Convoluted Brian

Noticeable in this year’s election are Republican candidates not mentioning President Trump in their campaign ads while claiming Democrats will raise costs of living and commit grift. Some even avoid stating they are Republican.

Wisconsin Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany is running for Governor of Wisconsin. Tiffany’s early ads claimed he would clean up the Madison, Wisconsin mess while ignoring that Republicans have had a majority in the Wisconsin legislature since 2016. Tiffany happily accepted Donald J. Trump’s endorsement during the Republican primary.

His approach to health cost reform is to make things more transparent. Hospitals would be required to post charges. Tiffany has not explained how this would cut patient costs. Since Republicans have sought to destroy affordable healthcare, and Tiffany is a Republican, transparency is the most we could expect. Even if he never says Trump or Republican in his campaign ads, he is a Trump supporter and his voting record on Congress shows it.

Tiffany has flipped with his Trump based support for data centers. Suddenly, he now promotes clean energy and protecting farmland. That is a complete 180 from his position prior to September, 2026. I expect that if elected he would flip back.

Wisconsin Representative Republican Nate Gustafson is campaigning for reelection. On his website, he has expressed strong support for Trump’s AI Action plan that includes rapid investment in new data centers. Representative Gustafson also authored an Assembly Bill to give the Trump administration the right to demand and receive data on all Wisconsin food aid recipients since 2020. There were no safeguards to prevent the White House from engaging in fishing trips.

Oddly, in his TV ads, he is claiming that his opponent is or will be responsible for the economic and other hardships that have been brought on by his fellow Republicans. He has made no statement on the forever war against Iran started by Trump and fomented by Benjamin Netanyahu.

Republican Tony Wied is running for reelection in Wisconsin’s 8th Congressional District. Except for one early ad, his support of Trump is missing. On his website, he promotes his ties to Trump. “President Donald Trump needs our support to pass his America First agenda and Make America Great Again!” and “In Congress, Tony will work with President Trump to secure the border, support our military, and protect Wisconsin values.” But in his public campaign ads, there is no longer a mention of President Trump or being a Republican.

Glen Grothman is running for reelection in Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District. During the 2020 election cycle, Grothman was low key. There was no mention of candidate Trump or of Grothman’s Republican Party membership. His only campaign promise was to have mask manufacturing “right here in Wisconsin.” That did not happen. In the current cycle, I have seen only one campaign ad showing that he helped a veteran cut through red tape. But, there is no mention of the Republican Party or President Trump by Grothman. Again, his pro Trump face is absent from his public facing campaign ads.

However, his newsletters are very pro-Trump and anti-liberal. Sometimes politicians forget they are representing all citizens from the district.

Republicans in the present election cycle are making claims that Democrats will cause economic hardship for us citizens. They ignore that the poorly planned and executed war against Iran, and the resultant economic pain inflicted on United States and other countries. They ignore the chaos and cost caused by Elon Musk’s management of DOGE. They ignore the cost of mismanagement caused by appointments of cabinet secretaries who lack competence.

A main promise of these Republicans is to lower taxes. Lowering taxes only causes delays in maintenance of our infrastructure. Public schools are affected by the lack of funds. Roadways suffer. Preparation for another pandemic is nonexistent.

Since the attack on Iran has started, the munitions of the United States have been depleted. The cost of replenishment of the wasted armament will be inflicted on taxpayers. The Republican tax codes give the wealthy breaks. This leaves the economic middle and lower classes with the cost and payment via taxes.

Republicans like to point to fraudulent assistance programs and blame recipients. The blame resides on management of Social Security or state programs. A good start to managing these programs is to have competent management. Wholesale firing of persons tasked with oversight is not a solution.

Running a government is not the same as running a company.

Maybe at the campaign rallies, citizens could ask the candidates if they were Republicans and Trump supporters. This would shear the wool that the Republican candidates are trying to pull over voter’s eyes.