Ad Text:

The Facts:

ANNOUNCER: Mike DeWine’s campaign’s in trouble because he supported trade deals that sent jobs overseas.

FACT: Mike DeWine Behind in the Polls, Pundits and Leading Conservatives Agree Ohio Ready for Change.

Recent Polls Show Brown with Widening Lead Against DeWine. “Democrat Sherrod Brown has opened up leads of 14 percentage points, 12 percentage points and 7 percentage points among likely voters over Republican incumbent Mike DeWine in Ohio's U.S. Senate race, in polls released Tuesday. A New York Times/CBS poll released late Tuesday indicated Brown held a 49-35 lead over DeWine.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/18/06]

Independent Political Pundits Agree: DeWine Faces Uphill Battle Against Brown. Chuck Todd of the National Journal said, “Is it true that the national Republicans have pulled their money out? Not completely; they are still spending a decent chunk of change. Is it true that, deep down inside, they've given up any chance to pull out a victory? Probably.” The Cook Political Report said that, “It is unclear what, if anything, DeWine can do to change the trajectory of this race.” [National Journal, 10/18/06; Cook Political Report, 10/13/06]

Conservative Pundit Bob Novak: Republican Officials Upset Money is Being Wasted on DeWine. Bob Novak wrote this week, “Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) continues to trail in the polls. Despite a New York Times report to the contrary, senior Republican sources say that the GOP committed millions last week to his re-election. Some Republicans are very upset to hear of this, believing him to be a goner already.” [Human Events, 10/18/06]

Republican Officials Report They’ve Given Up on DeWine. “Senior Republican leaders have concluded that Senator Mike DeWine of Ohio, a pivotal state in this year’s fierce midterm election battles, is likely to be heading for defeat and are moving to reduce financial support for his race and divert party money to other embattled Republican senators, party officials said.” [Associated Press, 10/15/06]

FACT: Mike DeWine Supported Trade Deals that Sent Ohio Jobs Overseas; Sherrod Brown Has Consistently Fought Job-Killing Trade Agreements.

DeWine’s Incorrect Prediction: “We are going to create a lot of jobs . . . This whole NAFTA zone will ultimately create a lot of jobs in Ohio.”  [Columbus Dispatch, 8/30/92]

Ohio Lost Nearly 50,000 Jobs Due to NAFTA.  More than 1 million jobs have been lost nationwide since NAFTA was signed in 1993. The growth of imports displaced domestic production that would have supported 2 million jobs nationwide. “No protections were contained in the core of the agreement to maintain labor or environmental standards. As a result, NAFTA tilted the economic playing field in favor of investors and against workers and the environment, causing a hemispheric ‘race to the bottom’ in wages and environmental quality.” [Economic Policy Institute Issue Brief. “NAFTA’s Cautionary Tale,”  7/20/05]

DeWine Supported NAFTA, Voted for CAFTA and PTNR with China. [Columbus Dispatch, 8/30/92; S 1307, 6/30/05 #170; HR 4444, 9/19/00, #251]

DeWine Claims Outsourcing Has Nothing To Do With Trade Agreements.   "Outsourcing has to do with the global economy. It has nothing to do with these trade agreements. It was occurring before NAFTA," he said. [Plain Dealer, 5/21/06]

The Columbus Dispatch Called Brown “a Vociferous ‘Fair-Trade’ Advocate.” [Columbus Dispatch, 5/29/06]

Brown Led Fight Against CAFTA. Leading up to the vote, The Hill reported that “the work of "whipping" the caucus [on CAFTA] is being led by Rep. Sherrod Brown.” More “no” votes were secured against CAFTA than had been cast against any trade agreement in history. [The Hill, 7/20/05; Congressional Quarterly, 7/29/05]

Brown Has Consistently Opposed Bad Trade Deals Like NAFTA, CAFTA, and Permanent Normal Trade Relations for China that Hurt Ohio. [H.R. 3450, 11/17/93, #575; HR 3045, #443; HR 4444, 5/24/00, #228; Washington Post, 6/12/05]

So now, he’s trying to smear Sherrod Brown, but newspapers say DeWine’s attacks are not true - so dishonest, stations are pulling them off the air.

