Neumann Supporters Anonymous

Since last Fall, Mark Neumann has been promising the media he would soon unveil his list of supporters from across the state. To date the only endorsements the campaign has announced are from former DOA Secretary Jim Klauser and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn. Klauser withdrew his support earlier this year.

Last month Neumann got tired of being asked for a list of supporters so he offered this explanation in an interview with wispolitics.com.

“They're from our Main Street visits. They're not big name people,” Neumann said. “They're normal people in the state of Wisconsin.”

According to Neumann's website, not only are Neumann supporters not big name people, they apparently don't even have last names, ---or at least not last names they're willing to share.

At the top of the Mark on Main Street webpage is this quote from Neumann:

"The folks who really matter can be found on main streets across the state."

If you scroll down the right hand side of the page, you can view a video of Mark Neumann explaining how his campaign is different from most. Below the video a series of statements from Neumann supporters --- identified only by first name and city --- rotate in a continuous loop.

Here are a few examples:

I know it is not enough to simply sit back and complain about the political situation in our state; this is why I have chosen to support Mark Neumann. - Jonathan from Pewaukee

I publicly support and endorse Mark Neumann in the 2010 Governor's race. - Allen from Wisconsin Rapids

He's not a career politician. - Daniel from Milwaukee

I think Mark will work to keep Wisconsin financially responsible while working to improve several things such as Healthcare and Education. - Stephen from Green Bay

I support Mark because of his values, and leadership he showed in Congress in the 1990's and his leadership as a businessman. - Jason from Racine

While I agree with Neumann that a candidate's most important support comes from outside political party circles, I can’t understand Neumann’s reluctance to name names. After all, I may not know Stephan from Green Bay, but I’ll bet plenty of people in Green Bay do. The whole point of listing endorsements is to gain credibility with the people who know your supporters.

And isn’t it an insult to the people who "matter the most" to hide their identity while boasting the support of a U.S. Senator from another state?

So how does a person introduce themselves at a Mark Neumann campaign event?

Hi, my name is Jason and I'm a Mark Neumann supporter.