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Today, Ohio Democratic Party Chair Liz Walters released the following statement after a Minnesota jury found Derek Chauvin guilty on three counts in the death of George Floyd.

“While the jury reached the right decision, no verdict will change the fact that George Floyd should still be alive today. We all have much more work to do in the fight for racial justice and for a fairer legal and criminal justice system. Our hearts are with Mr. Floyd’s family and loved ones, as well as with Ohioans who have been hurting as we watched this trial unfold.”

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Caught in the act, Republicans in Columbus are trying to walk back draft legislation that would implement some of the most extreme attacks on voting rights in the country. Regardless of public posturing, we know some form of new anti-voter legislation is coming, and it’s important to remember: for Columbus Republicans, the radical Georgia election bill is just their starting point.

“Ohio Republicans created the anti-voter playbook for states like Georgia to copy. For years, Republicans in Columbus have attacked Ohioans’ voting rights by implementing some of the most extreme measures in the country. And now that other states are taking notes, GOP lawmakers refuse to be outdone. Once again, we know Ohio will be on the forefront of the fight to protect voting rights and our work to protect Ohioans’ right to vote is more important than ever,” said Malik Hubbard, Executive Director of the Ohio Democratic Party.

While the Georgia election law was widely panned as a radical effort to attack voting rights, many of those provisions are already the law of the land in Ohio. For example:

• Georgia’s voting law reduces the absentee voting period from 49 days to 29 days prior to the election. Ohio’s absentee voting period is already limited to less than one month prior to Election Day.
• Georgia lawmakers placed severe limits on dropboxes, but still allows for more than one dropbox per county. Frank LaRose has prohibited counties from installing more than one dropbox per county.
• The Georgia voting law gets rid of signature match requirements, Ohio still rejects ballots due to the questionable and subjective practice of signature matching.
• Georgia is now requiring voters to submit a driver’s license number or other ID number to cast an absentee ballot, joining Ohio as only one of four states that require voters to do so.

In addition, Columbus Republicans eliminated Golden Week in 2014, a week in which voters could register to vote and cast a ballot at the same time. And LaRose continues to purge a huge number of voters from the voting rolls, even after major errors in the system were discovered.

As a reminder, all of these provisions are solutions in search of a problem as even Republican Jon Husted admitted, as he reported that only 153 “irregularities” were found during Ohio’s 2016 election out of 5.6 million ballots cast. That represents .00002% of ballots cast.

This week in #OHSen, we saw a fundraising scandal, outsourced campaign footage from Russia and Ukraine and intra-party sniping over donations to a fellow Ohio Republican. And with more phony populists reportedly set to enter the race, the already messy Republican Senate primary is sure to get messier from here.

Here’s a recap of Ohio Republicans’ rough week:

Josh Mandel Gotta Josh Mandel

• Josh Mandel is so extreme and unappealing as a candidate that even loyal donors of his own party don’t want to associate with him. Axios reported over the weekend that Mandel was kicked out of a Republican National Committee event in Florida after showing up uninvited. While Mandel portrays himself as ‘anti-establishment,’ he’s so desperate to win the approval of Republican mega-donors, he’s willing to try and crash their parties — and get kicked out in the process. Read more HERE.
• Days after he was kicked out of the GOP fundraising event, Josh then turned to the donor base he knows best — donors with shady records surrounded by criminal allegations. The Toledo Blade reported that Mandel is hosting a fundraiser with Jeff Anstead, whose company faces a multi-million dollar fine for reportedly defrauding a federal program that helps Americans afford telephone and internet service. Read more HERE.

Mike Gibbons Outsources the American Dream

• Republican Senate candidate Mike Gibbons kicked off his campaign this week promising to run a different kind of campaign. Apparently, that includes using stock footage from Russia and Ukraine in his announcement video while trying to claim he’s fighting for the American dream. While Ohio offers several idyllic backdrops — Russia, Ohio is a good option — Gibbons chose to outsource campaign footage, which raises questions about what else Gibbons would be willing to outsource out of Ohio. Read more HERE.

Jane Timken Lies about Kasich Donation

• Despite telling a radio show host that she ‘never donated or supported his (Kasich’s) presidential campaign,’ campaign finance reports reveal that Jane Timken and her husband both donated the maximum amount to Kasich 2016 presidential campaign. This set off a firestorm among Republican Senate candidates, as they eviscerated Timken for…donating to another Ohio Republican. Read more HERE.

Bernie Moreno Tries to Backtrack Trump Criticisms

• Henry Gomez of NBC News reports that Republican candidate Bernie Moreno once called Trump a ‘lunatic’ and ‘maniac.’ The reporting comes as Moreno tries to outflank the other Republican candidates trying to claim the Trump mantle, each seemingly more interested in Trump’s endorsement than the endorsement of the voters of Ohio. The story inevitably led to more intra-party sniping, with Moreno’s camp attempting to throw Jane Timken’s campaign under the bus in response to questions from reporters. Read more HERE.

