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2024 WATCH

Wisconsin Republicans eyeing hedge fund manager to challenge Baldwin

News: Wisconsin Republicans are aggressively recruiting businessman Eric Hovde to challenge Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), as the GOP seeks to flip a Senate seat in a key presidential swing state.

Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, told us Hovde was his top pick against Baldwin, and the two have been in conversations.

“Eric Hovde would be a great candidate in Wisconsin,” Daines told us. “The fact that he ran in a Senate primary against Tommy Thompson and lost by a few points shows he’s been involved and has run a big race before.”

Daines added that Hovde’s business experience would be an asset in the Senate.

“He’s a successful businessman and we need more men and women who have run businesses,” Daines said. “It takes a little time sometimes to get your business affairs in order before you run for a major campaign, but [Hovde] is energized.”

Wisconsin, of course, is a potential pickup opportunity for Senate Republicans. Republicans are working with the most favorable map in years and hoping to take back the Senate after losing out due to poor candidate quality in 2022.

Hovde has publicly said he is seriously considering jumping into the Senate race but has not yet formally declared. He has, however, engaged with Democratic attacks on Twitter referring to him as a potential Senate candidate.

Along with Hovde, former race car driver and businessman Scott Mayer and former Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke have also been exploring runs. Three other low-profile candidates, including Stacey Klein, Rejani Raveendran and Patrick Schaefer-Wicke, have declared.

The filing deadline for Wisconsin Senate candidates is June 3.

Several Republican sources predict Hovde will enter the race early next year and self-fund his campaign. Many Wisconsin Republicans said Hovde would be the best challenger to Baldwin, who is running for a third term.

Hovde ran in the 2012 GOP Senate primary in Wisconsin but was ultimately defeated by Thompson.

“Hovde would be a good candidate. I think he would be formidable,” Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) told us.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said Hovde’s wealth will be an advantage for him if he decides to enter the race at a later date than when candidates usually announce.

“He’s certainly one of the people that have been exploring it,” Johnson told us. “The only reason you have to announce sooner rather than later is just the imperative of how expensive these races are. That’s the evaluation he has to make.”

Democrats say they relish the possibility of Hovde, a multi-millionaire who owns a home in California, jumping into the race.

“[He’s] got some money but wasn’t impressive in his failed primary run,” Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) said.

Baldwin told The Messenger that Hovde could take his time entering the race because of his deep pockets, but his out-of-state ties would make him a poor candidate.

Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), chair of the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, said the fact that Hovde hasn’t gotten in the race yet indicates that Republicans aren’t confident they can defeat Baldwin.

“Sen. Baldwin is a fantastic senator and candidate,” Peters told us. “That’s why people aren’t in the race, and I’m confident she’s going to win.”

— Mica Soellner

THE HOUSE GOP

How Fitzpatrick messaged his speaker votes

As the speaker vacancy stretched into its second week, vulnerable House Republicans faced a political quandary: Vote for flamethrower Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) or cast a protest vote.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), who represents a district President Joe Biden won in 2020, was in an interesting spot. Fitzpatrick voted for Jordan on the first two ballots, before backing then-Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry.

We got our hands on a letter Fitzpatrick wrote to a Yardley, Pa., constituent on Oct. 31 explaining his vote for McHenry. It’s a fascinating look at how Fitzpatrick messaged his votes to constituents.

Fitzpatrick touted his Oct. 20 vote for McHenry and “against Jim Jordan.” Left unsaid, however, was that on Oct. 17 and Oct. 18, Fitzpatrick voted for Jordan.

The context of the letter is that Fitzpatrick’s office was responding to specific constituent feedback amid multiple rounds of the speaker election.

Central to Fitzpatrick’s political image is his role as co-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and his willingness to work across the aisle. It’s this crossover appeal that has allowed the Pennsylvania Republican to consistently win reelection in a district that leans Democratic.

So when Fitzpatrick initially supported Jordan for speaker, the move raised eyebrows and led to condemnation from Democratic campaign groups seeking to unseat him.

When speaking to reporters on Oct. 18 — after Jordan’s second failed floor vote — Fitzpatrick said his vote for Jordan was “to keep the lights on.”

“It’s not for any person or against any person,” Fitzpatrick said at the time.

Fitzpatrick wrote in the Oct. 31 letter that he backed McHenry because he believed that the North Carolina Republican “would have the broadest bipartisan appeal across the Congress to get the necessary votes to re-open the People’s House.”

Fitzpatrick also pledged to “pursue two-party consensus solutions and to block any extreme legislative proposals that are inconsistent with our community’s values.”

Another interesting note: Fitzpatrick didn’t directly address his own vote for Speaker Mike Johnson.

“After multiple rounds of voting with multiple candidates, Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana was ultimately elected Speaker,” Fitzpatrick wrote.

— Max Cohen

MOMENTS

There are no events on President Joe Biden’s public schedule today. Congress is in recess in observance of Veterans Day.

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