2008: The Prequel

New York Times

Most of the factories have shut down in Mansfield. The old Westinghouse plant sits silent and archaic like a medieval castle near the center of town. And the retirees have seen their kids go off somewhere else. If they’ve gone to college, they’re in New York, California, Georgia or Arizona. They’re Christmas Ohioans. At holiday time they visit home.

This is the economic backdrop to the most important political race in the country, the Senate campaign between Sherrod Brown, a Democrat now in the House, and Mike DeWine, the Republican incumbent. It’s important because each candidate comes from the most vibrant strain in his own party. Brown is a full-bore economic populist. DeWine is an independent McCainiac conservative. In two years, the national parties will be talking in just these ways, and we’re seeing a preview of that battle today.

Sherrod Brown is a natural political animal, with the ability to dominate the space around him. At a campaign rally in Mansfield, he pulls a chair into the center of the room while others are speaking, so everyone can see him listening and reacting. He wears a wrinkled, cheap suit, and his raspy voice and plain manners evoke the local diner or union hall more than his alma mater, Yale University.

Terrorism and national security issues don’t come up spontaneously around Brown. He focuses on the problem that is at the core of his career and mission: the hollowing out of Ohio’s manufacturing base and the slow destruction of a way of life.

“They’ve sold out our country and betrayed the middle class,” he says of the Republicans and the big corporations who worked together to write the tax laws, the energy bill and the prescription drug bill.

Read the full article.

10/12/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

DeWine no moderate, Brown says

From Columbus Dispatch:

Brown pointed to a study by Congressional Quarterly showing DeWine voted against Bush 24 percent of the time in 2005, but that number was never higher than 6 percent in any other year since 2000.

"Mike DeWine has been just where George Bush has been on the Iraq war, on Medicare, on Social Security privatization," Brown said.

DeWine says he stands up to the president when he thinks it's in the best interest of the nation and Ohio.

"I think I have a pretty strong conservative record," he said in an interview last week. "I have a record of accomplishment I'm very proud of. This election is about who has gotten things done for Ohio."

Assuming each wins his primary race May 2, DeWine and Brown will find no shortage of issues to debate between now and November.

DeWine backed the war in Iraq, while Brown opposed it and advocates setting a timetable for withdrawal. DeWine says free trade expands the nation's economy, while Brown says it destroys jobs. DeWine supported Bush's tax cuts, and Brown opposed them.

Click here to read the full article.

04/18/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

US, UAE Postpone Free Trade Talks Amid Ports Row

From Reuters via Washington Post:

Reuters
Friday, March 10, 2006; 10:13 AM

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and United Arab Emirate have postponed free trade talks set for next week, the U.S. Trade Representative's office said on Friday.

The announcement came one day after state-owned Dubai Ports World, facing intense U.S. political opposition, said it would sell recently acquired U.S. assets to an American entity.

"The U.S. and UAE are strongly committed to making progress on our FTA negotiations. In order to get an agreement that both sides can successfully implement, we need additional time to prepare for the next round of negotiations," Neena Moorjani, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office, said.

03/10/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

Sherrod Brown seeks port-security solution

From Columbus Dispatch:

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

I am extremely pleased to see that Congress has, for once, put aside its partisan bickering to try to solve an issue as important as our national security. I was proud to find that a fellow Ohioan, Rep. Sherrod Brown, D-Avon, is one of the congressmen proposing legislation to try to make this country as safe as possible.

I agree with Brown that there needs to be congressional oversight to ensure that our ports are as safe as can be. Moreover, Brown should be commended for proposing legislation, whether you agree with him or not, as honest discourse can only generate positive results.

Brown is trying to come up with the best possible solution to keep us all safe, which is more than I can say for Sen. Mike DeWine on this topic, as he has said nothing.

SEAN PHILLIPPI

Westerville

03/07/2006 / Permalink / Dubai, Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

Supporter Profile: Craig from Lima

Craig Bradford, center, with Sherrod at Lima news conference

I work inside a correctional facility and I work on the streets as a part-time police officer. I had specifically asked Sherrod about the Dubai port deal because that's an issue that not only affects people near those ports, but it also is going to affect people here in Lima.

We have a tank plant and a chemical refinery. Going all the way back to the Cold War, we were listed as one of the high targets if we were ever to go to war.  After September 11th, I watched this community go into a sense of panic, because we have those types of facilities here.

