A group of Republicans is teaming up to tour Ohio and urge voters to elect Democrat Tim Ryan as the state’s next U.S. senator, bringing that message to Toledo in hopes of reaching other GOP members.
The Toledo stop on Tuesday was put on by the Welcome PAC, which seeks to build a “big tent” Democratic Party and has allies from “across the political spectrum,” according to its website. The Ohio group seeks to attract Republicans who are not satisfied with the direction the party has taken under former President Donald Trump.
On Tuesday, the group’s GOP allies who spoke outside the Toledo Lucas County Public Library downtown included former assistant prosecutor and Cincinnati City Councilman Phil Heimlich, retired Army Maj. Gen. Dennis Laich, and former Shelby County GOP executive and farmer Christopher Gibbs.
Mr. Heimlich explained why some Republicans have sided with Ryan, the Youngstown-area congressman, over Trump-endorsed GOP author and venture capitalist J.D. Vance in the Senate race. Mr. Vance’s previous comments on the war in Ukraine and his stance on the work being done by the U.S. House’s Jan. 6 committee to investigate the attack on the U.S. Capitol factored into the decision, Mr. Heimlich said.
“My message to my fellow Republicans throughout this state is, let’s vote for the guy who stands up for law enforcement, who stands up to tyrants, and has the character that we need in the United States Senate,” Mr. Heimlich said.
The Vance campaign has claimed that the message the group is spreading around the state is nothing more than another ploy put out by Democrats.
"Ohioans shouldn't be fooled: this bogus organization isn't 'Republican' — it's a Democrat trick funded by far-left super donors,” Vance campaign spokesman Luke Schroeder said. “These individuals are donors to Tim Ryan, Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden, and liberal PACs, and one individual even served as a political appointee for President Obama. It's a shame they've chosen to lie to Ohioans about who they really are."
During an unrelated campaign stop at Ottawa Park in Toledo on Tuesday, Mr. Ryan said that he believes he has gained some Republican support because he is able to appeal to moderate voters.
“We have a ton of Republican support because one, I’m a moderate myself, and want us to be Americans first before we jump into a political party, and J.D. Vance is so extreme,” Mr. Ryan said.
“We want to move out of the age of stupidity and into an age of possibility where we can create a bright future for our kids,” Mr. Ryan said. “That’s not a Democrat or a Republican thing, and that’s why we’re getting a lot of Republican support because they see me as that person who’s going to help create a better future for their kids.”
Earlier in the day with the Welcome PAC, Maj. Gen. Laich said that he is especially concerned with the direction the GOP has taken involving defending former President Trump after his alleged removal and mishandling of classified documents from the White House to Mr. Trump’s Florida estate at Mar-a-Lago.
“Most Americans have never touched or seen a classified document,” Maj. Gen. Laich said. “For those of us who have, it’s a great responsibility.”
Maj. Gen. Laich said that Mr. Trump “is putting national security in jeopardy with every step he takes, and we’re tolerating it.”
Other Republicans supporting the effort include former Ohio auditor and attorney general James Petro, former state Rep. Charles “Rocky” Saxbe, and two former staffers to U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R., Ohio).
“It’s undeniable that the GOP of today and candidates that it stands for election are yet a shell of what the Grand Old Party used to be,” Mr. Gibbs said. “Void of those guiding principles of diplomacy, statesmanship, compassion, and personal responsibility.”
“There are people, and they are of significant number, remaining both within legacy GOP and independents who instinctively know they no longer wish to be associated with extremist candidates…and it’s those folks that we’re reaching out to today,” Mr. Gibbs said.
The Welcome PAC has cited poll numbers from Emerson College and Marist University suggesting that anywhere between 14 percent and 17 percent of Ohio voters supporting incumbent Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, could also throw their weight behind Mr. Ryan at the ballot box.
The two candidates are on the ballot for the Nov. 8 election to replace Mr. Portman, who is retiring.
First Published October 18, 2022, 9:27 p.m.
