Seven Inconvenient Facts Ohio Democrats Must Explain as They Launch Statewide Bus Tour

Ohio Democrats kicked off a statewide bus tour Tuesday in hopes of energizing voters around a platform of “affordable health care, quality education and good-paying jobs.”

Andy Chow of ‘non-partisan’ Ohio Public Radio enthusiastically promoted the tour on Twitter.

Noticeably absent from the platform are abortions up to the ninth month of pregnancy and gun-control laws targeting law-abiding citizens. No surprises there. These ideas aren’t popular in Ohio.

To escape scrutiny and tough questions about unpopular policies, Democrats will sell themselves as “leaders you can trust.”

Essentially, it’s a narrative that boils down to this: “Just trust us,” without asking for specifics.

Here are just a few examples of how their message doesn’t square with the facts.

Affordable healthcare

  • FACT: Despite trying to make healthcare the top issue of his campaign, Ohio Democrats’ gubernatorial candidate Richard Cordray has refused to answer questions​ on if he would implement government-run healthcare in Ohio. This plan would cost taxpayers more than $32.6 trillion​.  Good luck with trying to spin that as “affordable.”

Quality education:

  • FACT: As a University of Cincinnati Board of Trustee member, Democrat State Treasurer candidate Rob Richardson voted to increase tuition and room and board fees countless times​, despite making affordable higher education a central point​ of his campaign.

Good-paying jobs

  • FACT:  Electing Cordray would mean turning back the clock to the devastating Obama-Strickland era policies of 10 percent unemployment, 400,000 Ohio jobs lost, and a depleted rainy day fund of just 89 cents. Since Republicans have taken control of Ohio government, jobs have been pouring back into the state and unemployment has fallen to record lows, but Cordray has promised to “flip” these economic policies.  He says he wants to bring some of the same job-killing regulations to Ohio that he employed at Obama’s CFPB. This would be disastrous for Ohio workers.

Leaders you can trust

  • FACT: Cordray is caught in a class-action lawsuit that alleges the CFPB “sought to disparately impact racial minority and female workers” under his watch. The GAO found that 25 percent of female, black, and Asian employees were discriminated against at the CFPB. That conflicts with Cordray’s message of making Ohio a more “inclusive” state.
  • FACT: Steve Dettelbach, the candidate who wants to take on Ohio’s opioid crisis, has a conflict of interest​ in the very case he hopes to prosecute as Ohio’s next attorney general. He pays lip service to Ohioans suffering from opioid addiction while his law firm gets rich defending big drug companies.
  • FACT: As a failed congressman, Democrat candidate for State Auditor Zack Space voted for cap-and-trade, a move that was devastating for Ohioans. He cast his vote on the same day Nancy Pelosi gave him a donation of $14,000. So, voters should ask: Does selling out your constituents for money engender a sense of trustworthiness?
  • FACT: Kathleen Clyde, candidate for Ohio Secretary of State, is being propped up by the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, founded by former Attorney General Eric Holder.

This is the same Eric Holder whose scandals included “Fast and Furious” gun-running, the IRS targeting of conservatives, and the targeting of federal whistleblowers. Yet, Clyde continues to aligned herself with Holder’s legacy.

In an interview with ReWire News, Clyde admitted her motivation for running for secretary of state was to help redraw Ohio’s voting districts. After this is accomplished, she said, Democrats will reclaim power and reverse Republican gains on abortion and other issues.

Based on these facts, Republicans leaders believe the Democrat bus tour represents a one-way ticket to failure.

No bus tour from these Democrats can match Republican enthusiasm heading into the Nov. 6 midterms, says Mandi Merritt, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee.

She said Ohio voters have a history of recognizing and rejecting “obstructionist tactics.”

She believes they will opt for Republicans’ “results-driven message” and predicts a red wave in Ohio.

Why?

The answer is simple, she said. “Better candidates and a superior ground game.”

We will find out on Nov. 6.

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Anthony Accardi is a writer and reporter for The Ohio Star. Photo “Ohio Democrats’ Bus Tour” by @OHDems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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