Login
Did Rebecca Cooke serve as a political consultant for Kirk Bangstad?
Wisconsin Watch partners withΒ GigafactΒ to produce Fact Briefs β bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.
Yes.
Rebecca Cooke, a Democrat running for Wisconsinβs 3rd Congressional District, did political consultation for Kirk Bangstad during his bid for Congress in 2016.Β
Bangstad, now the owner of Minocqua Brewing Co., ran a short campaign in 2015 against then-U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy, currently the secretary of transportation under President Donald Trump.
According to Federal Election Commission reports, Bangstad paid Cooke and her consulting company, Cooke Strategy, about $12,300 for her services.Β
Cooke listed Bangstadβs campaign on her companyβs now-deactivated website, according to the WayBack Machine website.
Cooke recently criticized Bangstad for a social media post promoting the idea of assassinating Trump, by saying his brewery would provide free beer on the day of his death. Bangstad, who said on May 2 he was launching a run for governor, has endorsed Cookeβs Democratic challenger in the race for the 3rd Congressional District, Emily Berge.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Wayback Machine: Web archive
- Federal Election Commission: Campaign finance report
- Wausau Daily Herald: Duffy challenger drops out; now what?
Did Rebecca Cooke serve as a political consultant for Kirk Bangstad? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
