Feingold leaving State ahead of possible campaign return

Former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) will step down from his post at the State Department as observers speculation he might seek a return to Congress, according to The Huffington Post.

The Post confirmed Feingold’s impending departure, but officials would not give a hard date. The U.S. Institute of Peace announced that Feingold will give his final speech as U.S. special envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa next week.

{mosads}Feingold is considered to be weighing a rematch against Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), the man who successfully ousted him in 2010. Johnson is considered one of the more conservative members of the Senate, and his election came during a strong year for national Republicans.

Two years later, in a more favorable electoral climate for Democrats, Wisconsinites elected Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), one of the chamber’s more liberal members. Democrats typically win the state’s presidential electoral votes as well.

Johnson told The Hill in December that he is ready for a potential challenge from his former adversary.

“You’ve got two totally different individuals with two totally different ideas of government,” Johnson said.

“I’m not looking to grow government. Russ Feingold — he’s got this belief in government. He was the deciding vote in ObamaCare, and he’ll have to answer for that,” he continued, calling the Democrat “dedicated to growing big government.”

Feingold served three terms in the Senate, where he helped author a campaign finance reform bill with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). Some of the restrictions agreed on in that bill have since been lifted.

He lost reelection to Johnson by a margin of almost 5 percentage points in 2010.