U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson today stood behind a line in his convention speech that Democrats’ policies and agenda are “a clear and present danger,” but said it wasn’t supposed to be included in the final version of the speech that appeared on the teleprompter.
Johnson, speaking with reporters after a panel discussion with graduates of a jobs initiative he founded, said the speech was also to begin with a line encouraging unity following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
Johnson said he usually doesn’t give speeches from a teleprompter and didn’t want to “totally mess up the teleprompter” by going off script.
“What I was going to add, I did add, was: ‘We meet a very somber moment in our history. I hope we all heed President Trump’s call for unity, strength and determination. We must heal and unify this nation,’” he said.
He said the version of the speech that was to have been displayed on the teleprompter also wasn’t supposed to include the “clear and present danger” line. He noted that he specifically referred to Democrats’ agenda and policies, not Democrats in his comment.
But he said the issue is “not that big a deal” because “I believe that.”
“Listen, I think we’re on a path to destruction,” he said, criticizing an “open border policy,” “40-year-high inflation,” and a “war on fossil fuels.”
“All these things are weakening America and emboldening our enemies. Now the world’s in flames as well,” he said. “So, I don’t know, objectively, I think we’re heading down a very dangerous path. It’s completely legitimate in elections to point out bad policies of your opponents. But there’s no vitriol in that, there’s no personal attacks. We need to refrain from the vitriol and the personal attacks.”
He said he hopes to hear a message of unity from former President Donald Trump on the convention floor.
He said he always felt the greatest threat to America was debt and deficits, but now it’s political division, and both Trump and Biden are talking about Americans coming together following the Trump assassination attempt.
“I’ve been saying that for now, three years, I’ve been calling for healing and unification,” he said. “So if this has changed President Trump’s life, if it’s changed President Biden’s life … both presidents are saying the same thing, let’s all give the other side the benefit of the doubt and let’s come together as Americans. We have enormous challenges facing this nation. It’d be a whole lot easier solving these problems if we can do it, by and large, together.”
He also praised former President Trump’s pick of Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance for vice president, describing him as intelligent and a man of integrity that Americans and Wisconsinites will be drawn to.
During the event on the jobs initiative, called The Joseph Project, Johnson said the program grew out of an initiative in his office that sought to connect companies with workers.
His staff began working with Pastor Jerome Smith of Greater Praise Church of God in Christ in Milwaukee on the project. Smith died in 2021 from COVID-19, and his wife, Markeitha, now leads the effort.
The program, which began in 2015, is in its 158th class, which involves a five-day set of programs in which participants learn general life and career skills and are then offered interviews with companies seeking to hire.
The program also offers a transportation service for graduates to help them get to work. The program is open to anybody seeking help to get into the workforce, and classes are offered in Milwaukee, Wausau and Green Bay.
So far, 1044 people have graduated and 719 found work, according to Johnson’s office.
Johnson told a group of people in the current class that the main focus is faith, commitment to success and attitude.
He said committing to success is often a daily exercise.
“You oftentimes you have to commit and recommit yourself to success daily, starting with getting up in the morning,” he said. “I had a hard time this morning; it’s been a long couple of days.”
He said it’s also important to have an attitude of wanting to work hard and contribute.
“Having the right attitude of wanting to work hard, contribute to an organization, recognize that if you do help contribute to that organization becoming successful, you’ll have better job security, better job opportunities, better pay, better benefits–that’s the way the world works,” he said. “And in doing so you benefit your community, your state, your nation, and others.”
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