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Columbus, OH — Mike DeWine’s repeated pattern of taking credit for money that would not exist if DeWine had his way is officially getting old, but that doesn’t mean we will stop calling him out every time he tries. Once again, DeWine turned a critical American Rescue Plan grant-funded project into a political photo op to make it look like he’s got law enforcement’s back, this time in the Columbus suburb of Whitehall. But the funds were only made possible by the Democrat-led American Rescue Plan, the same legislation Ohio Democrats fought to pass while Mike DeWine said he would have voted against it if he was still in Congress.

“If Mike DeWine had his way, local law enforcement would not have this important grant funding. Thanks to the efforts of Ohio Democrats who made this critical funding a reality, Mike DeWine is doing little more than once again shamelessly campaigning and claiming credit for the hard work of Democrats who secured these critical resources for Ohio law enforcement,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokesperson Matt Keyes. 

This is just the latest example of DeWine’s desperation and hypocrisy. Just over a week ago, DeWine promised millions in ARPA money to local police agencies to fight violent crime. And back in May, DeWine similarly used Ohio law enforcement officers as political pawns when he announced funding for the Miami Valley Regional Crime Lab and Cleveland’s critical Real Time Crime Center, also made possible by the American Rescue Plan.   

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Columbus, OH — This week, Frank LaRose announced that exactly one person may have illegally voted in Ohio. That represents 0.00000012% of all registered voters in Ohio in 2020. But to hear Frank LaRose talk about it, election fraud is one of the biggest issues facing our state and country.

In February, LaRose tweeted: “Here they go again. Mainstream media trying to minimize voter fraud to suit their narrative. The Hill uses a press release from my office to falsely claim ‘“there’s nothing to see here – move along.’” WRONG!” 

It’s yet another example of LaRose knowing better, but playing up to the MAGA Republican crowd so he can run for Senate in two years. 

“Frank LaRose is a political phony who will do or say anything to lose a Senate race in two years. By his own count, there is exactly ONE case of potential illegal voting in Ohio, but his rhetoric tells a much different story. It’s irresponsible for Ohio’s top election official to be spouting election lies that fly in the face of facts, but LaRose is clearly incapable of shame,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

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Columbus, OH — In case you missed it, Ohio’s Gannett Network Bureau broke new details in the FirstEnergy scandal yesterday as Mike DeWine and Jon Husted were officially named as ‘state official 1’ and ‘state official 2.’ It’s only the latest bombshell further connecting DeWine and Husted to the FirstEnergy bribery scandal that continues to cost Ohioans $287,000 every single day. The news came as no surprise to Ohio Democrats, who have been working since October to learn and share what DeWine and those in his closest orbit knew about the bribery scandal and when. Yet time and time again, all DeWine and his cronies have done is stonewall attempts and hide what they really knew.

“Ohio Democrats have been working for months to get Mike DeWine and Jon Husted to give a full accounting of their role in the FirstEnergy scandal as Ohioans continue to pay $287,000 every single day for Republican misdeeds. The newly released messages only make that full accounting more important and we’ll continue to press for answers,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

Read below for a timeline of efforts by Ohio Democrats to gain answers from the DeWine/Husted Administration about the FirstEnergy bribery scandal:

