WI-Sen: Republican Kevin Nicholson explains his parents’ donation to the Democratic incumbent – By Breck Dumas (theblaze.com) / July 16 2018
US Senate Kevin Nicholson (R-Wis.) posted an op-ed on Monday, explaining why he’s a Republican and the personal sacrifices it meant for him to switch parties. (Image source: YouTube screencap)
Months after news broke that Wisconsin Republican Senate hopeful Kevin Nicholson’s parents made the maximum contribution to the incumbent Democratic senator’s campaign, the GOP businessman is directly addressing the elephant in the room.
In an op-ed published by Fox News on Monday, Nicholson explained his background as a former Democrat and gave further insight to why his parents donated funds to Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin, the U.S. senator he’s trying to unseat.
Why did they donate to his opponent?
The donations to Baldwin were evidently not out of character for Nicholson’s parents, Donna and Michael, who have given thousands to individual Democratic candidates and causes over the years. But Nicholson has been open about the fact that he has been estranged from his parents for more than a year.
Nicholson told TheBlaze that he lives a life different from how he was raised and that his “parents have cut off family, including (him) and (his) wife and kids,” adding that he is also a man of faith after “not being raised in the church.”
His op-ed started by explaining, “My decision to be a Democrat was never a decision. It was just expected of me. It was understood.” Nicholson went on to say that the GOP should embrace others who have been ostracized for leaving the Democratic Party.
Regarding his parents’ maximum contributions to Baldwin, Nicholson said it was “an intentional blow that made headlines across the country. It was deliberate — and it is a true representation of the intolerance of a political philosophy that stands on the false platform of tolerance.”
Anything else?
In his op-ed, Nicholson also pointed to the #WalkAway movement — a hashtag statement made by those who have “walked away” from the Democratic Party — and says its momentum is growing.
“The Democrat party is not the party of tolerance. It is not the party of acceptance. It is the party of intolerance. It is the party of closed doors, but open borders. It is the party of judgement. It is the party of identity politics,” he asserts. “And that is why the #WalkAway movement is resonating.”
Nicholson will face state Sen. Leah Vukmir in the Aug. 14 primary for the GOP nomination.
