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I loved this candidate for Ohio Secretary of State. To me, Jennifer Brunner, the democratic candidate to replace Ken Blackwell (one of the GOP candidates for governor), represents the threshold that should be met by every single solitary individual who wants to run for elected office. Unrealistic? Utopian? Not analogous to other races? I don’t care. If you want my vote for anything, you better be able to approach her smarts, her humility, her confidence, her idealism and her ability to turn passions into realities.
UPDATE: You can get the podcast here. Hopefully there will be a transcript at Meet the Bloggers eventually too.
When I compare what I know about the gubernatorial candidates and the U.S. Senate candidates, to what I heard and met today in the persona of Brunner, there is no comparison.
Full disclosure: I participated with MTB, in person, for Eric Fingerhut, Paul Hackett and Brunner. I read the complete transcripts for Bryan Flannery (gov) and Ted Strickland (gov). I’ve heard only twenty minutes of Sherrod Brown (this morning on WCPN). Otherwise, I have no experience with any of the candidates except for Eric Fingerhut, who has still not officially entered the gov race. I’ve met Fingerhut maybe two, three or four times over the last 4-8 or 10 years through my work at Bellefaire JCB and, frankly, neither he nor I can remember why else we would have crossed paths, but we have and, obviously, without great import since neither of us remember much about those crossings.
Brunner outpaced those I’ve seen or heard or whose transcripts I’ve read because:
1) she cites specific examples of what she’s accomplished as evidence of what she can do;
2) when she speaks about what she wants to accomplish as SOS, she again provides evidence from her years of experience in election law and public service that demonstrates her ability to motivate others and achieve ends through acceptable means;
3) her desire for the SOS job stems from her interest in what the duties are, not from what the title is or where it might get her in a few years;
4) her education and work history demonstrates her knowledge and care for individuals, regardless of whether they view themselves to be in a red or blue state;
5) she’s had enough years doing work that supports her ability to do the SOS job without making her a career politician in the worst way;
6) she’s had enough years doing work in and around politics to disqualify her as a neophyte, unaware and unelectable.
As for the candidates I’ve met, heard or whose transcripts I’ve read thus far, here’s how they stack up, for me, against the standard I believe someone like Brunner represents:
Ted Strickland and Bryan Flannery for Governor (dems) – I didn’t meet either of these candidates in person. I know them only from the MTB transcripts. I liked what I heard from Strickland, overall. But I do not have a good sense of his appreciation for Northern Ohioans – the challenges we face or the strengths that deserve more state support. I also don’t believe he spoke much about education and that’s a hot button issue for me: funding, curriculum, vouchers, testing, technology and so on.
On the other hand, 75% of Bryan Flannery’s MTB session focused on education and I blogged about a number of issues I have with his presentation/plan here.
Honestly? Neither one has me hot to trot, but again, I’m going to vote democrat no matter who the candidate is. I know for a fact that hell will descend before I vote for Ken Blackwell. It’s just about as unlikely that I’d vote for Betty Montgomery or Jim Petro as well, though I try never to say never.
Brunner threshold? I probably don’t have enough information and no first person sense yet, but right now, I’d say Strickland has potential, Flannery far less so because I don’t believe he’s got enough elected office experience. But I’m open to argument.
Eric Fingerhut for Governor (exploratory dem candidate)- Well, I like the guy and I think he’s earnest and smart. He’s also got experience and I buy his explanation about the race he lost to Voinovich and how he (Fingerhut) got more votes running against Voinovich statewide than Taft ever did (I have not independently corroborated this – I’m accepting it as true – feel free to contradict if you have back-up).
My concern is that he needs to come out of hiding – run, or don’t run. At least, that’s how I feel right now. I’d like to see him run, but I’m not a political aficianado so perhaps there are good reasons for him not to run.
Brunner threshold? For me, he comes close.
Paul Hackett for US Senate (dem) - I do not, do not, do not like the idea of electing someone to be my U.S. SENATOR who says, well, you know, some guys called me up after my showing in the Ohio 2nd congressional race and suggested this to me, so I thought, I’ll go with that (I’m paraphrasing from Hackett’s radio appearance last week on Cincinnati Advanced Radio).
Hello? Not that he isn’t passionate, not that he isn’t worthy (though we’ve yet to see that for real, I think), not that he doesn’t have adequate brains and ideas and can attract talent to himself.
But Brunner gave up a judgeship (to which she’d been appointed and then was elected to) in order to run for SOS. She’s practiced election law. She wants to educate kids and everyone else about voting. She wants to stop efforts such as HB3 that would install more impediments to voting than it would easements.
Now, to be fair, SOS is a focused content role compared to U.S. Senator. So maybe it’s apples and oranges. Still, you come away with no doubt that she wants this, she knows what it will take, she’s thought about it.
Hackett has charm, Hackett has appeal, Hackett has a lot to offer when it comes to capturing the Southern Ohio democrats. I also appreciate the unique military experience he would bring to directing the country out of Iraq. But he has zero experience in a state-wide elected position and I need a U.S. Senator to have more experience. I didn’t hear the kind of “this is what I’ve done and this is how I will apply it if you elect me” kind of talk I like, especially from someone who hasn’t held office.
