strongly about it, but you’ve been doing this for a long time, if-
SENATOR JOHNSON: Don’t you think I feel pretty strongly about this, too? I tell people, nobody can out frustrate me, ok? And that’s just true. So, but again if you’re conservative, and you revere the Constitution… I’m voting for judges knowing that I’m not going to like some of the decisions they make because they’re following the law and there’s a lot of bad law, ok? So this is our constitutional process we have to respect. If we were to overturn this election, all of a sudden it’s Congress that decides who the President is, time and time again. It would be an awful, awful precedent.
LAUREN WINDSOR: I totally get your viewpoint and it’s very valuable. I won’t take any more of your time. Thank you.
Senator Johnson’s Response To The Video
Sen. Johnson responded to criticisms spawned by the video in a statement to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel who wrote,
“Johnson said the recorded comments were “consistent with what I’ve been saying publicly on the 2020 election, no need for hidden cameras and secret recordings.”
“There were many irregularities that have yet to be fully explained, fully investigated, and solutions passed to restore confidence in future elections, which is why I held a Senate hearing on Dec. 16, 2020,” he added. “I’ve investigated many of the irregularities, explained some, and have not gotten answers on many.”
In Summary: Senator Johnson Is Wrong On Many Levels.
“The whole counting of the electoral votes really is more of a ceremonial thing.”, This one statement couldn’t be any more false. As proven by Vice President Richard Nixon and cited in 3 U.S. Code § 12, the act of counting the votes has massive statutory meaning and is far from a formality.
“When no certificate of vote and list mentioned in sections 9 and 11 of this title from any State shall have been received by the President of the Senate or by the Archivist of the United States by the fourth Wednesday in December, after the meeting of the electors shall have been held, the President of the Senate … shall request, by the most expeditious method available, the secretary of state of the State to send up the certificate…”
As Right Wing News Hour reported, far to the contrary of Johnson’s assertion “Mike Pence was right.”
“Several states’ legislators asserted in statements to Congress prior to Jan. 6th. that the electoral college certifications transmitted to Congress by their Secretaries of State were in fact: fatally flawed. In effect, no valid certifications were submitted. Therefore, this should have forced Pence under 3 U.S. Code § 12 to require the State Legislatures to convene immediately in order to transmit new electoral college slates “by the most expeditious method available” which realistically could have been accomplished within 24 hours with modern logistical and communications capabilities.” Pence’s failure on January 6th was deliberate cowardice.
Finally, Johnson claims, “If we were to overturn this election, all of a sudden it’s Congress that decides who the President is, time and time again. It would be an awful, awful precedent.” he claims that he “respects the Constitution” and uses that as his justification for not pushing harder on January 6th to stop certification, but that very “precedent” he refers to is specifically PRESCRIBED in the Constitution as the only remedy to a contested election! How can he be so very ‘respectful’ of the Constitution while choosing to uphold an unconstitutionally elected administration when it could have and should have been prevented using the procedures IN that very Constitution. It makes no sense.
