Yes, less than a week to go now. Perhaps the most significant election in recent memory, will soon be in the rear-view mirror. Or will it? If the presidential election is close, and it may well be, we might still be awaiting mail-in ballots, provisional ballots and military ballots to be counted (or even still to arrive), in key battleground states.
But of course there are a lot of down-ballot races to be considered as well, from county commission, to prosecutor, to sheriff, to state representative, to a slew of judicial positions, and yes, to Congress. I’ve had another hard fought race this time, which of course has received a lot of attention.
Unfortunately, my opponent and her allies, Nancy Pelosi and the left-wing money machine, have run the sleaziest, slimiest campaign I have ever seen. As you know, I was the victim of a crime. No less-credible a source than the FBI has confirmed that I was the victim. Even the Cincinnati Enquirer, which has evolved over the years from a more conservative to a more liberal publication, says I was a victim. Yet my opponent and her Washington allies have run millions of dollars of ads making me out to be a cross between Charlie Manson and Bernie Madoff. The term “lying” isn’t nearly strong enough to describe the despicable character assassination they have been guilty of.
Putting that aside, let’s take a look at the key differences between my opponent and me. I’ve been a long-time proponent of invigorating the economy and creating jobs by keeping taxes as low as possible, and reducing burdensome government regulations. I have consistently voted that way. And as the Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee, I was the leader in the House of Representatives, along with my Democratic counterpart, Nydia Velasquez of New York, in crafting the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP.) Of the 16 congressional districts in Ohio, our district received more funding, $3 billion, and saved more jobs, 256,000, than any other congressional district in Ohio.
My opponent, Kate Schroder, is for the radical left-wing Green New Deal, which would result in federal income taxes needing to increase to 70%. It’s also a job-killer, and a big government grab of virtually every aspect of our lives – no cars, no planes, no meat, no jobs. It outlaws the internal combustion engine, for God’s sake. It’s the brainstorm of New York socialist AOC, and my opponent would like to be the fifth member of “the Squad.”
I’m committed to defeating COVID. I voted for the Cares Act, and other legislation to fully fund hospitals, schools, state and local government, testing, therapeutics, and ultimately a vaccine.
My opponent, as head of the city’s Board of Health finance committee, ran up a $2.7 million deficit that healthcare workers said “hurt the city’s pandemic response.” She was also directly involved in a hiring scheme that a Hamilton County judge ruled was “unethical.” And she politicized the COVID pandemic, submitting an op-ed to the Enquirer attacking President Trump and myself, after three days earlier skipping a key health department meeting on the city’s pandemic response. By the way, she skipped that important meeting, to campaign for Congress.
And when it comes to public safety, I’m endorsed by both the FOP, and the Democratic Sheriff of Hamilton County, Jim Neil. I have had a long history of working with both police, and community leaders, in making sure that we are safe in our neighborhoods, and every citizen, regardless of race or ethnicity, is treated with respect by the police. My opponent is allied with the radical activists who tried to reduce police funding from its current budget level of 36%, down to 25%. This would have resulted in fewer police, and more dangerous neighborhoods.
She also supports ending cash bail, which would result in more criminals on the street. And she supports ending qualified immunity, meaning police could be sued personally even when they follow everything they were taught at the police academy, and appropriate police procedures. Who’s going to want to be a police officer, if your home, your retirement, and your savings, are up for grabs with your every action on the job?
Finally, my opponent has criticized me, repeatedly, for allegedly representing our district in Congress too long, 24 years now. I would note that the person she supports for President, has been in Washington nearly twice as long as me – 47 years. And the person she would vote for Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has been there 9 years longer than me. There’s a word for that – hypocrisy.
There are many other issues (where she’s wrong and I’m right) but in the interest of respecting your time, I’ll leave it there. If you’ve already voted, thank you for your participation in the electoral process. If you haven’t voted yet, I’d REALLY appreciate your vote. Thank you, and God bless!