Tag: Rob Portman

Ohio Senator Portman, in Final Policy Effort in Senate, Calls for More Global Trade

Bradley Vasoli

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) retires at the end of the year, but before he does, he hopes to have a hand in reenergizing openness toward global trade, a policy perspective that hasn’t been ascendant in the Biden administration or the preceding Trump administration. 

In a guest column for the D.C.-based Hill newspaper, Portman and his Democratic Delaware colleague Chris Coons called on Congress to pass a legislative package facilitating foreign trade agreements. The lawmakers particularly urged enactment of their Trading System Preservation Act. The act would enable the president to iron out industry-specific trade deals with other nations that are part of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and would allow negotiation of comprehensive agreements with Ecuador, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and Kenya. 

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Retiring Ohio Senator Portman Helps Codify Gay Marriage into Law

Bradley Vasoli

Same-sex marriage is on track to becoming codified in federal statute and retiring U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) is celebrating his role as a key driver of the change.

In 2013, Portman became the first Republican senator to support redefining marriage as something other than the matrimonial union between one man and one woman. He attributed his reversal of his prior opposition to gay marriage to his son having come out two years earlier.

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U.S. Senate to Vote on ‘Respect for Marriage Act’ as Several Groups Question its Constitutionality

The Center Square

Several groups argue the Respect for Marriage Act (ROMA) currently before the U.S. Senate is unconstitutional, and if enacted, will eventually be struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The bill, HR 8404, was introduced in the House by U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, on July 18 and passed by a vote of 267-157 the next day. The U.S. Senate took it up on November 14.

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Ohio Senators Portman and Brown Sponsor Senate Version of Bill Expanding Low-Income Housing Tax Credit

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio’s two U.S. senators this week proposed a Senate bill making full-time students eligible for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. 

U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup (R-OH-2) and Danny Davis (D-IL-7) introduced a House version of the measure earlier this week. The proposed change to the program would make LIHTC, which provides tax relief to developers who build or rehabilitate low-cost rental units, allow full-time students to live on sites that were funded by the credit. The current prohibition on such students living in those buildings was intended to prevent LIHTC from aiding the construction of dormitories. 

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Both Sides in Abortion Debate Plan Legislative Pushes in Ohio

Bradley Vasoli

Advocates on both sides of the abortion debate see Ohio’s elections earlier this week as reason to seek change. 

In 2019, Republican Governor Mike DeWine signed the Heartbeat Act to protect unborn life in cases when doctors can detect a fetal heartbeat. The act’s fate is now tied up in the courts but pro-lifers have reason for optimism that the law will be upheld as Republicans maintained control of the Ohio Supreme Court by sweeping the judicial elections this year. 

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Vance Wins Ohio Senate Seat

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio Republican J.D. Vance prevailed in his race Tuesday against U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH-13) for the U.S. Senate seat from which Republican Rob Portman is retiring this year. 

With 95 percent of the state’s voting precincts reporting at 11:15 p.m. on Election Night, Vance was beating Ryan 53.63 percent to 46.37 percent and NBC News called the race for the Republican. Vance thus secured a key victory for his party’s effort to retake the Senate majority. The win by the attorney, author and venture capitalist also boosts the wing of the GOP most favorable toward former President Donald Trump who enthusiastically endorsed Vance earlier this year.

With 58.27 percent of the state’s 8,933 voting precincts reporting at 10 p.m. on Election Day, Vance was beating Ryan 53.4 percent to 46.6 percent. The Republican thus appeared to secure a key victory for his party’s effort to retake the Senate majority. The projected win by the attorney, author and venture capitalist also boosts the wing of the GOP most favorable toward former President Donald Trump who enthusiastically endorsed Vance earlier this year.

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Ryan Portrays Ohio Campaign as a Dead Heat but Major Pollsters See Vance Pulling Away

Bradley Vasoli

With mere hours to go before the 2022 midterm election, polls are showing Ohio Republican Senate candidate J.D. Vance blow past his Democratic rival Tim Ryan, even as Ryan still claims the race is a “dead heat.” 

In a late Sunday night Twitter post, Ryan cites a survey result showing both candidates with 46 percent support among voters. 

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Cygnal Ohio Poll Shows Vance and DeWine Getting Bigger Leads

Bradley Vasoli

A poll released this weekend by the data company Cygnal shows Ohio Republican candidates for governor and U.S. Senate widening their leads against their Democratic opponents. 

The survey of 1,776 likely voters shows J.D. Vance, the author, attorney and venture capitalist running to succeed retiring Republican Senator Rob Portman, with a 4.6-percent lead over Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan (D-OH-13). Among those polled, 9.2 percent said they were undecided. 

