I frame the subject as a question since he has not formally announced his campaign yet but the article in today's paper about his fundraising progress leaves little doubt that he is a serious contender. 

 

http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2011/07/josh_mandel_raises_whopping_23.html

 

I expect the race between Sherrod Brown and Mandel to be one of the ugliest of the upcoming election season.

If Mandel resorts to mud-slinging, he will lose that golden-boy, Iraq War veteran image he has going for him.  That gives Brown an unfair advantage (somewhat) because he is a 'take the gloves off' kind of guy to begin with.

 

Mandel was actually the only Republican (not including judges) I voted for during the last election.  He impressed me during the campaign, but I think the article does make a point that perhaps too much of his time since being elected has been spent prepping for this next step up the ladder as opposed to really dedicating himself to the job which he was elected to perform.

I know his family, and they're wonderful people. Unfortunately, I'm not a fan of Josh Mandel the candidate. I think he molds his platform to what he thinks will endear him to the voting public, not necessarily what he believes. I also wasn't much of a fan of his thinly veiled Muslim fear mongering in the last campaign, particularly given that his father is a past chair of the Jewish Federations Community Relations Committee and has spent a great deal of time building bridges between these groups. Finally, I don't think he's got the experience for the job yet. He's barely qualified for the job he has, and judging by this article, he hasn't spent a lot of time doing it.

 

I'll keep my mind open between now and next year, but he's got to show me something worth voting for besides 'war vet'.

By the way, Marco Rubio of Florida and Mike Lee of Utah are both currently tied for youngest in US Senate.  Elected at 39, currently both 40.

 

The article says Mandel is 33.  Sheesh. 

How old do you have to be... isn't it like 25 or there abouts?

It's 30 to be a Senator.

I'm not the biggest fan of Josh on a personal level, but Bruce (his dad) is a great guy and is very genuine. He's always been good to me on a professional and personal level.

Not a fan at all (heard some pretty shady stuff about him through the grapevine) and I'd hate to see him take Brown's seat.

Seems odd that the Republican base is throwing their support behind him so early.  Sherrod Brown will not be defeated easily, I would think they would have chosen a more experienced candidate than Mandel.  Have any other Republicans officially or unofficially made a move for this Senate seat yet?

The only other thing I've heard is that Ken Blackwell, whose name was floated early as a potential candidate, has said that he will not run. 

Wow...the PD tore Josh another a@#hole in an editoral.  Never thought I would see that from the current editorial board.

Josh Mandel's opportunism: editorial

Published: Wednesday, August 03, 2011, 8:06 PM

  By The Plain Dealer Editorial Board

 

We know from his hefty Federal Election Commission filing that Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel has the fundraising chops to run for the U.S. Senate next year. What we still don't know is whether the young Republican, not five years removed from Lyndhurst City Council, has the policy savvy to serve there if elected.

 

The inferences to be drawn from Mandel's opportunistic position on Tuesday's debt-ceiling vote are not encouraging. He told The Plain Dealer's Stephen Koff that he would have voted against the final compromise. Mandel said he preferred the "cut, cap and balance" approach that passed the House on a party-line vote, then quickly died in the Senate.

 

...

 

http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2011/08/josh_mandels_opportunism_edito.html

I dont care who runs, as long as we get rid of that idiot Sherrod Brown. He was lucky to win 6 years ago but has no business as a US Senator.

 

If its Brown, flush it down. (Can be true about a number of people with that name)

Josh Mandel Brings New Brand of Dishonesty

 

Congratulations are in order for Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel. As part of his U.S. senatorial campaign, Mandel, a Republican, has earned his sixth “Pants on Fire” rating from fact-checking website PolitiFact.

 

http://citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-26031-josh-mandel-brings-new-brand-of-dishonesty.html

Without knowing the context some of those things just sound like generic statements Republicans make about Democrats. All Dems are responsible for sending jobs overseas (Unions, EPA, etc) and all Dems support all persons associated with Occupy (Just because that's how we do things in politics). So some of those just seem like flimsy throw away statements not worthy of taking the "fact check" hammer to them.

'An investigation by nonprofit journalism group ProPublica has uncovered the identity of one of the secret super PACs funding advertisements attacking U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and promoting his challenger, Ohio state treasurer Josh Mandel.'

