Ron Johnson Praises Man Who Admitted to Voter Fraud Scheme: ‘He Did the Public a Service’

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) argued against prosecuting a man who committed an act of voter fraud in order to prove the existence of voter fraud.

Johnson was recently asked about the story of Harry Wait, the leader of a Racine County-based group known as H.O.T. (honest, open, and transparent) Government. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that the group promoted “false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election,” and Wait recently made news over a stunt where he put in a fraudulent request for several absentee ballots.

Wisconsin’s Department of Justice is investigating Wait after he admitted to requesting absentee ballots in the names of Racine Mayor Cory Mason, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, and others. Wait told the authorities about his usage of false identities, claiming that he had permission to put in the requests for ballots sent to his home, and that he did so to spotlight vulnerabilities in the online system.

“I would be willing to take that hit for the country,” said Wait. “You can’t have ballots going all over the place, unsecured. I committed a crime when I did it, but do you think criminals care when they do it?”

Asked about this at a recent event, Johnson described Wait as a “white hat hacker” who should not be penalized for committing a felony.

“He was trying to show a vulnerability. There was no malign intent to what he did,” Johnson said. “I certainly wouldn’t prosecute whatever he did. I appreciate what he did. I think he did the public a service showing a vulnerability that obviously [the Wisconsin Elections Commission] isn’t concerned about.”

Johnson recently came under scrutiny after the January 6 Committee revealed that his office attempted to help former President Donald Trump use fake electors to overturn his 2020 election defeat.

Watch above, via WISN 12 News.

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