Far too many pundits are inclined to write off outspoken progressive and JFK Profiles in Courage Award winner Jennifer Brunner in the Ohio Democratic Senate primary. It is time to take another look at this race, and to get behind the clearly superior candidate.
Yes, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner is opposed by the party establishment in Ohio and she has been out-fundraised by her opponent. However, she is running a strong grassroots campaign and she is making the establishment very nervous. They are focused entirely on getting her out of the race now, because they know that she can beat her opponent in the May primary.
Two recent developments compel your attention to this race now.
First, the latest Quinnipiac poll shows that Secretary Brunner gained five percentage points in less than a month while her opponent dropped two points, pulling her into a statistical tie in the primary. She is the candidate with the momentum as the primary draws closer.
Second, the NRSC has responded to Brunner’s strong statement against sending more troops to Afghanistan and in favor of a swift timetable for withdrawing our troops (an assessment described as “wise” by The Nation) by calling on her to “apologize not only to General McChrystal, but to all American troops, for her inflammatory and baseless attacks.” This atttack comes because she had the audacity to express doubt that the advice of Gen. Stanley McChrystal should be followed without significant validation of his recommendations, noting accurately that McCrystal was previously associated with the abuse of detainees and with covering up the truth about the death of Pat Tillman.
This is not a new playbook. The GOP hurls its ugliest attacks against the Democrats they fear most, and what scares them the most is the truth.
I am working for Brunner’s Senate campaign precisely because she is the kind of outspoken progressive who takes stands on tough issues based on principle, not political expediency. She has been a supporter of marriage equality as a matter of civil rights since the 1980s. She has called for a moratorium against capital punishment, the only Ohio statewide official ever to do so. She has been out front in the fight for real health care reform with a public option, for EFCA and pension reform, and for transparency and accountability in Wall Street bailout spending. She is endorsed by NOW and other women’s organizations for her strong support for women’s rights, and she has received awards for her outstanding leadership on civil rights.
Her opponent in the Ohio Senate primary is a lackluster candidate who has lost previous statewide elections despite outspending his GOP opponents (including a gubernatoral race against the disastrous Bob Taft), and who avoids taking stands on controversial issues. He changed his position on the death penalty when he decided to run for state attorney general. And early this year he quit his job as Director of Development in the middle of the worst financial crisis in Ohio history in order to help his campaign for the Senate.
It’s time to get off the sidelines and provide Jennifer Brunner the national netroots support that will enable her to run a successful grassroots campaign in Ohio. She doesn’t need the big corporate bucks her opponent has collected to win, she just needs enough to get her message out and fire up the ground game.
Please help add Jennifer Brunner to the Democratic caucus in the Senate by contributing $50, $25, or even $10 a month on ActBlue.
JenniferBrunner.com
Follow Jennifer Brunner on Facebook and Twitter
I like Brunner but her fundraising has been very poor. She is going to need to step up the pace very soon in order to have a real shot at winning even the primary much less the general election against the fell-funded Portman.
She has had more than enough time to pick up her fundraising and to appeal to the netroots. It has not worked. Time to back Lee Fischer and make sure Rob Portman does not get this seat.
I don’t know why he sent this to me instead of posting it himself, but here is the take of a very experienced politico in Ohio:
“I noticed in the comments [on SwingState] people’s remarks on Jennifer’s fund raising. One thing that I’ve been telling people and they are slowly getting is that Lee doesn’t have boat loads of money. He’s raised 2.4 million in three quarters. Rob Portman raised about that in one quarter. Tom Ganley has triple that in his pack account right now.
The gist of this – both Dems running for US Senate are going to get spanked in the general when it comes to money. When you compare Lee’s money to the Repubs he might as well have Jennifer’s money – seriously. 2.4 million sounds good now, but that spends in campaign terms in the blink of an eye.
Because of this you need something more. You need the grassroots. You need people that are inspired and will work their butt off for a candidate. Jennifer has that. Lee doesn’t. And people know this.
Lee’s conservative (issue 6 if you’re in Cuyahoga County) style will not get the grassroots left mobilized in the general and that’s what we need to win the seat and to keep Portman out.
Anyway – wanted to pass that on. We’ve got to get people to realize that it’s going to take more than a 2.4 million dollar candidate who’s fund raising has fallen each quarter and his poll numbers are to, to win this seat.”
