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Join NowMoveOn Calls on Cornel West to Reject MAGA Republican Support in Wisconsin
USA Today: Cornel West boosted by Trump allies to get name on Wisconsin ballot
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following news that Cornel West is AGAIN working with Republican operatives to get on the ballot in Wisconsin, MoveOn is calling on Dr. West to refuse assistance and donations from the Republican Party, because their ultimate aim is to co-opt West’s campaign to boost Donald Trump’s chances at reelection.
“It is deeply troubling that Cornel West is continuing to partner with MAGA Republicans. Just like he’s done in North Carolina, West is handing over his ballot access operation in Wisconsin to extremist Trump-allied Republican operatives who only want to help Donald Trump win,” said MoveOn Chief Communications Officer Joel Payne. “There is no excuse for Cornel West and other third-party presidential candidates to court this type of help from those who want to help Trump implement his Project 2025 agenda. Cornel West should publicly disavow this type of help and, more importantly, get out of this race to avoid putting Trump in the White House for a second term.”
According to USA Today, four employees of Blair Group Consulting gathered signatures supporting West’s candidacy in Wisconsin. Blair Group Consulting describes itself as a full-service consulting firm that works with “conservative political campaigns.” Its leader is David Blair, executive director of the Conservative Leadership PAC and former national director of Youth for Trump in 2016. Blair also worked in the Trump administration as an assistant press secretary in the Agriculture Department. Also working on West’s behalf is Dausin Olberding, who previously worked for Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign in Iowa.
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:
- Wisconsin is not the only state where West has relied on Republicans for help.
- In North Carolina, West looked to Republican Party lawyers, who have a history of defending voter suppression, to try to sue his way onto the ballot.
- A dozen paid operatives registered in Arizona to collect signatures on West’s behalf, listing their employer as Wells Marketing—a Republican firm that recently worked for MAGA candidate Blake Masters.
- West’s campaign is broke. According to his last campaign filing, he spent more on graphic design than on petition gathering.
- West “volunteers” were gathering outside Trump events, asking voters to sign West’s petitions to siphon votes from President Joe Biden.
- Trump allies publicly stated they were plotting to spoil the election against President Biden by backing third-party candidates, including West, Jill Stein, and RFK Jr.
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MoveOn is celebrating 25 years of people-powered progress this year. For more than a generation, MoveOn has built independent political power and mobilized the left to elect Democrats and enact progressive change. MoveOn is a bulwark against the radical right, channeling our collective voices to drive progressive foreign policy, protect democracy, and advance justice for all.