FACT: Newspapers Across Ohio Disprove DeWine’s Lies.

Plain Dealer: DeWine’s Ad “Untrue”. “The State of Ohio says the ad’s claim is untrue.” [Plain Dealer, 10/19/06]

Toledo Blade: DeWine’s Ad “Incorrect”. “DeWine’s attack ad found to be incorrect.” [Toledo Blade, 10/19/06]

Cincinnati Enquirer: “State Documents Contradict the Ad's Accusation.” [Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/20/06]

Dayton Daily News: Bill Paid in April 1994. “State officials said Brown paid the bill and the lien was lifted in April 1994.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/20/06]

FACT: Stations Across Ohio Pulled Down Ad That Lied About Sherrod Brown’s Record.

Columbus-Area Stations Pull Down Pro-DeWine Ad. “A number of Ohio TV stations, including major central Ohio stations, indicated yesterday that they no longer would air a commercial produced by the Republican National Committee and designed to boost DeWine.” [Columbus Dispatch, 10/20/06]

Cincinnati-Area Stations Pull Down Pro-DeWine Ad. Several Ohio television stations have stopped airing a Republican ad because state documents contradict the ad's accusation that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Sherrod Brown didn't pay an unemployment tax bill for 13 years. […] Cincinnati television stations WKRC, WCPO and WXIX said they stopped running the national Republican ad. [Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/20/06]

Dayton-Area Stations Pull Down Pro-DeWine Ad. According to the Dayton Daily News, “More than a half-dozen Ohio TV stations — including two Dayton broadcasters — have pulled from the air a Republican ad that accuses U.S. […] Locally, WHIO-TV Channel 7, also pulled it, as did stations in several cities including Cincinnati and Columbus Extras.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/20/06]

“Everyone Deemed it to be Inaccurate,” Says General Manager for Two Dayton Stations: “Dean Ditmer, general manager of ABC 22 and Fox 45, both owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, said Thursday his stations pulled the ad because "everyone deemed it to be inaccurate.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/20/06]

And state officials confirm Brown paid his taxes.

FACT: State Agency Reports Brown Paid His Taxes.

State Records Show Brown Paid Bill in 1994. But state records show that Brown paid his tax bill as soon as he was made aware of it, in early 1994, not in 2005 as the DeWine’s ad stated. [Bureau of Employment Services, Notice of Payment, 4/20/94; Plain Dealer, 10/18/06]

“State of Ohio Confirms that Brown Paid His Tax Bill.” The Plain Dealer reported that, “Sen. Mike DeWine's reelection campaign this morning was still showing its commercial with a woman accusing Sherrod Brown of not paying an unemployment tax bill for 12 years. The claim is false; a paperwork mixup is to blame and the state of Ohio confirms that Brown paid his tax bill long ago.” [Plain Dealer, 10/19/06]

Documentation Provided Showed Brown Paid the Taxes He Owed. “On Wednesday, attorneys for Brown, D-Avon, wrote to Ohio stations to say the ad was "demonstrably false." The letter included paperwork indicating the debt was paid and the lien was released on April 20, 1994, a few months after Brown had been notified of it.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/20/06]

After all these years, can’t DeWine offer more than smears and distortions?

