Watch: Ron Johnson booed and mocked by audience during live debate

14 October 2022

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) on Thursday was booed and mocked during a live debate against his Democratic opponent.

During the lawmaker's debate against Wisconsin Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes, he made a number of tall claims with little evidence to back his arguments. At one point during the debate, he was asked to say something admirable about Barnes — and his remarks fell flat.

"I appreciate the fact that Lieutenant Governor Barnes had loving parents," Johnson said. "A schoolteacher father, worked third shift, so he had good upbringing. I guess what puzzles me about that is with that upbringing, why is he turning against America? Why is he finding America awful?"

That response garnered loud boos from the audience.

As clips of Johnson's remarks began circulating on Twitter, social media users shared their reactions and mocked the Wisconsin lawmaker.

"When the crowd boos and he attempts to keep going…the look on his face is the moment went he realizes the jig is up and it’s everything," one Twitter user noted. "We need more of this towards everyone spewing this sort of utter nonsense."

At another point in the debate, Johnson was laughed at by the audience over a wild claim that the FBI set him up. That moment came after Johnson referenced a past FBI briefing during which the lawmaker was warned about his potential to become a Russian asset and target for disinformation.

"The FBI set me up with a corrupt with a corrupt briefing and then leaped back to smear me," Johnson said as the audience laughed. "I am sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. [Barnes] is referring to corruption with the FBI, which I've been I'm trying to uncover and expose."

Other clips have also highlighted Barnes' criticism of Johnson. The Democratic contender took to Twitter to raise awareness about Johnson's push to defund critical government programs.

"Self-serving, multimillionaire Ron Johnson might not need Social Security and Medicare to retire but the rest of us are depending on it," Barnes tweeted. "We WILL NOT let him put them on the chopping block."

In addition to the Twitter responses, Jake Spence, the state director for Wisconsin's Working Families Party, also released a statement about Johnson's actions insisting the debate, which Spence said offers "a glimpse into Ron Johnson's America — an America where there's no minimum wage, where no one has access to abortions, where violent insurrectionists are protected by law, while Americans dependent on Social Security and Medicare are tossed aside."

"Trump Republicans like Johnson are good at just two things: restricting freedoms, and raking in millions of dollars for himself and his donors at the expense of working families," Spence added. "As senator, Mandela Barnes will go to the mat for working people, whether it's defending abortion access or ending bad trade deals. It's clear from tonight's debate and it's clear from everything we've heard at the doors—Mandela Barnes is the right choice for Wisconsin's working families.”

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