It's hard not to riff on a "What is he smoking?" lede when a Legal Marijuana Now candidate says something silly, so I just did.
In Forum New Service chain papers, Michael Achterling reports in 'Bull' Johnson faces uphill climb in U.S. House race:
He also said he knows he is running as a political long shot, but thinks he can draw enough support away from the non-Trumpy wing of the GOP and conservative Democrats to make the three-person race competitive. He added, after talking to some voters, he believes many of the Minnesota Seventh District residents don't have a favorable view of Michelle Fischbach, the district's current representative.
"I was shocked when I started talking to people, about the number of people, and this is going to sound bad, the number of people who thought they voted for Michele Bachmann," said Johnson. "It was more than a handful."
Bachmann, a conservative Republican, represented Minnesota's Sixth Congressional District from 2007 to 2015 and was a television favorite on cable news during the Tea Party movement.
Given that Fischbach unwillingly served as the lieutenant governor of Minnesota after Mark Dayton appointed Tina Smith senator when Al Franken resigned, then ran as former Governor Tim Pawlenty's nominee for lieutenant governor in the Minnesota Republican Party primary during the 2018 Minnesota gubernatorial election, we have a hard time believing that one.
But perhaps Johnson has found his base.
According to records online at the Federal Election Commission, Johnson originally filed as a Libertarian Party candidate in a January 19, 2021 Statement of Organization. That became "Independent" in another statement signed February 5, 2022.Johnson finally settled as "other" in yet another statement signed August 5, 2022.
That final statement updates his May 31, 2022 filing for office with the Minnesota Secretary of State.
Fundraising has been a struggle. Johnson's amended 2021 year-end filing showed the campaign committee with $-181.16 cash on hand and $2409.87 in debts and obligations. The July quarterly report revealed $2044.49 cash on and $4130.91 of debts, after raising $6359.63 in the quarterly. The pre-primary report showed $140.90 taken in and on hand.
As for disbursements, there's little of interest until those in the July Quarterly report (covering Period 04/01/2022 Through 06/30/2022), after Johnson switched his party affiliation. We see a $1500 payment to Matt Kowalski's Kowala Media, and three payments totaling $1000 to Amos Webskowski, whose LinkedIn profile lists a recent hire as Grassroots Engagement Director for Americans for Prosperity.
The Star Tribune reported Kowalski was chair of the Second Congressional District Republicans in 2015. By 2017, he was the media entrepreneur becomes who became Libertarian Party of Minnesota Executive Director; he was selected as an alternate elector for the Libertarian Party in 2020.
In short, Johnson's Legal Marijuana Now mantle in the Republican safe seat in the Seventh doesn't look like the sort of thing Michelle Griffith describes at the Minnesota Reformer in Pot party candidate for U.S. House has GOP ties; Dems allege she’s a spoiler.
No one will mistake him for Paula Overby.
Image: Bull Johnson's logo.
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