Fairfield County voters meet Vance during No BS tour stop in Lancaster
LANCASTER — Before Thursday night, Judy Fountain did not want to vote for JD Vance. Put off by his “never Trump” stance in the 2016 presidential election, his town hall event in Lancaster was a chance for her to change her mind.
“I wanted to see what he was like in person. No one else in the race really stood out to me. But God told me to come out and hear what JD had to say, and I believe he stands for what God stands for, I’m convinced,” Fountain said.
Vance, one of five Republican candidates vying to win the Ohio primary to fill retiring Sen. Rob Portman’s seat, spoke to about 75 people in a party room at Pizza Cottage on Fair Avenue in Lancaster.
He spoke for about an hour, touching on a range of topics, including America’s need for energy independence, the nation’s “economic sovereignty,” and the security along the US-Mexico border.
Vance said the bipartisan leadership failed the country 30 years ago, allowing China to take manufacturing jobs from the US.
“America used to make things, that was the spirit of the nation. When our leaders decided we could just consume and didn’t need to build things, we lost our spirit. We got okay-quality plastics, but lost the spirit of making things,” Vance said. “We need to get that back.”
He outlined policies that would punish manufacturers working around import laws and introducing higher tariffs, as well as remove foreign investing interests from American companies and real estate. To accomplish those policies, Vance said there’d need to be a return of power to the legislature, not the bureaucracy.
On the issue of border security, Vance said the border wall, started during former Pres. Donald Trump’s first term. Vance said the wall would reduce the amount of fentanyl accessible to Americans, and human trafficking. He shared an anecdote about his mother’s near-fatal drug overdose in 2013, and said if the drugs available now were available then, she would have died.
Vance took time to answer questions from the audience, many of which covered the economy and reducing foreign influence.
Jim Kehn, of Pickerington, asked Vance if he thought he’d be able to win against the leading Democratic candidate, Tim Ryan, if Vance took the Republican nomination.
“I think I would have had a much harder time beating him five years ago, when Ryan was true to the people and when he was a little more moderate,” Vance said.
After the event, Kehn said he wasn’t totally convinced who to vote for, but Vance did seem like a solid choice.
“I liked him, he’s got charisma and a good sense of self, he doesn’t seem like a ‘Republican in Name Only’ like Portman. None of the other candidates really stand out to me,” Kehn said. “If he’s elected, he’ll have to live up to his promises. People are pissed, and they need people to rally around.”
Michael Roth said he decided to attend because the people he works with have similar backgrounds as Vance, and wanted to see what he was about.
“I work with people who have faced the same things he has in life, and he’s overcome them, so I believe he could help them, too. I believe JD he understands the fundamental problems America faces, like what I’ve seen, like the negative influence from China and the pernicious presence of cartels,” Roth said. “Vance is young, and reminds me of John Kennedy. His lack of political experience is an advantage, I think. With the election of Donald Trump, it’s shown the American people want an experienced businessman to help us, and Vance is right there.”
He added if Vance can succeed at the national policies he described during the town hall, Roth believes it would benefit Lancaster and Fairfield County.
Vance described the event as ‘great,’ with lots of good energy.
“It’s inspiring to see so many people come out, it shows they care about the country. They asked good questions. We have engaged, knowledgeable voters in the state, and tonight showed that,” he said. “I feel like I’m a good contender for the nomination. These races are unpredictable, and there’s still a lot of race to go.”
Vance said he is seeking the former president’s endorsement. So far, Trump has not given any indication of which senate hopeful he would back.
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Vance said if elected, he’d want to be held to his ideals and remain accessible to the people that voted for him. When it comes to getting his policies enacted, it would take “five or 10 good senators to help.”
“The senate is a legislative body, so you need your colleague’s help to get things passed. It doesn’t matter if you have 50 Republicans with you, you really need 10 reliable ones,” he said. “There would be different methods to getting people on my side, it’d really be case-by-case, but I’d remember that I am there to serve Ohio.”
Vance will face four other candidates in the Ohio primary, currently scheduled for May 3: former Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel, from Cleveland; Cleveland-area businessman Mike Gibbons; Ohio Sen. Matt Dolan (R-24); and former Chairwoman of the Ohio GOP Jane Timken, of Cincinnati.
Rep. Tim Ryan (Youngstown) and Morgan Harper are vying for the Democratic nomination in the spring primary.
Barrett Lawlis is a reporter with the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, part of the USA Today Network. You can share story ideas or comments with him at 740-681-4342 or send an e-mail to [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BarrettLawlis
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