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 December 3, 2021

Happy Friday, and welcome to “Buckeye Brawl,” a weekly newsletter from the Ohio Democratic Party highlighting the nasty, chaotic and expensive Republican primary for Senate. This out-of-control primary is making conservatives “deeply worried” about the prospects of Republicans losing this seat. 

As the Republican Senate primary continues to sink lower and lower, these GOP candidates are injecting even more nasty personal attacks, more chaos and more money into this race. We’re here to help you keep track of all of it. 

Here’s what you may have missed:

CHEERING FOR THE WRONG TEAM. Mike Gibbons joined two pro-Josh Mandel groups, USA Freedom Fund and Club for Growth, in attacking J.D. Vance with a new $500,000 ad buy this week. Gibbons’ ad attacks Vance for his anti-Trump past, saying, “Who’s cheering for the wrong team? J.D. Vance. Vance called President Trump an ‘idiot’ and ‘reprehensible.’” On the scoreboard with Vance’s face on it reads, “Home of the RINOS.” Gibbons’ ad is the first candidate-on-candidate attack ad – and we have five months to go. We have to admit we’re having a ball with the ad blitz hitting J.D. Vance for the phony he is but it’s only fair we point out that Gibbons donated to John Kasich, Carly Fiorina (remember her?), and Marco Rubio.  

AGAINST TRUMP AND PRO-KASICH. During Monday’s forum, Mandel attacked several of the candidates for staying with Kasich and opposing Trump when he was the Republican nominee in 2016. Mandel said, “In 2016, when a lot of people up on this stage were with John Kasich until the bitter end, when some of the people up on this stage with me were against Donald Trump when he was running against Hillary Clinton…” 

TIMKEN CAN’T STAND ME. At this week’s forum, Mandel was asked if he thinks he could turn off moderate voters and he used the opportunity to attack Timken and Vance. He said, “I definitely alienate myself from the Republican Party establishment. Jane Timken, who was the party chairman, can’t stand me…The fact that these squishy RINO Republicans all over the state of Ohio hate me? Badge of honor.” Mandel has called both Vance and Timken squishy establishment RINOs in the past. And to be fair, it doesn’t seem like too many Republicans can stand Timken either. 

CARNIVAL BARKER AND SHAPESHIFTER. In an interview with Steve Bannon, Jane Timken escalated her feud with Josh Mandel, calling him a “carnival barker” and a “shapeshifter.” That means a lot coming from a Kasich 2016 donor and Mike DeWine ally to call someone else a shapeshifter but this primary is a parade of phonies calling each other phonies for being phony. It’s hard to keep track! 

Thanks for reading along – that’s all for the Buckeye Brawl this week. If you have questions, my email is [email protected]. Have a great weekend!

Zanesville, OH — Today, Zanesville elected officials and workers celebrated the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and discussed what it means for Zanesville and Muskingum County, as part of the Building Ohio Together Tour, organized by the Ohio Democratic Party and For Our Future Ohio.

“The infrastructure bill represents the largest infrastructure investment in American history and will have meaningful results for working families here in Zanesville, just like the one we’re standing in front of today – Dug Road,” said Ohio State Building and Construction Trades Secretary-Treasurer Mike Knisley.

The bipartisan bill will create good-paying jobs and help Ohio businesses grow by investing in our roads, bridges, public transit, water pipes and broadband.

“Because of this bill, Ohio’s economy will be back on the road to recovery with billions of dollars in investments and hundreds of new good-paying jobs. We’re working to lower costs for working Ohioans, rather than for big corporations and the super rich,” said Councilman Todd Ware.

These critical investments in physical infrastructure will also be bolstered by Build Back Better legislation that will invest in human infrastructure, by cutting taxes and making life more affordable for working Ohioans.

“Working Ohioans have felt the squeeze for too long from big corporations. We are excited that with the passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill, Ohio will see good-paying union jobs and finally fix our roads, bridges, water pipes and high-speed internet,” said CWA’s Frank Mathews.

Local leaders also discussed how these investments will help working families get ahead and help communities like Zanesville compete on a global stage.

