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Husted: “People living in poverty are just not very, they’re not very experienced at navigating the real world”

TOLEDO, OHIO — Today, Ohioans in Toledo gathered for the second stop of Husted’s Real World Tour, calling out Jon Husted for his out of touch attacks on hardworking families. 

Ohioans are already struggling with high grocery and utility prices, and the skyrocketing cost of gas is forcing families to cut back even more. Instead of working to lower costs, Jon Husted has insulted struggling Ohioans as “not very experienced at navigating the real world” and dismissed the mounting affordability crisis by telling Ohioans to fix their “work ethic” and to simply “earn more” money to make ends meet.

“Folks who live in the real world are having a hard time paying for gas, paying for groceries, paying for health care, paying for life. That’s the reality of what’s happening in America. Our constituents live in reality, they are not having a hard time navigating reality, they are living in reality, unlike Senator Husted’s donors who hang out on Epstein Island,” said Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz. “Unlike Senator Husted who is at the center of the largest corruption scandal in the history of the state of Ohio, a $61 million FirstEnergy corruption scandal. That’s his reality.”

“I challenge Senator Husted to come to Toledo, come walk with me and let’s go see the real world. I have never met Senator Husted. I represent District 4, one of the most poverty stricken districts in this great city. Come visit us, and come see the real world,” said Toledo City Council President Vanice Williams. “It bothers me when I heard his statements because I am one that navigated through poverty. I own a childcare center where I have parents every day navigating through poverty. I was a high school principal where I saw families navigating through poverty. The real world didn’t come from Upper Arlington, the real world comes from Toledo, Ohio, who lived in Section 8, she’s standing in front of you, I’m the real world.”

“The Affordable Care Act tax credits have been a lifeline for me. They allowed me to take a job without health insurance, knowing I could afford coverage on the marketplace. Now, because Jon Husted refused to act, my health care costs have doubled. If there is anyone that doesn’t understand the real world, it’s Jon Husted,” said Tracci Johnson, a Toledo native.

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Husted’s price hikes to only get worse, with Amazon announcing 3.5% fuel surcharge fee

COLUMBUS, OHIO — As Jon Husted continues to recklessly back the war in Iran, gas and diesel prices are soaring for Ohio families. Ohioans are already struggling with high food and grocery prices, and the surging energy costs are forcing families to cut back even more.

With the war raging on, Husted’s price hikes will only get worse. Amazon has already announced a 3.5% fuel surcharge due to surging energy costs, while FedEx, JetBlue, United, and UPS have also raised prices. Even the Postal Service has announced its first-ever fuel surcharge of 8%.

Jon Husted has voted three times to support the war, even as the Pentagon reportedly seeks more than $200 billion to continue the conflict. Instead of working to lower costs at home, Husted has insulted struggling Ohioans as “not very experienced at navigating the real world” and dismissed the mounting affordability crisis by telling Ohioans to fix their “work ethic” and to simply “earn more” money to make ends meet.

See for yourself: 

Cleveland 19 News: Ohio gas prices rising as drivers cut back, get creative to stretch dollars

• With gas prices topping four dollars a gallon around the country, Ohio drivers are already cutting back and getting creative to stretch every dollar at the pump. 

• Kelly Thompkins said the rising costs are forcing difficult decisions.

• “We have to debate are we going to have a steak dinner tonight, or are we going to fill up and go to work?” Thompkins said. “And you have to go to work, you know, but these prices are getting ridiculous, because 10 or 20 dollars won’t even get you half a tank.”

• The average price in Ohio is $3.79 a gallon. Diesel drivers are paying even more, with the nationwide diesel average at $5.45.

• Derek Manley and his wife now share their most fuel-efficient car to keep costs down.

• “If she is off I’ll take her car, we try to keep it down to one car, so we’re working it out but it’s still hard with the prices,” Manley said.

News 5 Cleveland: ‘It’s absurd.’ Uber and Lyft drivers get creative amidst surging gas prices

• If you feel like you’re paying more at the pump lately, you’re not alone. According to AAA, gas prices across Ohio are sitting at nearly $4 per gallon for regular unleaded.

• The prices are putting pressure on drivers across Northeast Ohio—especially those who rely on their cars to make a living.

• To stretch their dollars and save on gas, some drivers told News 5’s Mike Holden they are turning their cars off completely while waiting in the queue for rides.

• “I wanna have my heat on in here, but I can’t! You can’t waste the gas, so I’m layered up,” John, a local ride-share driver, said.

• Regardless, he says the state of the economy and rising prices are not helping matters.

• “It’s pretty much killing us. You fill up two or three times a day and it just keeps adding up,” John said.