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Ohio Senator Portman Urges Additional Ukraine Funding to Prosecute War Crimes

Bradley Vasoli

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) this week urged allocation of additional funding to support Ukraine as it prepares to prosecute alleged war crimes committed by Russian military personnel. 

The senator said his view of the need for more aid was informed through discussions he and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) had with Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin on Wednesday concerning how America can help its ally to pursue war-crime cases against enemy soldiers. Portman and Durbin co-chair the Senate Ukraine Caucus. 

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Biden in Ohio: ‘Bury’ the ‘Rust Belt’

Bradley Vasoli

Speaking on Friday at the groundbreaking of Intel’s new semiconductor factory in Licking County, Ohio, President Joe Biden said that “it’s time to bury the label ‘rust belt…’” when describing the region in which he stood.

The ‘rust belt’ is a term often used to denote an area extending from western New York through the midwest that saw heavy industrial activity from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century, particularly concerning steel production and automobile manufacturing. The region suffered significant economic decline by the late 20th century and many communities therein have struggled since.

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VA-07, VA-10 Candidates Discuss Policy Problems Faced by People with Disabilities, All Support Increasing SSI Asset Limit

Eric Burk

The congressional candidates for Virginia’s seventh and tenth districts met in a virtual forum on Monday evening where they discussed policy problems faced by people with disabilities. At the beginning, moderator Connor Cummings said that the event was a sensory-friendly forum, not a debate, and instructed candidates to speak about themselves, not their opponents. As a result, the forum’s tone was professional and policy-focused, lacking the fireworks of traditional forums and debates driven by attacks and personality.

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Ohio GOP Congressional Delegation Wants Garland and Wray to Explain Mar-a-Lago Search

Bradley Vasoli

Republican members of Ohio’s congressional delegation reacted with mistrust that the federal government had sufficient cause to conduct its surprise search of former President Donald Trump’s home at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, FL earlier this week.

The former president himself has characterized the move as “prosecutorial misconduct” by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice to unfairly target President Joe Biden’s most high-profile adversary. Sources with knowledge of the event told the press that agents intended to gather evidence regarding whether Trump brought classified documents from the White House to his Palm Beach residence.

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China Tried to Plant Spies Inside the Federal Reserve and Kidnap Economist, Congress Finds

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China has carried out a sustained, decade-long economic espionage operation to infiltrate the U.S. Federal Reserve, according to a report released Tuesday by the Republican staff of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Chinese operatives have employed both bribery and coercion to garner influence with employees of the Federal Reserve system in attempts to get them to provide sensitive information about the U.S. economy to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the report shows. At least 13 individuals across eight of the Fed’s 12 locations were identified as persons of interest in the report for having ties with Chinese government institutions and talent recruitment programs.

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Ohio Senator Advocates Policy Changes in Wake of Inflation Report

The Center Square

In response to this week’s news of the consumer price index rising to 9.1%, Republican U.S. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio gave a blistering summation and offered direction to the Biden administration.

Portman said numbers provided for Ohio indicate residents are spending an additional $8,300 a year on energy needs, food and clothing. Jonathan Church at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, contacted by The Center Square, responded in an email for response to getting state-specific index numbers, “The CPI program does not produce state-level indexes.”

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Commentary: America Needs a Red Flag Law For Senile Senators

Admin

America’s geriatric senators increasingly represent a threat to themselves and to others. Take Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) for example. She has filed paperwork to run again in 2024, despite the fact she turns 90 next year and associates say she can’t hold a coherent conversation or remember the names of close colleagues.

This is a woman who has the power to vote to send Americans to war. Just this past spring, she helped pass legislation that sent billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine, a country currently at war with a nuclear power. America’s senators have enormous power to harm the country. They have access not just to firearms but to the world’s most powerful military force and even nuclear weapons.

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Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework Fails to Advance in the Senate

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US Capitol Infrastructure

Senate Republicans rejected an effort Wednesday to begin debate on the bipartisan infrastructure deal endorsed by President Joe Biden, saying that the vote came too early and that the bill was not yet finalized.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer scheduled the procedural vote in an attempt to begin debate on the package, but after filing cloture on Monday Republicans came out against it on the grounds that the deal had yet to be put into text and that senators were still finalizing how the plan would be financed. The bill failed 49-51, with Schumer voting no so that he can bring it up again in the coming days.

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Ohio Businessman Mike Gibbons Joins U.S. Senate Race

Corinne Murdock
Mike Gibbons

Cleveland businessman and 2018 U.S. Senate candidate Mike Gibbons has officially entered the 2022 Senate race.

