Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong struggled to explain her previous calls to defund and abolish the police during an interview with Fox News host Dana Perino. Hong first tried to bring the question back to her campaign message about working-class voters. After Perino pressed her again, the Democratic socialist said that “people can evolve” and promised that she would not defund the police as governor.
Perino questioned Hong about several positions associated with the Democratic Socialists of America, including abolishing the Senate, weakening the military, and placing major corporations under public control. Hong said abolishing the Senate was “nonsensical and non-practical at this time” and rejected abolishing the Supreme Court. The interview then turned to Hong’s own past comments about law enforcement.
Perino displayed several of Hong’s posts, including statements supporting the removal of ICE from Wisconsin and describing police defunding as a step toward abolition. She noted that President Donald Trump won Wisconsin twice and that Hong would have to appeal to voters outside the Democratic base in a general election. “Why shouldn’t people take you at your word when you say that you want to defund the police and go towards abolishing it?” Perino asked in the interview.
“Dana, first of all, I have to say thank you so much for featuring my home state in your novel,” Hong replied. She then tried to return to her usual campaign theme. “And I believe that as a democratic socialist, what that means is that I would like to put working-class people first over not just defunding the police, but working-class people first. I mean, I think—”
Perino cut back in and pointed out that Hong appeared likely to face Republican Tom Tiffany in the general election. She said Hong’s opponent would have little difficulty showing voters her past statements about abolishing the Senate, defunding the police, and abolishing the police. “You said abolish the Senate, defund the police, abolish the police, and why should they not believe that you would want to do that?” Perino asked. “That you would try to do that if you became governor?”
Watch the tense exchange here:
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“I believe that people can evolve,” Hong responded. She said some voters who had previously supported Trump were now backing her campaign and placing Hong signs in their yards. Perino asked who needed to evolve, the voters or Hong.
Hong then said, “The governor cannot defund the police, and I won’t defund the police.” She followed that statement with proposals she said would prevent crime, including removing guns from the streets, helping crime victims, and providing places for children to go after school. “You know, we can’t be tough on causes,” Hong said before correcting herself. “We have to be tough on causes if we would like to be tough on crime, and as governor, I cannot defund the police, and I’ve reminded folks that I won’t defund the police.”
Perino told Hong that her past statements would still be an issue in the general election. She then displayed a Marquette poll showing Tiffany leading Hong 43 percent to 40 percent and asked whether Hong welcomed help from the national DSA.
Hong said she had not sought the national group’s endorsement. Later in the interview, however, she confirmed that she has been a dues-paying member of the Madison DSA chapter since 2020. She insisted that she was defined less by the socialist organization than by her work as a single mother, service-industry worker, and legislator.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.