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In a little over a month, the results of Wisconsin’s
elections will define the soul of our state, and by extension, the soul
of America.
Why?
Because we are one of only a handful of swing states that decide our
presidential elections and determine the balance of power in the U.S.
Senate.
If Democrats lose the governor’s race in Wisconsin, we can be reasonably
sure that Republican dominance over our three branches of government will
cancel the “will of the people” in future elections.
If Democrats lose the race for U.S. Senate, we might not be able to
protect our country against future insurrections nor help women get their
reproductive rights back.
But let’s get back to the soul of Wisconsin. How does one define the SOUL
of a state? I can’t really explain it, but I know that I can feel
it.
I feel the soul of Wisconsin because I grew up in Stevens Point, and I
sense that my middle-class upbringing is similar to many others who grew
up in the hundreds of small towns that comprise our state. I think
this shared experience is a big contributor to our collective “soul.”
Similarly, I presume my “Christian-lite” upbringing was probably a lot
like other folks in rural Wisconsin. I didn’t go to church all the time,
but I went a lot of the time—especially when my musical parents needed an
extra voice in the choir.
Like most of us, I only started paying attention to religion when I got
older and started needing more “light” and “goodness” in my life.
Somewhere along the line, I read Matthew 5: 3-12, otherwise known as the
Beatitudes, and along with the 10 Commandments, those verses became the
“Cliff’s Notes” to my moral code.
Let’s just say if I was feeling adrift or guilty about some bad decisions
I had made, I would often read the Beatitudes to get myself back on
track, and if possible, try to get back to church.
I guess I can say my soul has been shaped by Christianity, and although I
still question a lot of the church’s teachings, I’m proud to call myself
a Christian.
I know there are a lot of other proud Christians in our state, and I’m
hoping the next part of my letter resonates with you regardless of your
politics.
As I think about the soul of Wisconsin and how we’ve all been thrown into
political chaos over the last few years, I wish those politicians who
profess to be Christians would read the Beatitudes because SO MANY of
them are doing the exact opposite of what those sacred verses tell us to
do.
Here are a few examples:
Matthew 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”
The mother of vigilante murderer Kyle Rittenhouse was given a standing ovation by the
Waukesha Republican Party. What an “un-Christian” response to all
those who were mourning the deaths of not only Rittenhouse’s targets, but
also mourning those who were the targets of police brutality that lead to
the Kenosha riots and unrest around the country—Jacob Blake, George Floyd,
Brionna Taylor, and several others.
Matthew 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth.”
Last March, the 4-3 right-wing Wisconsin Supreme Court, supported by a
6-3 right-wing U.S. Supreme Court, handed the Republican party the most gerrymandered political maps
that Wisconsin has ever seen.
This gerrymander essentially rendered the “meek,” or the average voter in
Wisconsin, powerless to have their voices represented in our state
legislature.
Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.”
This August, Senator Ron Johnson admitted that he was part of the seditious
conspiracy to overthrow the presidential election by
attempting to pass fake elector ballots from Wisconsin and Michigan to
Vice President Mike Pence.
Not only did Ron Johnson commit a crime that day, but the entire
Republican Party of Wisconsin still refuse to acknowledge his criminal
behavior or the fraud that many of their members committed as “fake
electors.”
Where are those in the Republican Party who thirst for righteousness and
justice? We need you right now, because your leaders aren’t being held
accountable.
Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”
In June, Wisconsin Republican Governor candidate Tim Michaels said he supported Wisconsin’s 1849 law banning abortion
even in cases of rape and incest. He’s held that
position since 2004 when he ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate, and has
donated $175K to anti-abortion groups. He recently flip-flopped on this
issue after polling showed that most Wisconsinites abhor this ancient
law.
We know his recent flip-flop is a lie, and that he holds an absolutely
“un-Christian” view that women who become pregnant as a result of rape or
incest should be shown NO MERCY and instead be forced to carry a
pregnancy under awful circumstances.
Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the
Sons of God.”
In December 2021, Northern Wisconsin Congressman Tom Tiffany was the sole
Wisconsin Republican to back Texas’ lawsuit seeking to overturn Wisconsin’s
election results. He later appeared on-stage with
right-wing firebrand Vicki McKenna when she “called for war” to overturn the
presidential election.
Had Tiffany and the other 106 Republican Congressmen who backed this
lawsuit succeeded, they would have thrown America into a constitutional
crises that would have undoubtedly led to war.
Additionally, Republican congressional candidate Derrick Van Orden went to the insurrection on January 6th
looking for violence.
It was simply “un-Christian” for these Republicans to stoke the flames of
violence instead of searching for ways to use their bully pulpits for
peace.
Fellow Christians who typically lean more conservative than I do, please
resist the temptation to reflexively come back with “But What About gas
prices?” “But What About Hunter’s laptop?” “But What About
the latest thing Tucker Carlson said?”
Please think about what has happened to the morality of the state of
Wisconsin, which has ostensibly been under Republican rule since
2010. Yes, we have a Democratic governor, but his wings have been
clipped by the other two Republican-dominated branches of government.
We have become mean, deceitful, corrupt, selfish, and generally have lost
our way.
And we can’t “both-sides-are-responsible” our way out of this. No, the
Republican party is responsible, and their moral code is entirely
“un-Christian.”
This is the truth, and there’s no other way to tell it.
We have to right this ship on November 8 by focusing on our shared
morality which, for many of you in rural Wisconsin, is a morality shaped
by Christian values.
To those Christians reading this, if you focus on the Beatitudes, I think
you’ll find you need to vote blue this November.
Thanks for reading, especially those that aren’t Christian. This
letter wasn’t really meant for you, but I hope you understand why I felt
the need to write it.
Together, regardless of what we hold sacred, our morals are largely the
same and we must let them lead the way in order to heal the soul of
Wisconsin.
Kirk Bangstad
Owner, Minocqua Brewing Company
Founder, Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC
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