If 2010 is a base election, and all indications are that it will be, then we have to go with who’s going to get the base out. Fisher and his money won’t do it, I’m sorry, the guy just doesn’t work in this kind of environment because he can’t get people riled up. Brunner, on the other hand has potential.
With the original poster. Jennifer Brunner is a true progressive, and one that will stand up to the right wing, put her foot down, and back progressive legislation that will help the people of Ohio. Sherrod Brown and her have a lot of similarities in that they are both champions of the working/middle class, the stand true to their convictions, and they defend their constituencies. They are also very active in crafting new legislation and strictly enforcing the rules of fair play. Brown is in my mind is tremendous as a Senator.
Here’s the test for me. If Voinovich (who’s actually been a very good public servant for Ohio as both governor and senator) was running again instead of retiring, whom would I vote for? If the matchup was Brunner vs Voinovich, I’d vote for Brunner. If it was Fisher vs Voinovich, my vote would go to Voinovich. Fisher’s just not likeable, he hasn’t really accomplished all that much as luitenant governor, and he’s not a very skilled campaigner. Whoever brought up the primary race between McAuliffe and Deeds has it right, that’s exactly where I see these two right now, with Fisher being the unelectable unlikeable “establishment” candidate, and Brunner the more widely liked “movement” candidate. It just hasn’t shown up in the fundraising, which really I think is way overrated for a primary election anyway. You mean to tell me that Brunner won’t be able to tons of money from all over the democratic grassroots if she wins the nomination? I call BS on that seeing as she’s got a clear advantage in charisma over Fisher. How else could she be tied or leading the primary polling while getting killed in the money race? Money isn’t everything.
I have said many times enough with the horrible candidates, that is how we loose elections. Examples: Jim Martin, Mike Hatch, Creigh Deeds, Dan Seals, and so on. Lee Fisher will be ten times worse. Its the same situation in Ketucky with Mongiardo vs. Conway. If we choose good candidates, we will win, if we choose horrible candidate, WE WILL LOOSE. To Ohio voters: LETS END LEE FISHER’S CAREER IN OHIO POLITICS NOW!
but two words, Paul Wellstone. And also like Wellstone, Brunner has no fear in proudly shouting her progressive beliefs, unlike Fisher. It was extremely telling to me, and is why I am definitely supporting Brunner, that she came out for gay marriage because she supports gay marriage while Fisher came out for gay marriage because Brunner did.
Fisher is a politician and Brunner is an activist.
And I love that she is determined to go for Senate. That is what I want from someone who is running for something like US Senator, not someone who will back down because someone with a bigger name or more money is in the race and then they’d be out of an elected position, that is sacrifice. The whole situation seems to me, Fisher is running for Senate because that is what his next option is while Brunner is running for Senate because that is where her heart is and where she thinks she can best use her political and progressive talents.
Damn it, if I hadnt just made a decision in my life that makes my economic outlook really unpredictable, Id send her some love right now. Hell, I’ll start by signing up for her email list, I cant believe I havent even been to her campaign website yet.
because Lee Fisher and Ted Strickland have scared and intimidated donors into not donating to her. If Ted Strickland would stay out of this senate race, Brunner would be raising money like there was no tommorrow. In my opinion, it would not only be a mistake to let Fischer get the nomination because he is such a weak candidate but also because he is so closely linked to Ted Strickland who is becoming less and less of a popular governor. Political pundits have speculated that Ted Strickland may be on the path to defeat next year.
“And early this year he quit his job as Director of Development in the middle of the worst financial crisis in Ohio history in order to help his campaign for the Senate. ”
Correct me if I’m wrong but doesn’t the SOS play a pivotal role in redistricting?
For such a progressive party loyalist she sure is hurting the party by putting the SOS seat at risk.
Full disclosure please.
http://www.plunderbund.com/200…
If the posts on SSP here are representative of the Democratic electorate in Ohio, then we’ve practically got a civil war on our hands. On one side, you have the people that are siding with the money, on the other you have the people that are siding with the more electable candidate. (For the record I still haven’t seen a good argument for why Fisher is electable)
It looks like I was wrong about this upcoming primary. This does have the potential to get ugly and mess up what could and should be a great pickup opportunity in 2010.
http://www.rasmussenreports.co…