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Kirk Bangstad, the controversial Wisconsin brewery owner who seemed to offer free beer on Facebook for the assassination of President Donald Trump, is currently seeking the requisite 2,000 signatures for his burgeoning campaign for governor, warning his party he will win the primary if they try to silence him.
“I will win the primary if they don’t let me speak: I guarantee you that,” Bangstad told WISN 12 News this week when asked about speaking at the state Democratic convention.
Bangstad, the owner of Minocqua Brewing Company (MBC), launched his campaign for Wisconsin governor after drawing national scrutiny for a social media post that appeared on the brewery’s Facebook page after an alleged assassination attempt against Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
“Well, we almost got #freebeerday,” the April 12 post read just minutes after the WHCA Dinner security event. “Either a brother or sister in the Resistance needs to work on their marksmanship or he faked another assassination to get a positive news cycle. We’ll never know. Regardless, we stand at the ready to pour free beer the day it happens.”
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The news spread so far on social media and in the news that it drew a visit from the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI days later, but Bangstad contends it was merely satirical commentary and not a dog whistle for political violence from leftist radicals like the past three Trump assassination attempts.
“It was satire,” he told WISN 12. “I meant it as satire. I’ve said that all along and it was taken out of context in order to create a feeding frenzy by the media, which it did, and allow Republicans to paint Democrats as politically violent.”
There has been caution from Democrats about Bangstad’s rhetoric for weeks, but it has not stopped him, and he acknowledged it led to his jumping into the gubernatorial race after the federal law enforcement visit, and even has proven lucrative for fundraising, if not his brewery business.
“Remember there was another half of that post that said, ‘or Donald Trump is trying to fake an assassination attempt to get a better news cycle,” Bangstad told WISN 12. “The first part was satire that was trying to set off the second part.”
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Bangstad said he resurfaced his “free beer day” MBC business campaign because “the assassination attempt seemed staged,” acknowledging it has allowed him to gain “name recognition.”
Bangstad pointed to his “250,000 followers on Facebook” and “170,000 subscribers to our Substack page.”
“Most of those people are progressives and a lot of those are progressives who live in Wisconsin, so I would think I have the best name recognition in the state of Wisconsin right now,” Bangstad continued.
“The Democratic Party who has a terrible approval rating across the country and in Wisconsin can say all they want to about me. I’m a true Democrat, a true progressive Democrat, and I have more name recognition than everybody in this race save for probably Mandela Barnes.”
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If he was blocked from speaking at the June 13-14 Wisconsin Democratic convention at the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison, Bangstad vowed, “I’d speak anyway; I’d speak outside the front door.”
“And if they try to not let me speak, they’re going to put me in office,” Bangstad said. “Let’s be honest.
“If they restrict my speech as a fellow Democrat, they are going to do so much harm to their appearance, and they’re going to do so much harm to other candidates, I will win the primary if they don’t let me speak. I guarantee you that.”
Bangstad said he has not “gotten that far” on whether he will attend the Democratic convention in June.
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“I’ve got to get my 2,000 signatures by June 1 – obviously, I’m in the race really late; we’ve got a month to get 2,000 signatures,” he said.
“I will of course attend the Democratic convention, I’m a Democrat. I want to drag the Democratic Party kicking and screaming to a realistic place that’s not owned by big money, and that’s what I plan to do.
“And I think I can get there in Wisconsin.”
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The Wisconsin primary is Aug. 11, but getting the signatures and his name out there is a first priority, according to Bangstad, admitting the campaign as “raised a ton of money so far” while demurring on exactly how much.
“I’ve got oodles of money in Facebook followers, in Substack followers, the equivalent of that in my being able to reach people and give them my message,” he said.
Bangstad’s small brewery has long leaned into liberal politics, selling progressive-themed merchandise and promoting itself through anti-Trump messaging and shirts reading, “I wish it was free beer day.”
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The controversy escalated after the April 25 security scare at the WHCA Dinner in Washington, D.C., where authorities say Cole Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, attempted to storm a Secret Service checkpoint with a loaded shotgun and other weapons. Allen was ordered held without bail, facing life in prison for attempted assassination of the president and assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.
