Club seeks Obama, Clinton debate in Youngstown

YOUNGSTOWN — A long-dormant political group is back with an ambitious purpose: to get the two remaining Democratic presidential candidates to agree to debate in Youngstown just before Ohio’s March 4 primary.

With Don L. Hanni Jr. still in power as Mahoning County Democratic chairman, he created “The Riverboat Captain’s Club of Mahoning County” in 1983. The club’s main responsibility was to raise money for Democratic candidates.

When Hanni fell out of power in 1994, the captain’s club sunk. But he’s thrown it a life preserver.

Hanni, the club’s admiral, and Jim Graham, its vice admiral, sent letters to U.S. Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton through the Democratic National Committee inviting them to come to Youngstown on either March 2 or 3 to participate in a public debate.

For more, see Saturday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com