High school teacher Larry Kissell (D) will flex his populist street cred again on Friday, when he will hold a campaign event to test cheap imported consumer goods for lead, according to a local media report.

Kissell, a net-roots darling who barely lost to Rep. Robin Hayes (R) in 2006, is at it again this cycle — and apparently complete with the political gimmickry that brought national attention to his race last year. Kissell, who once campaigned in Hayes’ free-trade- depressed district with a goat named CAFTA, sold discounted gas at a 2006 campaign event to stress high energy prices.

This cycle the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has taken up Kissell’s cause and is helping him, after he fell just 330 votes short of winning last time.

— Matthew Murray