Cong. OH-3: Hall (D) Suggested as Replacement Candidate

Jerid, who knows the territory, posted an interesting rumination on possible replacement candidates over at BSB. Jerid's "A" list includes Iraq vet Paul Hackett, Dayton Mayor Rhine McLin, Montgomery Prosecuting Attorney Matthias Heck Jr, personal injury lawyer Doug Mann, candidate spouse Francis Strickland, Montgomery County Treasurer Hugh Quill, Montgomery County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman, and former congressional candidates Rick Carne and Jane Mitakides. (Okay, he also included shopping mall heiress Capri Cafaro.) His "B" list has the two former primary contenders, David Fierst and Charles Sanders.

This article in the Dayton Daily News brings up a different name -- former Rep. Tony Hall, pictured above. Hall left Congress to become U.N. ambassador for the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, "left that job after 3 1/2 years," co-wrote a book, and is now living in the Washington, D.C., area. Montgomery County Democratic Party Chairman Dennis Lieberman said he thinks Hall "might be just the guy" because he "could bring in the outside financial support needed to win the race."

Here's the rundown from the Wikipedia:

[Hall is the] author, with Tom Price, of Changing the Face of Hunger: One Man's Story of How Liberals, Conservatives, Democrats, Republicans, and People of Faith Are Joining Forces to Help the Hungry, the Poor, and the Oppressed . . .

Hall worked in the Peace Corps from 1966 to 1967 ... . After working as a real estate agent, Hall served as an Ohio state representative from 1969 to 1973 and as an Ohio state senator from 1973 to 1979. In 1974, Hall ran for Ohio secretary of state and lost to Republican incumbent Ted W. Brown.

Hall was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1978, [succeeding] U.S. Rep. Charles W. Whalen, Jr., a moderate Republican, as representative of the [then] overwhelmingly Democratic third district. In the 1980s, Hall became a born-again Christian and changed his position on abortion from pro-choice to pro-life. Hall served in Congress for 24 years, longer than any previous U.S. representative representing Dayton's district.

He served in the House into 2002, when he accepted President George W. Bush's nomination to succeed George McGovern as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Agencies for Food and Agriculture. Hall's confirmation to the U.N. post, however, was held up until September 2002, making it difficult for his Democratic substitute in the House race, Richard A. Carne, to build up much name recognition before the November election. As a result, former Dayton Mayor Michael R. Turner, a Republican who had recently lost reelection to the mayoralty, was elected to take Hall's place.

During his tenure in Congress, Hall's primary focus was addressing hunger around the world. He made frequent trips to more than 100 countries such as Sierra Leone where hunger was widespread. He was chairman of the Select Committee on Hunger from 1989 to 1993. When the committee was abolished, Hall fasted for 22 days in protest. He was founder of the Congressional Friends of Human Rights Monitors and the Congressional Hunger Center. Hall served terms on the foreign affairs and small business committees before being appointed to the House Rules Committee in 1981.

Twice during his tenure as U.S. representative, Hall introduced legislation that would have apologized for slavery.

Interesting.