After talking to Sherrod and seeing his commitment to keeping security first and foremost in his mind as he goes into the Senate as he has in Congress, I feel that everybody needs to support him.  

Our children will be the leaders of tomorrow.  If they see that we are not taking our homeland security seriously, we've already lost the battle for the future of this country.

Craig Bradford, Lima OH
March 2, 2006

03/06/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

Sherrod Calls for an "88 County Campaign" at Statewide Candidate Forums

5 NW County Dem. Forum - Sandusky

Quin-T Dem. Club - Batavia, Claremont Co.

This weekend, Sherrod made appearances at three statewide candidate forums in Batavia, Troy, and Sandusky.  Sherrod stood with candidates for governor, attorney general, treasurer, auditor, and other state and federal offices at the events across the state.

At a meeting of the Quin-T Democratic Club in Batavia, Clermont County, Sherrod vowed to run an "88 county campaign" across Ohio:

"For all of us running statewide, this is going to be an '88 county' race.  We're not going to ignore Clermont, Butler, and Warren no matter what the margins were in 2004.  We're not going to ignore the conservative counties around Franklin County.  We're not going to ignore small counties where I grew up, like Mansfield in Richland County.

"All of us on the statewide ticket are going to take this campaign to all 88 counties. That's a commitment.

"You will see us here and we will fight for what we think are the right causes for the Democratic Party throughout the next eight or nine months."

From there, Sherrod headed up to Troy to address Miami County Democrats.  The Miami Democrats gave Sherrod a warm welcome and reminded him of the time that 1,200 local activists lined the highway to greet John Kerry when he traveled across the state in 2004.

Far from discouraged from the last election's results, local activists were brimming with excitement about Sherrod's campaign for the U.S. Senate and all the Democratic candidates on the ballot.

At the Five Northwest County Democratic Forum in Sandusky, Sherrod mingled with local activists and got a chance to say hello to his friend and congressional colleague Rep. Ted Strickland, candidate for governor.

03/06/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, (all tags)

Port Security in Toledo

Sherrod discusses the UAE port deal at a Toledo news conference

Sherrod repeated his concern for Ohio's safety after it was revealed that the White House approved a deal of U.S. port security to state-owned company in the United Arab Emarites (UAE). It was also recently discovered that the U.S. is in trade negotiations with the Mideast nation. Sherrod has called on former Ohio Congressman and current United States Trade Ambassador Rob Portman to halt the trade negotiations until a thorough national security review of the nation is completed.

Click here to listen to audio.

He also discussed plans to introduce legislation that would strengthen national security review and Congressional oversight in U.S. trade agreements.

Here are some excerpts of his remarks:

Recently, the Bush administration approved the takeover of six United States ports' security by Dubai Ports World, a state-owned company controlled by the United Arab Emirates.  

Unfortunately, while this important decision had significant national security implications, it was made by the administration under the cover of darkness with no Congressional review.

Leadership in both political parties and both chambers of the U.S. Congress have joined together to strongly condemn the Bush administration for this arrangement.  

They were joined by families of 9/11 victims in urging that the Dubai Ports World deal should be reevaluated.

The Bush administration has been outsourcing jobs for five years, and now they want to outsource our national security.

In a post 9/11 world, trade agreements are no longer just vehicles for economic development.  

They are an integral part of national security and efforts to combat terrorism.

We must revamp U.S. trade policy to meet our homeland security demands to better secure our borders and protect our communities.  

Trade agreements lower tariffs and open markets.  But they also open our ports, our infrastructure, and our transportation lines.  

When we open our borders, the American people must know that we have done everything possible to protect them.

02/26/2006 / Permalink / Sherrod Brown, Toledo, Trade, (all tags)

Sherrod Calls for Halt to Trade Negotiations with the United Arab Emirates

Sherrod calls for a halt to UAE Port Deal

In response to the proposed outsourcing of America's port security to the United Arab Emirates, Sherrod calls on United States Trade Ambassador Rob Portman -- a former Ohio Congressman -- to halt negotiations with the Mideast nation.  Sherrod also plans to introduce legislation that would strengthen American's national security through trade agreements.

The announcement will be made at news conference today at 2:00 PM at the Cleveland Port Authority.  Check back here for updates.

What do you feel about the UAE Port Deal?  Let Sherrod know your thoughts by writing him directly at:

http://sherrodbrown.com/write/letter

Sherrod wrote about the situation at the Huffington Post.

02/24/2006 / Permalink / National Security, Sherrod Brown, Trade, (all tags)