'The race between Brown and Mandel is considered vital to Republicans who want to take control of the Senate and Democrats who want to hold on to their majority. It has turned into Ohio’s — and the nation’s — most expensive race.'

http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/blog-3903-investigation_secret_ohio_group_supporting_mandel.html

That's nuts.

Campaign Ad Watch

'This might be the most audaciously over-the-top ad to run so far in the expensive and bitter race for the U.S. Senate. Republican Mandel, the state treasurer, borrows a tactic from GOP campaign guru Karl Rove’s playbook: Identify your own weakness and find a way to assign it to your opponent to confuse voters.'

 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/09/14/adwatch14-g9sjah9e-1.html

You can all it a lie or misleading, but I pose these questions to you...... who are fact-checking the fact-checkers?  Who is fact-checking the fact-checkers of the fact-checkers?  I'll tell you who..... the lamestream media. 

 

It's almost too easy for Mandel 

Since we're just saying anything now, how about

 

"Josh Mandel didn't vote for the first 18 years of his life. If he doesn't care to be an Ohio voter, how can he represent them?"

^Are you sure he has turned 18?  From the pictures, I have my doubts

^^That's good.  Or how about "For his entire political career, Josh Mandel has never voted against pay hikes for legislators, letting them get fat on the hog while you're busting you're butt."

 

Oh never mind, I forgot he managed to squeeze a few years in as a state rep, so he does have a statehouse voting record.  But I'm pretty sure he's never voted against a congressional pay increase.  Not even once.

^Are you sure he has turned 18?  From the pictures, I have my doubts

 

There's your next ad.

 

"Josh Mandel looks like he's 12. Would you let a 12 year old represent you as a United States Senator?"

 

You could have a whole 'ager' movement. Keep claiming he hasn't proven he's 18 no matter how many times he shows his birth certificate. Insist on carbon dating him.

Better yet..... the claim could be that he's not even Josh Mandel.  He's really an illegal immigrant and his true birth name is Fausto Carmona.  He roots for Univ. of Michigan too.

^Are you sure he has turned 18?  From the pictures, I have my doubts

 

There's your next ad.

 

"Josh Mandel looks like he's 12. Would you let a 12 year old represent you as a United States Senator?"

 

You could have a whole 'ager' movement. Keep claiming he hasn't proven he's 18 no matter how many times he shows his birth certificate. Insist on carbon dating him.

 

I lol'd.

I don't know about this "make men look like high schoolers from the late '90s so that old people like them" thing. NASCAR is like that now. I trust people more when they look their age.

Mandel is such a political opportunist it's disgusting.  He doesn't deserve to represent Ohio in the Senate.

He doesn't deserve to be Ohio's Treasurer let alone a U.S. Senator.

Mandel is such a political opportunist it's disgusting.  He doesn't deserve to represent Ohio in the Senate.

 

I felt the same way about Kasich.

New Columbus Dispatch Poll published on Monday shows Senator Brown leading Josh Mandel 49% to 39% in Ohio:

 

Dispatch Poll: Brown opens lead on Mandel

 

This is significant for two main reasons:

 

1) These Dispatch administrated polls have tended to be highly predictive in the past.  In addition, the listed margain of error is only +/- 2.2 percent.

 

2) This 49 to 39 lead is a marked change from the first Dispatch Poll taken in late August.  That Dispatch poll showed a dead-even 44 percent race between Seantor Brown and challenger Mandel.

I'll remind everyone - especially newcomers, that this entire section of threads is offered as a courtesy, for forumers to have civil discussions and that participation on UrbanOhio.com forums is a privilege, not a right.

I'm not voting against Mandel because of his views on abortion.  I'm voting against him because he's an inexperienced opportunist with whom I disagree on a wide range of issues.  Sorry.

columbus4life, I agree with you on abortion.  But there is no way I would vote for Mandel.  His entire worldview is at odds with mine.   

There is an abortion thread - http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,21604.msg604061.html#msg604061

 

This thread is about Josh Mandel's attempt to unseat Senator Brown.

Thank you Hts.