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In Case You Missed It, Republican Senate candidate Mike Gibbons kicked off his campaign this week promising to run a different kind of campaign. Apparently, that includes using stock footage from Russia and Ukraine in his announcement video while trying to claim he’s fighting for the American dream. While Ohio offers several idyllic backdrops — Russia, Ohio is a good option — Gibbons chose to outsource campaign footage, which raises questions about what else Gibbons would be willing to outsource out of Ohio. 

Seth Richardson of Cleveland.com writes: “Despite describing the United States as the ‘greatest country in the history of the world’ in his announcement that he would run for U.S. Senate, businessman Mike Gibbons used foreign stock footage in his video introducing himself to Ohio voters.” 

Read more from Cleveland.com HERE and below:

• Despite describing the United States as the “greatest country in the history of the world” in his announcement that he would run for U.S. Senate, businessman Mike Gibbons used foreign stock footage in his video introducing himself to Ohio voters.
• In a nearly three-minute long video announcing his candidacy, Gibbons, a Republican, opined on the state of Washington and the current political climate in the United States, accompanied by high definition images of what looked like average, everyday Americans.
• The problem? Some of that footage was shot overseas in Russia and Ukraine.
• That includes a portion of the video at around 59 seconds. Gibbons, laying out his background of starting his own business and becoming independently wealthy, explained why he was running for office.
• That footage comes from stock video site Pond5, a New York-based firm for stock photos, videos and music. The video, which costs $69 for high definition or $118 for 4K high definition, was filmed in Russia, according to Pond5.

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In Case You Missed It, after Republican donors kicked Josh Mandel out of a fundraising event he desperately tried to crash this weekend, Josh Mandel is now turning to the donor base he knows best — donors with shady records surrounded by criminal allegations. The Toledo Blade reported late yesterday that Mandel is hosting a fundraiser with Jeff Anstead, whose company faces a multi-million dollar fine for reportedly defrauding a federal program that helps Americans afford telephone and internet service.

In 2018, the Federal Communications Commission levied a record fine of nearly $64 million against Anstead’s American Broadband and Telecommunications for “apparent repeated, systematic, and large-scale violations” after the company allegedly used fake accounts to secure millions of dollars from the federal government program. According to the FCC, Anstead used this money to buy a multi-million dollar condo, a membership to a yacht club and an $8 million personal jet. 

From the Toledo Blade story:  “It would be hard to describe a more brazen or textbook example of fraud,” FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr told The Washington Post, “particularly when the entire purpose of the Lifeline program is to benefit low-income individuals.”

And, as the Toledo Blade reminds us, Mandel has a long history of working closely with donors surrounded by criminal allegations: “His relationship with Canton businessman Ben Suarez was the basis for the government’s 2014 criminal case against Mr. Suarez alleging he illegally funneled money to Mr. Mandel’s failed Senate campaign two years earlier.” 

While it may seem tough for him to sink lower, Josh Mandel always seems to find a way. Will Josh move forward with the May 20 event? Will he return past donations from Anstead? Why does Josh keep surrounding himself with donors who find themselves on the wrong side of the law? 

Read more from the Toledo Blade HERE and below:

• A Toledo telecommunications executive whose company faces a $63 million fine for allegedly defrauding a federal program that helps disadvantaged Americans afford telephone and internet service is hosting a fund-raiser for Republican Senate hopeful Josh Mandel next month.
• Jeff Ansted, the chief executive at Toledo-based American Broadband and Telecommunications, is listed as a host for Mr. Mandel’s May 20 fund-raiser at the Inverness Club, according to a copy of the invitation obtained by The Blade.
• Mr. Ansted hasn’t contributed money directly to federal candidates since the Federal Communications Commission proposed the fine in late 2018, according to federal campaign records. But he backed Mr. Mandel’s earlier Senate bids and has reemerged in time to canvass on his behalf in what’s expected to be a crowded and expensive primary that stretches the state’s Republican donor base.
• In October, 2018, the FCC sought to fine Mr. Ansted’s company a record $63.4 millionfor “apparent repeated, systematic, and large-scale violations” of the federal Lifeline program, which offers a small discount on telecom service for low-income Americans.
• American Broadband was accused of raking in millions in reimbursements using fake accounts and accounts linked to dead people. The FCC alleged Mr. Ansted personally embezzled the money to buy a Ferrari convertible, a $1.3 million Florida condo, yacht club and country club memberships, and an $8 million Cessna jet.
• “It would be hard to describe a more brazen or textbook example of fraud,” FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr told The Washington Post, “particularly when the entire purpose of the Lifeline program is to benefit low-income individuals.”
• “I’ve got a relationship that goes back to probably 2014 or 2015 with Josh and he reached out to us and we’re happy to support him,” he said.
• It’s not Mr. Mandel’s first time linked to a controversial GOP donor. His relationship with Canton businessman Ben Suarez was the basis for the government’s 2014 criminal case against Mr. Suarez alleging he illegally funneled money to Mr. Mandel’s failed Senate campaign two years earlier. 

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