In his announcement, Gibbons stated that he can help others achieve their American Dream, because he did that for himself. He added that he’s never been a career politician. Instead, he described his journey as a self-made businessman who spent over 30 years helping local Ohio companies grow.

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Former State Rep Who Brought Impeachment Against DeWine Announces Run for Ohio GOP Chair

Jack Windsor

Friday, former Ohio lawmaker John Becker, who represented Ohioans from House District 65 between 2013-2020, announced his candidacy for Chairman of the Ohio Republican Party (ORP).

The top spot in the Ohio GOP is open after former Chairwoman Jane Timken announced her resignation on February 5 to run for the U.S. Senate.

The Southwestern Ohio Republican declared his candidacy in a letter to the ORP State Central Committee that contained his resume.

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Ohio Republican Senator Does Not Support Group That Plans to Challenge Election Results

The Center Square

Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman said Monday he will vote to certify the president elections when Congress meets in joint session Wednesday, saying he does not support a group of Republican senators who plan to challenge the results.

The group of 11 senators it will reject electors from disputed states and has called for a commission to hold an emergency 10-day audit of the election returns from those states. They also want the disputed states to hold a special legislative session to certify votes in a manner consistent with the findings of the commission’s audit.

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Marsha Blackburn Joins Healthy Workplaces Tax Credit Act to Help Businesses Safely Reopen

Chris Butler

U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) this week joined U.S. Sen. Rob Portman’s (R-Ohio) Healthy Workplaces Tax Credit Act.

Blackburn said in an emailed press release that the legislation will help businesses and nonprofits continue to safely reopen while ensuring the safety of employees and consumers. This, through a refundable tax credit against payroll taxes for 50 percent of the costs a business incurs for increased testing, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), disinfecting, and reconfiguring workspaces to follow social distancing guidelines.

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Ohio Senators Voted Along Party Lines in the Impeachment Trial

Zachery Schmidt

  Ohio Senators Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman announced their decision on why they voted the way they did during Wednesday’s historic Senate impeachment vote. As expected, these senators’ decisions went along party lines. Brown, a Democrat, said “yes” to articles of impeachment, and Portman, a Republican, said “no” to the articles. According to Brown’s press release, he believed Trump abused his power as president by asking a foreign government for a political favor to help his political campaign, and then obstructed Congress by blocking witnesses from testifying during the impeachment process. “Over the course of this trial we heard overwhelming evidence that President Trump did things Richard Nixon never did – he extorted a bribe from a foreign leader, to put his own presidential campaign above the American people he swore an oath to serve, Brown said. “If we acquit this President, it sets a clear, dangerous precedent – that you can abuse your office, and Congress will look the other way.” Brown thought the president and Republicans blocked evidence during the Senate impeachment trial including not allowing new witnesses. “One of our fundamental American values is that we have no kings, no nobility, no oligarchs in this country…

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Senator Portman Wears ‘Otto’ T-Shirt in South Korea Visit in Remembrance of Ohio Native

Anthony Gockowski

Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) joined a bipartisan congressional trip to South Korea this week to discuss trade between the U.S. and South Korea as well as the ongoing nuclear negotiations with North Korea. During a visit to the demilitarized zone between South Korea and North Korea, Portman sported an “Otto” t-shirt in remembrance of Ohio native Otto Warmbier, who was famously imprisoned by Kim Jong Un’s regime and later died after being returned to the U.S. “Being in the region, I could not help but think of Otto Warmbier and his family. Otto has been at the front of my mind while I’ve been here and I’ve made clear to South Korean government officials that we must never forget him,” Portman said in a press release. The Ohio senator visited with soldiers from his home state during the trip who are “serving on the front lines to protect the people of South Korea from potential North Korean aggression.” “I am so grateful for the incredible sacrifices that our soldiers make on our behalf and I was honored to visit with them during my time in South Korea,” Portman said. Portman said he also visited with South Korean trade representatives to…

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Portman Resists Lindsey Graham’s Call for New Special Counsel to Investigate FBI

Anthony Gockowski

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and other Republicans are calling for an investigation, and possibly the appointment of a new special counsel, into the FBI surveillance of the Trump campaign. Graham told reporters on Monday that he wants to investigate the surveillance warrants obtained by the FBI against Carter Page, an adviser to the Trump campaign, which were ultimately used to wiretap Page. The warrants, however, were granted partially based on material contained in the infamous and uncorroborated “dossier” produced by Christopher Steele. Graham and his colleagues on the Senate Judiciary Committee want to get to the bottom of the matter, and determine if the warrants were used as “a back-door to spy on the campaign.” “Whether or not it’s illegal, I don’t yet know,” Graham said. “What makes no sense to me is that all of the abuse by the Department of Justice and the FBI—the unprofessional conduct, the shady behavior—nobody seems to think that’s much important. Well that’s going to change, I hope.” Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), however, told The Columbus Dispatch that he opposes calls to have Attorney General William Barr appoint a new special counsel to investigate what Graham called “the other side of the story.” Portman…

