Congressional Races: News and Notes

Developments in Ohio's Congressional contests:

Senate: The candidates will debate again at 7:00 pm tonight in Toledo. Open to the general public, the event will be held at the Stranahan Theatre, 4645 Heatherdowns. Lineup at 5:30 PM for general admission. It will also be broadcast live on WTVG-TV Channel 13 in Toledo and streamed live on their website, and C-SPAN will rebroadcast the debate nationwide at 11 PM ET.

Bob Geiger at AlterNet Blog reports that the ostensible cash-on-hand advantage of Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Cedarville) over Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Avon) ($4.5 million to $1.3 million, as of September 30th) may be illusory, because Brown has already paid for more than $2.5 million of air time for the final two weeks of the campaign, while DeWine has yet to pay for the $3.3 million worth of broadcast and cable time he has booked for the two weeks ending November 6. Hence, Bush Sr and Barbara are headlining another fundraiser for DeWine in northeast Ohio today.

Speaking of fundraisers and former presidents, Bill Clinton will be the star of a fundraiser for Brown and other Democrats on Monday, October 23rd, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Hyatt on Capitol Square, 75 E. State Street, Columbus, Ohio.

1st District: John Cranley (D-Cincinnati) has a strong new ad attacking Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Cincinnati) on his ties to oil companies. View the video here.]

Meanwhile, the terrific blog Take Back Cincinnati reported Tuesday that the RNCC was forced to take down an ad supporting Chabot because it misrepresented Cranley's record on illegal immigration.

2nd District: The RNCC sent out its fifth negative mailer yesterday, attacking Dr. Victoria Wulsin (D-Indian Hill) on immigration. This brings the total to over $100,000 spent smearing Wulsin for supporting "a road to eventual legal citizenship," the exact policy that Republican President George Bush has advocated."Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland) is weak on illegal immigration. In fact, she repeatedly voted against securing our border," said Wulsin in response. "When I get to Congress, I'll vote to implement the national border security recommendations of the bi-partisan 9/11 Commission. Jean Schmidt's votes make our families us less safe and let more illegal immigrants into the country." Wulsin has repeatedly said she supports securing the border and clamping down on employers who hire illegals before enacting any other legislation, while Schmidt has repeatedly voted against implementing the 9/11 Commission's border security recommendations, including her vote last December against hiring more border agents, against ending the ridiculous "catch-and-release" practice, and against incorporating state-of-the-art surveillance technology.

Wulsin outraised Schmidt in the third quarter by about $350,000 to $333,000. Wulsin also has more cash on hand, by about $263,000 to $224,000. Also, the DNCC announced yesterday that they are adding this contest to their list of targeted races.

3rd District: Len at the excellent Blogesque has video of two TV ads running for Richard Chema (D-Oakwood). There is a fundraiser for Chema tonight, October 19th, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at NCR Country Club, 4435 Dogwood Trail, Kettering, Ohio.

10th District: After petulantly endorsing his little-known primary challenger, the Cleveland Plain Dealer endorsed Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) this week. The editors note that Kucinich would be well positioned to attain positive results for the district if the Democrats gain control of the House, and praise him for his "constant, principled and proper objection to the war in Iraq."

12th District: The DNCC announced yesterday that they are adding this race to their list of targeted races. Also, Congressional Quarterly Politics upgraded the contest from "Safe Republican" to "Republican Favored."

13th District: Betty Sutton (D-Copley) has about $328,000 cash on hand, more than twice the $114,000 cash on hand of Craig Foltin (R-Lorain), according to the Chronicle-Telegram. That paper also endorsed Sutton recently, noting her "six-point anti-corruption plan" and her emphasis on "ethics, entrepreneurial innovation, and education" to revive the local economy." The editors criticize Foltin for his failed effort to bring a Native American gambling casino to Lorain, failing to fire his safety service director after the latter's felony conviction, and allowing Lorain's deficit to reach as high as $2.6 million. However, the Akron Beacon Journal today endorsed Foltin, writing that they share Sutton's views on the issues but object to her campaign tactics.

14th District: Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Painesville) backed out of a candidate's forum scheduled for October 18th and instead opted to tape separate interviews for the Solon Government Channel. Challenger Lew Katz (D-Chesterland) asked for a joint appearance, but LaTourette refused. LaTourette also backed out of a joint appearance on Hudson's local television channel. "How scared are you, Steve?" asks Katz campaign aide Eleina Thomas. "You will not appear together with Lew. Is Lew that much better than you? Can you not defend his accusations of corruption and failures? Well, I have only seen the two of you at events twice, and I agree with you. RUN! You are going to lose, and you know you shoot yourself in the foot every time you appear in the same room as Lew."

18th District: The Ohio Democratic Party is highlighting questionable actions in the business and personal bankruptcies of State Sen. Joy Padgett (R-Coschocton), and the press is picking up the story. Specifically, Padgett gave her 170 acre family farm to her brothers just before filing bankruptcy (misrepresenting the transfer date in official court documents), and Padgett’s business sold property to Graphic Enterprises Incorporated (GEI) for $129,250 without revealing that a creditor held a lien on the asset. GEI has indicated that it will sue the Padgetts for bankruptcy fraud if it loses its interest in the asset to the creditor. "Joy Padgett has already defaulted on a $737,000 taxpayer loan due to severely mismanaged business practices," said Chris Redfern, Chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party. "It's time to move forward, beyond the pay-to-play culture of corruption that Bob Taft and Bob Ney created. Padgett is Ney's hand picked successor and is part of the problem in Columbus and she'll give you more of the same in Washington." Coverage appears in the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Columbus Dispatch.