Ohio Faces Easy Choices at Polls, Sen. Sherrod Brown Says in Steubenville

Sherrod Brown says the choices voters will face when they cast their ballots in the Nov. 8 election are easy.

“We make it very clear -- politics is not about, I know some like to say it, conservative, liberal, moderate, middle of the road. It’s about whose side are you on,” the longtime Democrat senator said Thursday afternoon just before addressing a rally at IBEW Local 246 on Fourth Street.

“When it comes to issues like pensions, every single Democrat in the Senate voted for workers’ pensions, and every single Republican voted no. In terms of the child tax credit, every Democrat voted yes, every Republican voted no. In terms of protecting the right to organize, making it easier to form a union and making it so employers can’t block unions so easily, every Republican voted no.”

The stop was the second of the day for Brown, who was traveling with his colleague and longtime friend, Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania. They were campaigning for Democrats in Ohio and Pennsylvania, especially Tim Ryan of Howland and John Fetterman, who are locked in tight races to replace Republicans Sens. Rob Portman and Pat Toomey, who both choose not to run for re-election. Their day began in Monaca and would include stops in Youngstown and Erie, Pennsylvania.

“I want voters to realize Tim Ryan is on their side and his opponent is basically doing the bidding of corporate America,” Brown said while drawing a contrast with Republican candidate J.D. Vance. “It’s clear that Ryan is standing up for workers. He understands -- he grew up just a couple of counties north of here in a working-class family and understands what’s happening in Jefferson County, in Belmont County, in Monroe County, in Harrison County -- in all parts of Ohio.”

Brown and Casey spoke with members and leaders of labor unions and elected officials from across the region. They made it clear that they are certain Democrat candidates are the best choices for working men and women.

“Here’s my belief -- it’s not just an opinion,” said Casey, who came into the Senate with Brown 16 years ago. “I think that the evidence shows that during the last 25 years, their party does not believe in the right to organize.”

Ryan, who serves in the U.S. House, and Fetterman, who is Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor, will protect the rights of working men and women, Casey added.

Polling shows Ryan and Vance to be neck and neck just four weeks before the election, while Fetterman holds a slight edge in his race against Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz. Early voting in Ohio starts Wednesday.

“I think we have a state legislature and governor in Ohio who are anti-union,” Brown said while meeting with reporters. “They do everything they can to weaken unions. We also are seeing a stronger pro-union population than we have seen in my lifetime. About 70% of Americans now think -- and Ohio is no different, maybe a little bit higher -- that unions are a good force in our society. We still have big companies that are trying to bust unions every day. We’re going to fight back.”

In addition to the Senate race, incumbent Republican Gov. Mike DeWine is being challenged by former Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley.

“I just hope people will make the contrast between Ryan and Vance and between DeWine -- who, really, has just done the bidding of corporations in Ohio --and Whaley, who was a really good mayor in Dayton and is a supporter of working Ohioans.”

Brown shared memories during the rally of growing up in Mansfield, where he walked the halls at Johnny Appleseed Junior High School “with the sons and daughters of electrical workers at Westinghouse, rubber workers at Mansfield Tire, auto workers at GM and steelworkers at U.S. Steel. Hundreds and hundreds of kids were the sons and daughters of tradesmen.”

He added he remembered seeing those jobs head south as employers looked for cheaper labor. That migration eventually included moving the work overseas.

“We’re going to bring those jobs back,” Brown said. “We passed the strongest buy-American provisions ever. If you build a bridge over the Ohio River, you’re going to use American steel, not foreign steel.”

Eastern Ohio in general and Jefferson County in particular had voted strongly Democrat for many decades before a shift in the last several election cycles which has given the Republicans the upper hand. Brown said that tide can be turned.

“It’s up to Democrats,” he said. “I still do pretty well here, but I don’t win here by what I used to. I understand that. But in the end, it’s whose side are you on? In the end, Democrat candidates need to show that we are for workers -- whether it’s steelworkers, mine workers or clerical workers -- Democrats stand for workers, and Republicans consistently stand for the wealthy and stand for corporate interests who too often outsource our jobs.”

Brown and Casey said they always have and always will put working Americans first.

“The more people who carry a union card, the better our country is,” Brown explained.