More on the new infrastructure funding below:

• Ohio is expected to receive $9.2 billion for highways and $483 million for bridge replacement and repairs. [White House, 8/4/21]
• Ohio is expected to receive $1.2 billion to improve public transit. [White House, 8/4/21]
• Ohio is expected to receive $100 million in broadband funding, including providing high-speed internet access to the at least 259,000 Ohioans who lack it. [White House, 8/4/21]
• Ohio is expected to receive $1.4 billion over five years to improve water infrastructure across the state. [White House, 8/4/21]
• Ohio is expected to receive approximately $253 million for infrastructure development for airports. [White House, 8/4/21]

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Columbus, OH — Today, Republican gubernatorial challenger Jim Renacci selected Joe Knopp (?) to be his running mate, setting up an even nastier primary as Knopp introduced himself to Ohio by going on the attack against Mike DeWine and Jon Husted. DeWine and Husted are already underwater with Republican voters and a nasty primary in which they face more attacks from the right are only going to continue to further sink their numbers among Republicans, putting their ability to survive a primary further in question.

“It says a lot about Mike DeWine and Jon Husted that they’re so unpalatable to Ohio voters that even Jim Renacci and a guy none of us have ever heard of have a real shot in the Republican primary for governor. While Republicans will be busy duking it out over who cares less about the health and safety of Ohioans, Democrats will be traveling across the state to share our vision of putting working families first and showing voters we’re on their side,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

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LaRose’s Hollow Claims about Fighting for Election Integrity and Telling the Truth to Both Sides Ring Hollow as He Once Again Tries to Placate Trump Republicans

Columbus, OH — In case you missed it (for over a year now), Joe Biden is in fact the president and the election was not “rigged.” Just don’t ask Frank LaRose to answer any of those questions and expect to get a straight response. At the Hamilton County Board of Elections yesterday, LaRose once again showed he’s a coward by attempting to duck questions on the 2020 election in Ohio. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that LaRose couldn’t even give a straight answer on who won the 2020 election and spent most of the time praising Trump, scared of alienating his Republican base that’s already skeptical of him. 

“But when asked by The Enquirer whether he believed Trump won or lost the 2020 election nationally, LaRose didn’t give a simple answer,” writes the Enquirer. 

“Frank LaRose talked a big game about calling out election lies when they happen, but his political calculus has clearly changed as he’s sounding more like Josh Mandel every day.  By refusing to tell voters the truth clearly and directly and by failing once again to stand up to his own party, Larose made it clear his own political ambitions will always come first,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokesperson Matt Keyes. 

You can read more from the Enquirer here and below: 

• As the sound of papers being shuffled filled the large room, LaRose stood before a placard stating “Security, transparency, integrity” and told the press Ohio’s elections are safe and secure.

• But when asked by The Enquirer whether he believed Trump won or lost the 2020 election nationally, LaRose didn’t give a simple answer.

• “I can speak for Ohio,” LaRose said Tuesday. “I can tell you President Trump won a decisive victory in Ohio, in fact, a record-setting victory. Nobody has ever gotten 3 million votes in our state history.”

• LaRose, a Republican first elected to secretary of state in 2018, didn’t directly criticize Trump.

• LaRose faces a primary challenge in 2022 from former state legislator John Adams, a Trump loyalist who has touted debunked claims that cast doubt on President Joe Biden’s win.

• LaRose voiced concerns about “last-minute changes” being made by courts to the election process in some states, though he didn’t cite specific examples. He did dismiss false conspiracy theories about bamboo ballots from China and “secret algorithms.”

• After a two-minute explanation, LaRose recognized President Joe Biden’s victory. “Under the rules in place, President Biden won,” LaRose said.

• Does Trump bear responsibility for undermining people’s faith in elections?

• LaRose didn’t call Trump out by name. Instead, he called out Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams for not conceding the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election. Abrams was the only politician he criticized by name.

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Columbus, OH — Today, Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters released the following statement as the Supreme Court begins oral arguments on the dangerous Mississippi 15-week abortion ban that effectively renders Roe v. Wade meaningless:

“As the Supreme Court begins to hear arguments on Mississippi’s dangerous abortion ban, it puts a spotlight on Ohio Republicans’ relentless efforts to strip healthcare away and put the reproductive rights of thousands of Ohioans at risk. Ohio Republican politicians at every level are trying to ban abortion and insert themselves in a decision that should be between Ohioans and their doctors. In 2022, Ohioans will hold Republicans accountable as they continue to relentlessly attack Ohioans’ rights and put their health and safety at risk.”

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