• October 13, 2021 – First Public Records request sent to Mike DeWine’s office: 
  • A log of public records requests submitted to the governor’s office that lists the date of request, the requester’s name, the requester’s organizational affiliation, a description of the request and the date the request was filled from January 2019 to the present.
  • A visitor log of meetings with the governor and his staff from January 2019-present.
  • The governor’s calendar/schedule, including travel, from January 2019 to the present.
• October 26, 2021 – Second Public Records request submitted to DeWine’s office:
  • All communications between DeWine and any staff related to the appointment of Sam Randazzo as PUCO chair.
  • All vetting documents related to the appointment of Sam Randazzo that were created by or sent to DeWine or any staff
  • All communications between DeWine or his staff and FirstEnergy staff and registered FirstEnergy lobbyists
  • All communications among any of the following people in November 2020 and December 2020: Mike DeWine, Dan McCarthy, Laurel Dawson, or any staff classified as a “director,” “deputy director,” or staff with a “senior” designation in their job title
• November 16, 2021 – Third Public Records request submitted to DeWine’s office for a visitor log of meetings at the official governor’s residence from January 2019 – present
• December 13, 2021 – Full resubmission of public records requests to date 
• January 24, 2022 – Chair Walters hosts press conference announcing additional public records requested and our intent to sue if they are not fulfilled 
• May 5, 2022 – After months of silence from DeWine’s office and only heavily redacted records returned to Ohio Democrats that pose more questions than answers, ODP sued Mike DeWine and his office for answers Ohio voters deserve
• July 7, 2022 – Ohio Dems request an injunction in the lawsuit against DeWine to prevent key records from being destroyed
• August 11, 2022 – After 10 months of attempts by DeWine and his cronies to hide from the truth, text messages released by the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel reveal DeWine and Husted are directly linked to the FirstEnergy scandal

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“There is no question that J.D. Vance…currently has a problem with women voters.”

Columbus, OH – WVXU political analyst Howard Wilkinson is the latest to note that J.D. Vance has a “problem with women voters” that stems from Vance’s own doing – calling rape “inconvenient,” saying that women should stay in “violent” marriages and comparing abortion to slavery.

Read more below:

WVXU: Analysis: J.D. Vance ‘rejects’ idea that he believes women should stay in abusive marriages
Howard Wilkinson
August 10, 2022

• There is no question that J.D. Vance, the Middletown native and Republican candidate for Ohio’s open U.S. Senate seat, currently has a problem with women voters.
• …women voters, domestic violence advocates and supporters of his Democratic opponent, Congressman Tim Ryan, have been flooding social media for the past two weeks over a video clip from last September of Vance speaking at a California high school where they say he said women should stay in abusive, violent marriages.
• It was released by Vice News, along with a story saying Vance believes women should stay in such marriages for the sake of the children.
• Lydia Strauss of Columbus, who has worked with domestic violence victims for more than two decades, accused Vance of spreading dangerous rhetoric.
• “Vance thinks we should stay in violent marriages, he wants to make abortion illegal nationally, he called rape ‘inconvenient’ and even compared abortion to slavery,” Strauss said.
• Many women voters — particularly suburban women voters who could end up deciding this race — don’t trust Vance for a number of reasons, including his support for Donald Trump, whose endorsement probably won the GOP primary for him; his strong anti-abortion views, and now, the California comments on domestic violence.
• So, what exactly did Vance say at this high school in California last fall that has created such a firestorm? Here it is, word for word:
• “This is one of the great tricks that I think the sexual revolution pulled on the American populace, which is the idea that like, ‘Well, OK, these marriages were fundamentally, you know, they were maybe even violent, but certainly they were unhappy. And so getting rid of them and making it easier for people to shift spouses like they change their underwear, that’s going to make people happier in the long term. Maybe it works out for the moms and dads. But it didn’t really work out for the kids of those marriages.”
• The issue of violent marriages is not going to go away for Vance anytime soon.
• Some people believe that the National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) did a pre-emptive strike this week with a $1 million ad buy in major Ohio media market for a 30-second spot in which Vance’s wife, Usha, does all the talking.
• David Niven, associate professor of political science at the University of Cincinnati, said the ad has a “cookie cutter” quality to it and is a “classic soft biographical ad narrated by someone in the candidate’s life who is more likeable than the candidate himself.”
• “I think the ad reflects the dawning awareness of Republicans that very few Ohioans know much about J.D. Vance; and many of those who do know him don’t much like him,” Niven said. “And certainly the party is facing a continued erosion of support among women.”
• But many voters — particularly women voters — are going to find it difficult, if not impossible, to get over the hump of his off-hand remarks in a California high school last fall. Sweet images of him playing with one of his kids may not cut it.
• J.D. Vance is going to own those remarks from now through Nov. 8. They will not go away.

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