NBC 4 Columbus: How Columbus is dealing with high gas prices

• As gas prices near $4 per gallon in central Ohio, everyone is figuring out how to fit the extra cost into their budgets, including the City of Columbus.

• The city said the fuel budget for fiscal year 2026 is $5.5 million, with the majority of the budget — $4 million — allocated to the division of police for fuel.

• “I mean, we’re going to have to do everything we can to try to control and contain costs in other places,” Ginther said. “Work smarter, work harder, be more efficient, because fuel prices don’t look like they’re coming down anytime soon.”

News 5 Cleveland: Ohio farmers face steeper prices as diesel and fertilizers soar as a result of the military conflict in Iran

• Farmers around Ohio are half a world away from the military conflict in Iran, but what’s playing out there is having a direct impact on their ability to grow crops here, as they feel the same pain at the pump, if not worse than what drivers are seeing.

• During the spring planting season, Sayre said he’ll burn through about 10,000 gallons. “That 10,000 gallons is an extra $20,000 for us to plant our crops this spring, and we’re a small farm.”

• Diesel is just part of the impact. The other is fertilizer; a lot of the world’s key fertilizer ingredients that end up in Ohio fields originate in the Persian Gulf and flow through the Strait of Hormuz.

• “Fertilizer follows fuel, and it also follows world politics, so when we upset other nations, they get upset, the prices go up,” Sayre said, with some nitrogen products up 40-70%. “So to plant our corn, it’s twice as expensive now to plant corn.”

• Portage County Dairy Farmer Jared Phillip feels it as well, “Between fertilizer and fuel, it’s going to put people in the negative real quick.”

• “We still have the same input costs, and we still have the same feed costs to feed those cattle. Whether the price goes up or down, it is going to be a huge impact with the price of fuel and fertilizer this year.”

• It comes at a time when farmers are struggling to at most to break even on the crops they plant.

• “Nationally, we have 15,000 fewer farms than we did in 2024. When it comes to farm bankruptcies, they increased 46 percent in 2025,” Bales said. “This is just going to be another added difficulty.”

Fox 8 Cleveland: Could gas price increase impact summer travel? AAA weighs in

• Gas prices are soaring. If the price hike persists, it could mean more expensive airline tickets or higher costs for a planned road trip.

• The price at the pump has jumped roughly $1 in the last month, now sitting at or above $4 per gallon on average nationwide — a byproduct of the war in Iran.

• The price of jet fuel is also skyrocketing. Jet fuel has nearly doubled, from $2.50 per gallon to $4.62, according to the Argus U.S. Jet Fuel Index.

• That could mean more expensive airfare and potentially fewer flights. Airlines like United have already publicly discussed cutting flights during nonpeak times.

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COLUMBUS, OHIO — It has officially been one year since the introduction of reckless tariffs crushing Ohio farmers, small businesses, and families. Instead of standing up for Ohioans, Jon Husted has voted three separate times to block efforts to rein in the tariffs that are driving up costs and closing off markets.

Over the last year, the Husted-backed tariffs have wreaked havoc on Ohio farmers, shutting down key markets and sending input costs soaring. In 2025 alone, Ohio farmers saw a massive 74% loss in sales to China, while farm bankruptcies rose 46% nationwide. But despite the damage, Jon Husted continues to double down, arguing that critics “are wrong” about the tariffs, they “haven’t affected the economy negatively,” and “the policies are working.”

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“One year later, Jon Husted is still backing the reckless tariffs that are driving up costs and crushing Ohio farmers and small businesses. Now, working families and Ohio farmers are grappling with soaring gas and diesel prices, and they know they won’t get any support from Jon Husted, who thinks they don’t know how to navigate the ‘real world.’ Ohioans deserve better.” 

Jon Husted’s tariffs are driving up costs for Ohio families, farmers, and small businesses:

• Jon Husted voted three separate times this year to block efforts reining in the reckless tariffs driving up costs and closing off markets.

• Husted dismissed the pain that Ohioans are feeling due to the tariffs, saying “you don’t hear from the ones that love it.”

• Husted has backed the war in Iran, helping drive gas prices to nearly $4 a gallon and diesel prices even higher, adding more strain on Ohio farmers and families.

• Husted has doubled down on his support for the reckless tariffs that are raising costs, saying that critics “are wrong,” they “haven’t affected the economy negatively,” and “the policies are working.”

• When asked if tariffs will be beneficial for Ohioans, Husted said he was “optimistic [they] will be.”

• The Husted-backed tariffs are crushing Ohio family farms, threatening many with “risk of foreclosure and forced auction.”

