December 12, 1990
By Nancy Rost
State Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Middleton, said Tuesday he has already spent two years laying groundwork for a campaign challenging Republican Robert Kasten for his U.S. Senate seat.
Feingold made an informal announcement of his plan to seek the Democratic nomination for the seat at a news conference Monday.
He dispelled rumors that he was planning to run for the congressional seat that was won last month by Republican Scott Klug, formerly held by 16-term Democratic incumbent Rep. Robert Katermeier.
“The real race is against Kasten,” he said.
“On major campaign issues—in his stand on reproductive rights, in his support of military intervention in many areas, in his opposition to the Civil Rights Bill—on all these issues my position is opposite of Kasten’s,” Feingold said.
Kasten is expected to seek a third term in 1992.
Feingold said in the U.S. Senate campaign has been organized in 30 to 40 counties, and he has already been approaching editorial boards and in-state campaign organizers. He said his campaign has been, and will continue to be, people-based.
Feingold said he does not expect an easy battle against Kasten. “If you’re not independently wealthy, it’s tough to wage a campaign against a Republican senator,” he said. “We’ll never have the money Kasten does.”
Feingold estimated that Kasten would sink $5 million to $10 million into the 1992 campaign.
But he said he believed that in mounting a five-year drive against the Republican senator, he has a chance to counteract what he called Kasten’s money-intensive campaign with a campaign based on issues affecting the average citizen.
“This state loves underdog candidates,” he said. “I don’t think [Kasten is] running a campaign most people support.”
Feingold, 37, a native of Janesville, was re-elected Nov. 6 to a third four-year term in the state Senate. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Law School and former Rhodes Scholar.
State Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, hailed the news of Feingold’s U.S. Senate bid. “Feingold has had a very good career in the state Senate,” Black said. “He has served his district well.”
“We currently need a replacement for Kasten,” Black said. “Kasten hasn’t served the average citizen of the state – he is too beholden to the wealthiest interests.”
Feingold said he called the news conference at the Capitol to end speculation about a possible try for the 2nd Congressional District, which includes Dane county and is one of the state’s most heavily Democratic districts.