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Portman and Brown Join Forces to Solve Pension Crisis

Anthony Gockowski

Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) have introduced a bipartisan bill aimed at giving Ohio workers and retirees a seat at the table when it comes to solving the nation’s looming pension crisis. As The Ohio Star previously reported, an estimated six million retirees and four million workers in the United States rely on multi-employer pension plans, called “MEPPs” for short, which are collectively bargained plans maintained by more than one employer to limit risk. A report conduct by Matrix Global Advisors CEO Alex Brill and sponsored by Protect Our Workers’ Earned Retirement (POWER) predicts that the Pension Benefit Guarantee Program—the federal backstop for MEPPs—is itself expected to “be insolvent in less than a decade.” The Central States Pension Fund, one of the largest MEPPs in the country, will also be insolvent by 2025, according to the report. “Even after legislative fixes to improve plans’ financial status in 2006 and 2014, one-third of the 10 million participants are in plans that are headed toward either a funding deficiency or insolvency. More than 1 million people are in plans expected to be insolvent within 20 years,” Brill states in his report. This could have a devastating effect on the…

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Ohio’s Republican Senator Rob Portman Joins Senate Democrats in Voting Against Trump’s National Emergency Declaration

Anthony Gockowski

Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) and 11 of his Republican colleagues joined Senate Democrats Thursday in voting against President Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration. In a 59-41 vote, the Senate passed a bill that would terminate Trump’s emergency declaration, though the president has already said he will veto the resolution. Portman announced his intention to vote in line with his Democratic colleagues during a Thursday morning speech on the Senate floor. “From the outset of this process I’ve had two objectives. One, to support the president on the crisis at the border. I believe his plan to address that crisis is a good one—we should support it. But second, to do it in the right way without setting a dangerous new precedent counter to a fundamental constitutional principle, without tying up the needed funds for the border in the courts, and without taking funds away from important military construction projects for our troops” Portman said. Portman later said of Ohio, which has “been devastated by the opioid epidemic,” that “over 90 percent of the heroin is coming across the southern border.” “Yesterday I learned from Customs and Border Protection that fentanyl seizures along the border between the ports of entry has…

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Christian Family Values Organization Calls for Ohioans to Share Their Displeasure With Sen. Sherrod Brown for Voting Against Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Act

Jason M. Reynolds

A Christian pro-family organization is calling for Ohioans to share their displeasure with U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who voted against a bill to protect babies born after a botched abortion. Citizens for Community Values’ website says of the organization, “As Ohio’s Family Policy Council, Citizens for Community Values seeks the good of our neighbors throughout Ohio by advocating for public policy that reflects the truth of the Gospel. We believe in an all-powerful, all-knowing God and His perfect Word for us, the Bible.” Citizens for Community Values issued an action alert Tuesday regarding Brown’s vote against the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.The action alert is available here. Ohioans are encouraged to fill out a form to send their complaints to Brown. “Unlike Ohio U.S. Senator Rob Portman who cosponsored and voted to protect these newborns, Ohio U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown voted against protecting these newborns,” Citizens for Community Values said in comparing Brown to Portman, a Republican who co-sponsored the act with Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE). Brown took to Twitter to defend his vote as one for women’s healthcare choice and a vote against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Brown tweeted, “Women should have the freedom to make personal,…

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Republican Senators Introduce Legislation That Would ‘Permanently Prevent’ Government Shutdowns

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by Henry Rodgers   A group of Republican Senators introduced legislation Friday that would permanently prevent the federal government from ever shutting down. Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman, Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, Montana Sen. Steve Daines, Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson, Wyoming Sen. Mike Enzi, Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, Idaho Sen. Jim Risch, Utah Sen. Mike Lee, and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski introduced the legislation – the “End Government Shutdowns Act,” which will make it so the federal government can never shutdown. This comes as the government has been partially shutdown for 21 days. Republican members of Congress have lobbied members of Congress to reach an agreement on a bill that would fund the government and protect the border. “It’s disappointing that both sides didn’t resolve this matter weeks ago. Shutdowns inevitably costs taxpayers more money once the government reopens. I hope that both parties come together and reach an agreement that brings a resolution to this issue as quickly as possible,” Portman said in a statement. “Moving forward, we should end government shutdowns for good. This bipartisan legislation will accomplish that goal, providing lawmakers with more time to reach a responsible resolution to budget negotiations, giving federal workers and…

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