On the eve of Tuesday’s election to recall Wisconsin's Republican Gov. Scott Walker, President Barack Obama declared his support for Walker’s Democratic rival, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, via Twitter.
Obama's tweet read: “It’s Election Day in Wisconsin tomorrow, and I’m standing by Tom Barrett. He’d make an outstanding governor. –bo.”
Despite urging from many state Democrats, Obama has so far avoided campaigning for Barrett in Wisconsin, where Walker holds a slight lead in recent polls.
However, Barrett said on CNN’s Starting Point on Tuesday that he doesn't feel ignored by the president, “not one bit.”
“It started out as a grassroots movement," he said. “It will end as a grassroots movement, as it should.”
Figures in both national and state politics see the recall as a dry run for the presidential election in November – a parallel that has many Democrats worried, as the Wisconsin race shows signs of draining party resources and disheartening labor and left-leaning groups. But Barrett said the election is about Wisconsin voters, and not reflective of national politics.
“That’s part of my gripe about this, I don’t want Wisconsin to be the experimental dish for the right wing,” he said. “I want this to be all about Wisconsin families, about Wisconsin jobs, about the future of this state.”
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