Ex-Ohio governor joins advocacy fund

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Ohio’s former governor was tapped Wednesday to promote liberal causes in his home state and across the country as head of an influential Washington think tank’s advocacy arm.

Democrat Ted Strickland begins his job as president of the Center for American Progress Action Fund on April 1.

Strickland said in an interview with The Associated Press that he has not entirely ruled out a run against U.S. Sen. Rob Portman in 2016, but he considers heading CAP Action “a dream job” and will devote all his energies to it.

“My honest answer to you today is that I have no plans to run for an office in the future,” he said. “But I’ve always adhered to the philosophy that life sort of unfolds, and you deal with problems and opportunities as they arise.”

As the fund’s president, Strickland will control a budget of about $7 million and oversee two key operations: the closely followed Think Progress political blog, which sees 6 million unique hits a month, and the CAP Action War Room, which turns Center for American Progress research into action and advocacy.