National Democrats pull more money out of Ohio's U.S. Senate race

[CincyDem]

2. No...but he's got a bad "optical" record.

Ted was in the wrong place at the wrong time and, as a result, he's superficially responsible for a lot of bad chit that happened in Ohio and it's crippling him.

He was in office as governor in 2008. Ohio lost a ton of jobs (325k?) and he completely depleted the budget rainy day fund...something like 300 million (but don't quote me on that).

Remember 2008? wasn't raining...it was a f'ing monsoon. So using the rainy day fund to support the state in tough times (as it was intended) shouldn't be a negative but that's how it's been framed up. And those jobs were leaving no matter who was governor.

Add to that, he's a relatively low key campaigner who, at 75, "feels" a lot more than 15 years older than Portman. If elected, Strickland would immediately be in the oldest 10% of the senate and likely be a single term senator.

He's personally a very good guy and his principles/policies are what we need in the senate. But Portman is important to Koch's. It's no coincidence that the first 2016 general dollars they spent were on his behalf. Talk around town (probably like many towns and their "favorite son&quot is that Portman already on the short list for 2020.

Strickland is just many in the long line of unelectable Ohio Dem candidates who have "done their time" and are now being rewarded with state party support - at the expense of winning. Ohio would be blue in a lot of offices if not for the fundamental ineptitude (and inbreeding) of the state party. It's a club and gaining entry is a long long (long) process of demonstrating loyalty - not electability.