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Past Record Proves Brinkman Most Fit for Congress
The Blue Chip Review ^ | June 2005 | Jim Urling

Posted on 06/13/2005 9:38:40 PM PDT by conservative_2001

Recently, Washington-based Club for Growth began running radio advertisements exposing the profligate taxing-and-spending record of Jean Schmidt, candidate for United States Congress from the Second Congressional District of Ohio. Club for Growth has quickly become a leading conservative voice in Washington promoting sound fiscal and economic policies. It helped elect to Congress thirty-nine members advancing prudent fiscal policies in 2004.

As the Chairman of COAST, the leading organization promoting fiscal responsibility in tax and spending policies in southwest Ohio, I want to thank the Club for Growth for informing district voters about this voting record, explain why COAST also opposes the election of Ms. Schmidt to Congress and why it supports Tom Brinkman, Jr. for that seat.

Two of the candidates for the Republican congressional nomination have served in the 124th and 125th Ohio General Assemblies -- Tom Brinkman, Jr. and Jean Schmidt. And, while both of these candidates tout their tough fiscal credentials, the tenure in the Ohio general assembly reveals stark contrasts in their voting records.

Tom Brinkman, Jr. has been a towering beacon of fiscal responsibility in the dark years of the Taft administration's fiscal irresponsibility that has made Ohio one of the highest tax and spending jurisdictions in the nation. He voted against every single tax increase during his tenure in the legislature and opposed one after another of Bob Taft's obscene (but successful) initiatives to increase the size and scope of state government.

In stark contrast, Jean Schmidt voted in favor of Bob Taft's tax increases, including the ½ cent sales tax increase (a 20% hike!), multiple increases in the cigarette taxes and alcohol taxes, increases in gasoline taxes, tax increases for the Cincinnati convention center expansion, and increases in the gasoline tax. Demonstrably, Jean Schmidt has never seen a tax increase proposal before the Ohio legislature that she did not like.

These should not have been difficult decisions. Spending in Ohio has spiraled out of control since 1994, rising 63.4%, nearly tripling the rate of inflation. According to the non-partisan Tax Foundation, Ohio has fallen from 45th lowest to the 7th highest-rate tax state in the nation. Part of this is thanks to Jean Schmidt's apostasy to the Republican cause. Tom Brinkman, in contrast, has been a lone Republican voice fighting against these profligate spending policies.

How could two Republicans take such divergent paths on the same issues? COAST believes it is because one -- Brinkman -- was guided by principle and the interests of his constituents and the other -- Schmidt -- was guided by power politics of appeasing the tax-and-spend Governor and powerful lobbyists seeking cash for their spend-aholic clients.

Now, it's time to send a message to Bob Taft and to the lobbyists in Columbus and Washington -- we know what you have done, we will remember and we will act upon your record. That means punishing Jean Schmidt for her hypocritical high-tax policies and promoting Tom Brinkman for his faithfulness to the principles.

So, when Republicans go to the polls on June 14, COAST wants them to understand the records of two of these candidates for United States Congress. COAST endorses Brinkman and vigorously opposed Schmidt as undeserving of support by a party that claims to value tax dollars.


TOPICS: Politics/Elections; US: Ohio
KEYWORDS: brinkman; ohio2nddistrict; schmidt
This will be sure to upset the RINO's and fRINO's. It does a good job explaining the major difference in the records of Tom Brinkman and Jean Schmidt.
1 posted on 06/13/2005 9:38:40 PM PDT by conservative_2001
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To: conservative_2001

Go Brinkman!


2 posted on 06/14/2005 7:54:51 AM PDT by Dan from Michigan (June 14 - Defeat DeWine - Vote Tom Brinkman for Congress (OH-2) - http://www.gobrinkman.com)
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