• Because of the Husted-backed tariffs sending costs soaring, some small businesses in Northeast Ohio may need to close. 

• Ohio farmer Chris Gibbs said that farmers are taking major losses because of the Husted-backed tariffs — and it is putting them in a “hell of a mess.”

• The Husted-backed tariffs are costing a Grove City manufacturer millions of dollars in business, potentially threatening hundreds of jobs. When the company reached out to Jon Husted, his only response was that he “passed along” the concern to the administration.

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APRIL FOOLS!

COLUMBUS, OHIO — In a stunning update, Jon Husted has announced that he will finally stand with survivors and cut ties with pedophiles, predators, and some of the most disturbing figures in Ohio politics.

Of course, it is April Fools Day, so this is a joke.

In reality, Jon Husted is embracing all of these creeps more than ever, including proudly touting the endorsement of Ohio State Representative Rodney Creech, who has been accused of sexual misconduct involving a minor relative. And Husted has also taken more than $116,000 from Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator Les Wexner before voting against releasing the Epstein files. 

Husted is the only Senator up for re-election to take Wexner’s money, and has taken 10 times as much money from the Epstein co-conspirator as any other sitting Senator. Wexner’s name appears in the released Epstein files more than 4,000 times.

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“Unfortunately, it’s not a joke that Jon Husted keeps surrounding himself with some of the creepiest and most disturbing figures in Ohio politics, including a Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator and a lawmaker accused of sexual misconduct involving a minor relative. Ohioans deserve answers about why Husted took over $116,000 from an Epstein co-conspirator, voted against releasing the Epstein files, and continues to embrace these deeply disturbing individuals.”

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Columbus, Ohio- The Tribune Chronicle editorial board called out Vivek Ramaswamy for his unpopular plan to consolidate Ohio’s colleges and universities and his claims that Ohioans are falling behind after more than a decade of Republican control in the statehouse. 

“Vivek Ramaswamy says Ohioans are falling behind, but completely ignores that his political allies, including his running mate, have had total control of Ohio’s government for well over a decade — using their power to put corporations and the ultrarich first and leaving Ohio families with a massive affordability crisis. Now even Governor DeWine says Ramaswamy’s plan to consolidate Ohio’s iconic colleges and universities is a bad idea,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “Ohioans are ready for change, not a billionaire who calls us lazy, says Medicaid and Medicare were a mistake, and cooks up toxic new policy proposals from his private jet.”

READ MORE: Is Ramaswamy digging himself a hole in Ohio? 

• Vivek Ramaswamy wants to be Ohio’s governor, but he’s finding that Ohio’s reliably red reputation isn’t giving the Republican much of a bump just yet. In fact, Youngstown native Amy Acton — who once led the Ohio Department of Health under current Gov. Mike DeWine — had a slight edge over Ramaswamy in a recent poll.

• Ramaswamy has jumped on the affordability bandwagon with a commercial featuring his wife Apoorva, who talks of her husband’s plans to ensure that every Ohioan has a fair shot at a better life. But the ad appeared around the same time that Vivek Ramaswamy made comments about how Ohio has too many colleges and universities and could benefit from consolidation.

• Acton and fellow Democrats saw an opportunity after Ramaswamy’s comments and a follow-up op-ed didn’t exactly roll back what he’d said about the state’s colleges and universities.

• On Monday, DeWine made clear where he stands. “I’m not in favor of consolidating our colleges or doing away with any of our 14 public universities,” DeWine said. “It’s important to have them all over the state so frankly, people who can’t afford to live at the college and pay room and board, they can commute. We still have commuters.”

• Even if we give Ramaswamy the benefit of the doubt and presume he was not talking about shutting down some colleges and instead just consolidating leadership positions in an effort to save money, the damage was likely done. Think about how many of us here in the Mahoning Valley either benefited from studies at Youngstown State University or have family and friends who did. Now — if you can imagine it — think of this region without YSU.

• Now think about every part of Ohio and the colleges and universities that enrich thousands of lives across the state and you understand why Ramaswamy has some damage control to do.

• In the commercial, Apoorva Ramaswamy spoke of her husband’s commitment to helping Ohio families, who she said “are working hard, but falling behind.” When you consider how long Ohio has been under virtually exclusive GOP control in Columbus, you wonder if that message is another that won’t land well across the state.

• It seems as though just over a year into his campaign, Vivek Ramaswamy is dealing with two factors he hadn’t planned for — Trump fatigue and some self-inflicted wounds. It’s still early, but Ohio’s presumptive GOP gubernatorial candidate needs to regain his footing.

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