After the brewery’s post, the FBI and Secret Service confirmed they followed up on the matter and conducted a voluntary interview with Bangstad.
“The U.S. Secret Service follows up on perceived threats against the President of the United States or any one of our protectees,” the agencies said in a joint statement to Fox News. “The FBI and Secret Service together followed up on information received and conducted further investigative steps, which included a voluntary interview with the individual. This is an ongoing matter and we do not have further comment.”
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Bangstad livestreamed part of the encounter with two suited men who questioned him about whether he knew anyone who wanted to harm Trump or supported anyone who wanted to harm the president. The brewery also posted what it said was a transcription of a voicemail from a person Bangstad identified as a Secret Service agent and urged supporters to call the number.
Bangstad, a former Democrat candidate for Wisconsin’s 34th Assembly District, lost his 2020 general election bid. He also founded the Minocqua Brewing Company super PAC, which has targeted Trump and Republicans, and previously sued to keep Trump off Wisconsin’s 2024 ballot.
The latest controversy also put pressure on other Wisconsin Democrats who have past ties to Bangstad.
Trump-backed House candidate Michael Alfonso accused Democrats of trying to avoid the issue, pointing to Bangstad’s connections to Democrats in the state.
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“This brewery is owned by a man named Kirk Bangstad, and he’s not just some random crazy guy,” Alfonso wrote on X. “Kirk is friends with current Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner Francesca Hong. He previously employed Rebecca Cooke, the Democrat currently running against Derrick Van Orden, and was himself the Democratic nominee against my father-in-law, Sean Duffy, in Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District—where I am now running for office.”
Cooke’s campaign denounced political violence but did not mention Bangstad by name in its response to Fox News.
“This rhetoric is dangerous and unacceptable – showcasing just how broken our political system is,” Cooke said through her campaign manager. “I denounce all forms of political violence.
“We need to bring the temperature down, stop pitting working folks against each other, and come together to solve the very serious problems facing our communities.”
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The National Republican Congressional Committee said Cooke’s response was insufficient and called on her to directly name her former employer.
“Rebecca Cooke needs to stop hiding and immediately denounce her former employer, Kirk Bangstad’s dangerous and unhinged comments,” NRCC spokesman Zach Bannon told Fox News. “Cooke’s previous employment by Bangstad makes her silence even more unacceptable. Voters deserve to know whether she stands with Wisconsinites who reject this rhetoric or with the same extremist voices pushing it.”
Hong also responded in a series of X posts after Fox News Digital reached out, condemning the normalization of political violence but not naming Bangstad. When asked specifically about the brewery or owner, Hong campaign manager Becky Cooper pointed back to the posts.
“That would fall under the ‘becoming numb’ portion,” Cooper told Fox News, declining to denounce Bangstad by name. “MBC’s tweet is intentionally inflammatory and a symptom of the normalization of political violence.”
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Wisconsin Republicans and national GOP figures have seized on the episode as evidence of overheated rhetoric on the left.
“Wisconsin Democrats are so sick in the head that an attempted murder is funny to them,” RNC spokeswoman Delanie Bomar told Fox News. “All Wisconsin Democrats, including Rebecca Cooke, must immediately condemn this disgusting behavior.”
Bangstad has also drawn scrutiny outside his anti-Trump messaging. Wisconsin Public Radio reported last year that he had been charged in a harassment case tied to a dispute with a local newspaper publisher.
“We only give comments to legitimate news organizations, not state propaganda agencies,” Bangstad told Fox News Digital after a request for comment about the Secret Service and FBI visit. “However, maybe one of our customers might want to respond to your question.”
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Fox News reached out to Bangstad for further comment Sunday and has not yet heard back.
Fox News has also reached out to the campaigns for Hong, Cooke and Barnes, along with the Wisconsin Democratic Party and the Democratic National Committee.
Fox News’ Peter D’Abrosca contributed to this report.
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