[Chetry:] Welcome back. The Most Politics in the Morning now. Twelve minutes past the hour. And there could be an upset looming in the Wisconsin Senate race. Three-term Democrat Russ Feingold faces a major challenge from the ultimate Washington outsider. That's Republican businessman and Tea Party favorite Ron Johnson. With the election fast approaching, Feingold is making his own pitch to the Tea Party. Jim Acosta is live in Milwaukee with a closer look at this race. And what makes it so unique this year, Jim?
[Jim Acosta, Cnn Correspondent:] Well, what makes it so unique is that you have a total outsider in Ron Johnson who could take this race away from Russ Feingold. And, Kiran, if this is going to be a wave year, then some establishment Democrats are going to be swept away in the tide. And to understand why Russ Feingold is fighting right now to keep his head above water, you have to get to know the man who might beat him. A Tea Party-backed Republican named Ron Johnson.
[Ron Johnson , Wisconsin Senate Candidate:] I'm just a guy from Oshkosh.
[Acosta:] It doesn't get more outside the beltway than Wisconsin Republican Ron Johnson. [on camera]: Have you been to the Congress before? Have you lobbied on Capitol Hill yourself?
[Johnson:] Absolutely, I've never been to Washington,
[D.c. -- Acosta:] You've never been to Washington, D.C.?
[Johnson:] until this election. I've gone three times just to familiarize myself, you know, meet with some groups. That's it.
[Acosta:] Suddenly this 55-year-old millionaire businessman is favored to take down three-term Senate Democrat Russ Feingold.
[Sen. Russ Feingold , Wisconsin:] As of this moment, I am no longer behind.
[Acosta:] He disputes the latest CNN poll showing him eight points behind. [on camera]: What would you say to all those Democrats all over the country who are shaking their heads and saying, my goodness, Russ Feingold might lose? What's going on here?
[Feingold:] Well, it's not going on anymore. See, Washington always has to catch up with the reality on the ground in Wisconsin.
[Acosta:] For Johnson, it all started when he picked up the backing of the Tea Party movement.
[Johnson:] America needs to be pulled back from the brink of socialism and state control.
[Acosta:] You don't think that was overstating the case? That we're on the brink of state control?
[Johnson:] No, I don't. Take a look at what they're trying to do in terms of taking over one-sixth of our economy. They've taken over
[Acosta:] Health care reform?
[Johnson:] Yes, health care reform.
[Acosta:] Johnson wants to repeal health care reform and he isn't sold on climate change.
[Johnson:] The point is it's unsettled science.
[Acosta:] Which may explain why this liberal with the occasional independent streak is making his own appeal to the Tea Party.
[Feingold:] He's for the Patriot Act. I'm the only guy that voted against the Patriot Act. He's for these trade deals that shipped the jobs in Wisconsin overseas. I'm against them. I was always
[Acosta:] So you're with the Tea Party movement?
[Feingold:] I agree with them on many key issues.
[Acosta:] They really don't like the health care reform.
[Feingold:] That's something they'll like. You know why? Because they weren't told the truth about what's in it.
[Narrator:] Russ Feingold wants it both ways.
[Acosta:] But this one-time architect of campaign finance reform is getting slammed by attack ads and billboards run by outside groups. Not to mention the millions Johnson has spent on his own bid. But ask any voter like small business owner James Ferrell and all of that takes a backseat to one issue, the economy.
[James Farrell, Small Business Co-owner:] It's hard to be in business. You can't afford to be in business anymore. Something's got to change or a lot of people won't be in business.
[Henry:] That's putting pressure on Feingold to save one job in particular, his own. [on camera]: Are you going to win this race?
[Feingold:] Yes, I am.
[Acosta:] And you could not have a sharper contrast on the issue of health care reform. Ron Johnson at a speech yesterday said this was the greatest threat to freedom that he's ever seen in his entire life. Russ Feingold, on the other hand, is running ads in this state touting his support for health care reform. He's one of the only Democrats in the country, one of the few Democrats in the country who's actually doing that at this point Kiran.
[Chetry:] It's also interesting, he didn't seem to want to say to you that he was behind in the polling. Has that changed?
[Acosta:] No.
[Chetry:] Interesting.
[Acosta:] Well, as far as we can tell, it hasn't changed in any of the national polls. No, it is interesting, and we asked his campaign about this. How can Russ Feingold go out in public and say well, we're moving ahead in the race? They're talking about internal polling that they've seen inside the campaign that they say shows this race tightening and perhaps showing Feingold ahead. But until all of us see that reflected in some kind of national poll, Russ Feingold is going to have to fight to come back from behind in this race Kiran.
[Chetry:] It's one we'll be watching closely. Jim Acosta, great introduction to the new candidate. Thanks so much. Well, a familiar face will be back at the White House today. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be sitting down in the oval office and she's going to be meeting with President Obama.
[Roberts:] Yes.
[Chetry:] Scheduled for 3:45 this afternoon, a White House spokesman said that Rice happened to be in town promoting a book. She'll be discussing a variety of foreign policy issues with the president.
[Roberts:] Right. She's not going to throw her book at the president to get him to read it, is she?
[Chetry:] Probably hand it to him.
[Roberts:] Probably hand it to him. Yes. That's a good thing. Michelle Obama hard at work in the campaign trail making the stop in her hometown of Chicago where she campaigned for Democrats and cast an early ballot yesterday. The first lady then flew to Denver for a fundraiser last night and will meet up with her husband on Sunday in Ohio for a rally.
[Chetry:] It's been an ugly campaign for governor of California. Republican Meg Whitman says she has now accepted the apology from her Democratic opponent Jerry Brown. You may remember he had to apologize after a staffer was caught on tape calling Whitman a, quote, "whore," implying that she sold out to special interests. Whitman telling CNN Californians deserve better than the traditional politics of slurs and personal attacks.
[Roberts:] And still a little more than two weeks to go. Still ahead, he's an 11-year-old crusader, an anti-bullying activist standing up for his friend and everyone who has autism. They call him a hero, but he just wants to raise awareness. You'll meet this remarkable young man just ahead.