FACT: DeWine’s Recent Lies Are the Most Recent Chapter in a Long History of Distorting Opponents’ Records, the Truth

DeWine Ignores Truth, Says, “Read My Lips,” Stands by False Ad. During the debate in Toledo, DeWine said about his false ad, “The ad, Sherrod is true. Read my lips: the ad is true.” [WTVG Debate, 10/19/06; Toledo Blade, 10/20/06]

DeWine Has Mrs. Broyles Lie About Brown.  DeWine has Audrae Broyles repeat an accusation first raised in an RNC ad 10/17/06, saying, “You didn't pay your outstanding tax bill for 12 years.” But state records show that Brown paid his tax bill as soon as he was made aware of it, in early 1994, not in 2005 as the DeWine’s ad stated.  [Mike DeWine Ad, “Seniors;” Bureau of Employment Services, Notice of Payment, 4/20/94; Plain Dealer, 10/18/06]

DeWine Submitted to GOP Attack Dogs, Agreed to Campaign of Lies in Last-Ditch Attempt to Save His Career. “The flap over the accuracy of the GOP and DeWine campaign ads comes as he tries to ratchet up his attacks on Brown in a more personal manner. The push comes at the behest of national GOP officials, who are nervous that DeWine is losing a seat key to Republican hopes to hold their Senate majority.” The Dispatch reported today that national Republican leaders told DeWine “money is going to go away” if he did not "listen to [his] own people who are harder and stop listening to people who are softer” [Columbus Dispatch, 10/20/06 and 10/19/06]

DeWine Put Soldier At Risk in Campaign Ad. The Army found that an enlisted soldier’s appearance in uniform, in a DeWine ad “is counter to Defense Department directives and army policy.” [Stars and Stripes, 10/17/06]

DeWine’s Attack “Lacks Context.” “The incumbent senator's rap against the congressman from Avon, made to voters in a campaign commercial, may not be deserved, according to interviews with lawmakers involved at the time […] the criticism sorely lacks context, they say.” [Plain Dealer, 7/22/06]

DeWine Admits Ad on Bipartisanship Misleading. “In an interview after the ad was released, DeWine acknowledged the tax cuts didn't have significant bipartisan support. “It's true in one out of the three examples…” he said.” [Associated Press, 8/25/06]

DeWine Anti-Incumbent Ad Fails to Mention DeWine Is Incumbent. “A Republican TV ad in Ohio tries to deflect the increasing anti-incumbent sentiment from Sen. Mike DeWine…It doesn't mention DeWine, or the fact that he's served eight years in the House and 12 years in the Senate.” [Associated Press, 8/29/06]

DeWine Campaign Doctored Image of 9/11. “U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine's campaign doctored an image in a televised attack ad to make the World Trade Center appear to be burning, the senator admitted yesterday.” In an editorial entitled, “Tough to Airbrush This One Off,” the Plain Dealer writes that images of September 11th “are symbols with which one trifles only at great risk.  But trifle is just what DeWine's hired advertising company did when it produced - and the senator's campaign approved - a "graphical representation" (his spokesman's words) that showed smoke billowing from the wrong tower…his campaign produced a historically inaccurate portrayal of the transfiguring event of our time.” [Toledo Blade, 7/20/06; Plain Dealer, 7/21/06]

DeWine Aired Ad Accusing John Glenn of Supporting Communism. During his failed bid against American hero and astronaut Senator John Glenn an Ohio newspaper reported the DeWine campaign claiming, “…if Glenn had his way the Berlin Wall still would be standing and former Soviet republics still would be enslaved.” [Columbus Dispatch, 10/27/92]

Maybe the Dayton Daily News said it best. They called him “mud-loving Mike DeWine.”

FACT: Based on Past Campaign Tactics, the Dayton Daily News Twice Referred to DeWine as “Mud-Loving Mike DeWine”.

“John Glenn obvious pick over mud-loving Mike DeWine.” [Dayton Daily News, 10/21/92]

"He ran a thoroughly negative campaign, downplaying issue differences and emphasizing Glenn's longevity and ethics problems. This editorial page referred to DeWine then as the 'mud-loving Mike DeWine.'" [Dayton Daily News 4/13/94]

SHERROD BROWN: I’m Sherrod Brown and I approved this message.