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US Senate race is spinning out of control
On the side
GOP meeting: The Mahoning County Republican Party meets at 7:30 p.m. June 7 at its party headquarters at 621 Boardman-Canfield Road in Boardman to elect its chairman, vice chairman and chairwoman.
Whether Chairman Clarence Smith will seek a fourth four-year term is uncertain.
Smith said May 4 that he would run if he believed he could help the party. But when asked earlier this week about another term, Smith said: “I don’t know what will be. We’ll see. That will be decided down the road.”
I asked if he was leaning one way or the other. “I don’t have anyway to answer you,” Smith replied. Actually I can think of a couple of ways to answer my question, but Smith didn’t care to hear them as he walked away during our conversation.
Those wanting to apply for the three positions must send letters of intent to party headquarters by Thursday. Vice Chairman Mark Munroe said he’s interested in being re-elected and would run for chairman if Smith doesn’t. Also, he said Donna Bricker, party chairwoman, plans to seek re-election.
Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, didn’t make it last week to President Barack Obama’s visit to V&M Star.
Instead, Fisher was in San Francisco and Los Angeles visiting family and raising money for his Senate campaign.
Fisher’s decision to not cancel plans so he could be at the Obama event — as well as the lieutenant governor’s holding a Monday press conference on public property in front of V&M Star — has taken on a life of its own.
It’s all rather silly, but it shows that those in the magical and mysterious world of politics will spin anything in their favor or even better, try to make the opposition look stupid.
It was the second time Fisher didn’t show up at an Obama event in Ohio. Fisher was in private meetings when Obama was in Lorain County in March.
Fisher says he is a strong supporter of Obama, but that hasn’t stopped Republican officials from criticizing him. [Fisher can’t win on this. He’d also have verbal bombs thrown at him if he was with Obama.]
“Lee Fisher’s dishonesty has been raising some eyebrows across Ohio and its [sic] time they fess up” said Ryan Tronovitch, spokesman for the Republican National Committee. Based on his sentence structure, Tronovitch wants Fisher’s eyebrows to stop lying.
This isn’t one-sided.
Fisher came to V&M to criticize Rob Portman, his Republican opponent in the November race for the U.S. Senate, for decisions the latter made regarding trade with China during his time in the President George W. Bush administration.
Fisher provided a letter Portman, then the U.S. trade representative, sent to a U.S. senator about the president’s December 2005 decision not to impose a quota on Chinese piping, used in sprinkler systems, air conditioning and fencing.
Fisher blamed Portman for causing the U.S. steel industry to lose $150 million in profits from 2005 to 2007.
“If you want to see the jobs that Rob Portman created during the 20 years” in Washington, D.C., “you’ll have to go to China.”
Fisher ignored other instances in which Portman brought China in front of the World Trade Organization over other trade issues.
Also, in the 2005 case, about 40 to 50 Ohio-based companies that are end-users of the raw steel were concerned about the adverse impact of the quota, said Jessica Towhey, his campaign spokeswoman.
“Never let it be said that Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher lets the facts get in the way of a good story,” she said.
In Youngstown, Fisher said based on Portman’s voting record on China, “it is likely” he would have opposed quotas and tariffs placed on Chinese steel — the same steel V&M produces — in December 2009 by the Obama administration.
When asked for proof, Fisher’s campaign told me to ask Portman. Portman’s campaign found the Fisher statement to be ridiculous and said if he’s making the accusation, Fisher should come up with the proof.
Also, Fisher said without that decision, V&M’s expansion “wouldn’t have happened.” V&M officials have said the ruling was helpful, but was hardly among the most important factors in moving ahead with the $650 million expansion project.
Fisher was to be joined Monday by steelworkers, according to an e-mail from his campaign. But there were none with Fisher outside the nonunion V&M plant.
“I have a feeling it was a miscommunication,” he said.