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The GOP needs every single Senate seat that it can get. In a 50/50 split, there is not a single seat that can be taken for granted.
But in Ohio, Senator Rob Portman, who has served two terms in the Senate, has decided to not run for re-election. And since this is a seat currently held by a Republican, the GOP has a good chance of holding it.
That is, if the current crop of candidates can actually act like mature adults and not pissy little children. Last night’s debate was… not encouraging. Josh Mandel and Mike Gibbons mixed it up a bit – onstage – when Mandel accused Gibbons of making “millions” off Chinese oil.
The candidates argued over Mandel’s accusations that his opponent “made millions” off of Chinese petroleum stock, which Gibbons denied.”
“You may not understand this because you’ve never worked in the private sector in your entire life,” Gibbons exclaimed. The exchange immediately escalated as Mandel rushed out of his seat and angrily stood directly in Gibbons’ face.”
“Two tours in Iraq, don’t tell me I haven’t worked,” Mandel yelled.”
“You don’t know squat,” Gibbons retaliated.”
The moderator quickly interfered to ease tensions by directing Mandel back to his seat. The candidate began to sit down when Gibbons repeated, “You don’t know squat.”
“Two tours in Iraq, don’t tell me I haven’t worked,” Mandel repeated. “You back off. Watch, watch. You’re dealing with the wrong guy. You watch what happens, p*ssy. You watch what happens.”
*long heavy sigh* Such maturity. Much wow. Seriously, what the hell, everyone? Gibbons is currently slightly ahead in the polls, with Mandel running right behind him. (For those who care, Donald Trump has apparently not yet made an endorsement in the Ohio GOP primary.) The Gibbons campaign lost no time in putting out an ad about the yelling match.
Josh Mandel is unhinged, unfit, and flailing – because he’s losing.
We can’t leave this race to child-like candidates. We need an adult in the room and Josh Mandel has proven that he is not capable of being that for Ohioans. #OHSen pic.twitter.com/xLgdca7gxR
— Mike Gibbons (@MikeGibbonsOH) March 18, 2022
Mandel’s response?
The squishy establishment Republicans want me to be “above the fray” and “stop fighting.”
My response:
I will never stop fighting. I will never back down. I’m going to Washington with the mission of fighting and defeating the RINOs and pro-China uniparty.
— Josh Mandel (@JoshMandelOhio) March 19, 2022
And J.D. Vance also jumped on Mandel.
J.D. Vance, an author who served in the Marine Corps and who is also running for Senate in Ohio, mocked the spat and said, to applause, that the way Mandel used his military service is “disgraceful.”
“It’s not a political football for you to toss around,” Vance said. “Think about what we just saw. … This guy wants to be a U.S. senator, and he’s up here [saying], ‘Hold me back, I got two tours in the Marine Corps.’ What a joke. Answer the question. Stop playing around.”
Gibbons contended that “Josh is no longer in the lead.”
“Josh, there’s a reason you’re no longer in the lead, and we just saw some of it here tonight,” Gibbons said.”
Yeah, this is going well, isn’t it? Meanwhile, the Democrats have fairly well solidified around Representative Tim Ryan, so they aren’t having the drama that the Republicans of Ohio are providing to the general electorate. And the audience clearly didn’t appreciate the two candidates trying to get in each other’s faces.
The entire focus for Republicans right now needs to be on winning back Congress. That is the only safeguard to be had against the disaster show that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are running right now. But that means NOT giving up seats in the Senate that are currently held by Republicans. We have all seen the disaster that occurred when “safe” seats in Georgia were flipped. There is a good chance that one of those seats can be flipped back, but Republicans need to make GAINS, NOT lose. The momentum is with the GOP, but that means acting like adults and not giving Democrats campaign material.
That Senate seat in Ohio is currently marked as “leans GOP” on Real Clear Politics. Seven seats are listed as “toss ups” and four of those are held by Democrats. We can’t assume anything, and simply counting on Biden being so terrible that the Republicans win by default is not a good strategy. After this public outburst, Ohio Republicans had better pull themselves together, or they will risk losing the edge in this race.
Featured image: state flag of Ohio via Jeff Kubina on Wikimedia Commons, cropped, Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Robert Orians says: I like the way Mandel fights already . We’ve had enough milk toast Robbie Bois claiming allegiance to only his own bank account . We need full of piss fellas like Josh ! Shoulda’ spit on the old timer from hell .
GWB says: Have you ever had to actually deal with people who are just “full of piss”? They are generally a-holes to deal with. They generally fly off the handle based on partial information. Often that means they address the wrong issue badly. And, they do it while pissing off everyone around them – even their own team members.
Sorry, but “he fights” is not what we need. We need someone who will fight well for the right things.
GWB says: Yeah, this is going well, isn’t it?
Well, based on your reporting here, I’d say Josh is the only one not doing well.
two candidates trying to get in each other’s faces
Huh? You reported and the video shows only Josh “getting in someone’s face.”
that means acting like adults
Tell that to Mandel.
Sorry, but Mandel was wrong here. He IS using his military service as giving him some moral superiority*. And, no, being in the Marine Corps is not the same as working in the private sector. The rules are different, and outcomes matter in different ways.
(* I hate that, BTW. I absolutely hate when appreciation for the military steps over the line into worship of the military. It is ignorant and it is dangerous – that’s how you get Praetorian Guards deciding who the emperor will be.)
Mandel seems to be just an angry populist. “Fighting” does not make him a good choice for Senate. Fighting well for the right things would make him a good choice.
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