Living in Cleveland, I don't believe I've seen a single yard sign for Mandel yet until this weekend when I drove to Columbus.  The northern suburbs are covered with Mandel yard signs, signs at highway exits, billboards, etc.  Surprised me for sure. 

Route 13 from Newark to Mansfield is awash with Mandel signs, moreso than Romney.

I've seen a ton of Mandel signs in Beachwood.  I mean from what I've seen, Mandel signs outnumber Brown signs in Beachwood like two or three to one, which is an anomaly for certain in the eastern suburbs.  It's also not surprising because he's from there. 

I haven't seen many political signs around me at all.  A few "support our schools" signs, but very few signs relating to candidates.  i suspect people are seeing a lot of Mandel signs because his campaign (and the SuperPACs providing massive amounts of supplemental funding) made the decision to invest in and pass out signs early.

His family is on a full court press calling everyone they know and asking to put signs on the yards of friends / acquaintances, etc. Josh's dad is a great guy, and is pretty well respected in the Jewish community. I think a lot of 'support' you see on the east side comes from him calling in favors.

His family is on a full court press calling everyone they know and asking to put signs on the yards of friends / acquaintances, etc. Josh's dad is a great guy, and is pretty well respected in the Jewish community. I think a lot of 'support' you see on the east side comes from him calling in favors.

 

I assumed there was a Jewish connection there, too, but I didn't want to say anything about it for certain.  I don't think he's made much headway in Shaker Heights or Cleveland Heights, both of which have large Jewish populations.  The Orthodox community near Green Road in University Heights also seems to heavily support Mandel.

 

The interesting thing is that these areas have always been strongly Democrat in the past and probably will be in the future.  Some of the biggest donors for Strickland and Fisher (Jewish connection there as well, but still) came from zip code 44122.

Bruce really is a great guy. He took me out for deli twice when I was looking for legal work in Cleveland and networking, plus he gave me several names to call. He's the real deal.

 

Now Josh....well, I don't care for him on a personal level and certainly don't buy his campaigning. Obviously his overt (can't think of the right word) Judaism plays a major part in Beachwood (and other east side suburbs), but that just means a lot of voters are focusing on the wrong thing.

I haven't heard much about his Judaism.  I suspect that he's downplayed it at times because, fair or unfair, I think in certain deep red, downstate parts of the state that still wouldn't sit well with some folks.

How to choose, between bigotry and anti-abortion ferver?  You'd think the beautiful scenery down there might promote a nicer outlook. 

^^ Hmm, I wonder how antiSemitic Ohioans are. Cincinnati and its suburbs have a high Jewish population (birthplace of the American Reform movement), and I don't think many people view them negatively at all. I don't know if you meant the Cincy burbs when you were referring to "deep red, downstate parts", or if you were thinking of more rural areas with less exposure to Jews.

^ I imagine (though I can't speak for him) that he meant SE and Eastern Ohio.

 

There was actually an entire couple rooms in the American History Museum in Washington DC about the Jewish culture in Cincinnati. It was pretty interesting. I had no idea it would be there when I went either, so it was a pleasant surprise.

Ohio has its fair amount of jews.  The Cleveland area is particularly well represented with about 90,000.  Cincy I believe has about 1/3 that amount, but that still is a high per-capita amount.  Atlanta was the city that somewhat shocked me when I looked those numbers up some time ago.  It has a very high jewish population.  What probably shouldn't have surprised me, but did anyway, was that IIRC New York and Tel Aviv combined have about as many jews as the remaining major cities around the world combined.

 

Brown is up by 11 in the latest Marist/NBC poll

^ I imagine (though I can't speak for him) that he meant SE and Eastern Ohio.

 

There was actually an entire couple rooms in the American History Museum in Washington DC about the Jewish culture in Cincinnati. It was pretty interesting. I had no idea it would be there when I went either, so it was a pleasant surprise.

 

Yeah, I was talking about the more rural areas (which in fairness may be characterized more as Reagan Democrat then purely conservative).

Basically all the river counties from Scioto east are Regan Democrats. Strickland country.

 

I read an article a few years back that stated it was rabbis in Cincinnati during the 1800s that came up with the idea to make a Hanukkah a much bigger deal so that Jewish children wouldn't feel left out around Christmas.