Brunner threshold? Very eh for me at this point.
Sherrod Brown for US Senate (Dem)- I’ve not met Brown but will be at the MTB scheduled with him on 1/14/06, so I think it’s only fair that I hold my opinion as to whether he meets the Brunner threshold (though, as I wrote before, I’m going to vote for the democrat no matter who it is in this race).
However, I listened to him for about 20 minutes this morning on WCPN while driving to the MTB with Brunner. He sounded unrelaxed, but, to be fair, the topics I heard him discuss are topics that make me unrelaxed too: Jack Abramoff and corruption in the U.S. Congress, why he didn’t commit to running and then said he was going to run, and how he feels about the blogosphere.
The main thing that stuck with me from the 20 minutes was his use of the phrase, I don’t accept that. He used it at least a couple of times and it puzzled me. On the one hand, I sensed that he was trying to say, in one instance, that I don’t believe the numbers or anecdotes that say Democrats are angry with me for changing my mind about running. On the other hand, the way it sounded, to me – someone who knows very little about him, is arrogant.
I would have preferred him to acknowledge that sure, failing to commit earlier – which can be interpreted as leading to the belief in the minds of some folks that he absolutely wouldn’t run – ruffled some feathers. However, I’m in, that effect was unintended, and I’m flattered that people watch my decision-making process so closely that they were hurt or disillusioned when I decided to run for the senate seat now held by Mike DeWine, someone whom most democrats want to unseat, and that’s what should be uniting us. It should not be the circumstances of how I entered the race that we’re still grappling with.
Ok – but that’s my opinion and at the MTB on 1/14/06, I won’t be asking about that situation because it doesn’t have a thing to do – in my mind – with his worthiness for my vote. I need to hear about specifics on job creation, education, health care, civil liberties, Iraq and so on.
Withholding Brunner threshold judgement until after the MTB session.
I guess it’s only fair for me to add that Brunner was a sociology major (like me) and is a lawyer (like I was though not practicing in the same areas) and the programs she implemented through drug court hit the exact notes I like to hear, as a lawyer/social worker who’s worked in the children and family mental health field and in juvenile court.
So – what do you think?
UPDATE: See also Roger Bundy’s thoughts on Brunner w/MTB and Bill Callahan’s impressions of same. The post has also evolved with the addition of a few missing links.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 7:33 pm January 4th, 2006 in Politics
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Jill
Kudos to you, great analysis and plenty of room to expand on some of these candidates. You are fast becoming the equivalent of Robert Heinlein’s “Fair Witness.”
Thank you, I loved it!
Thanks, Daniella! I really appreciate your comment.
I’m so not experienced at putting these thoughts down for others to read, and more accustomed to saying them to myself while I’m driving around in the car. I’m actually sitting here expecting to be SLAMMED. But hey, you know, I’m just an attention-seeking blogger, right? 
Thanks. A lot.
Good post. I’m glad
Tim linked to it.
FWIW, I first met Jennifer Brunner in the mid-80′s when she was working for then SOS Sherrod Brown. We met when “lobbying” over a piece of legislation. We became friends and we socialized and worked together on various things.
I think your impressions of Jennifer are right on the mark. Everything you have written about her describes the Jennifer Brunner I have known.
What I find interesting in all this is that Jennifer developed a lot of her political accumen while working for Brown at the SOS. Brown gave her the latitude to grow in her role and as a politician.
I’ve known Brown since he served in the Ohio House. I can see why people may think him arrogant. I don’t. I think Sherrod is one of the brightest guys I ever met. And I think that his intelligence and breadth of knowledge often comes across as arrogant.
But anyone who was around the guy when his first marriage fell apart would know that that experience was quite humbling for Brown. It took a lot out of him.
Brunner is great. And I think Sherrod is a great guy. But I had personal relationships with both that go back a number of years, so maybe I’m just a tad biased.
Frank,
Thanks very much for the comment. I’m glad you’ve chimed in with your impressions of Jennifer Brunner. It’s nice to have mine confirmed, whether you’re biased or not. You have experience with her, so I think that qualifies you better than, the millions of Ohioans who’ll vote but unfortunately will never have a chance to meet her. I feel lucky. This reality is also why I blog about this from my perspective, because I could choose to never meet these people, but since I have the opportunity, I almost feel its my obligation.
As for Sherrod Brown, like I’ve been saying, I’ve never met him and only can speculate that a person who has had the acumen to be elected and chooses to remain involved in Ohio politics, at the voters’ discretion, deserves a fair shake. I was only stating an impression. And, I should be even more forthcoming and say, I grew up in New Haven, I worked at Yale, my mother worked at Yale, (in fact, I refused to join the union – I’d love to know how Sherrod felt about that movement in the early-mid 80s!), I dated guys at Yale. So when folks make the connection between arrogance and a Yale education, I feel comfortable in knowing how to dial that down, or up, depending on the facts.
I’m very eager to meet him and see how it goes. I tend to favor politicians who recognize from whence they derive their political power: the voters.
I worked in and around juvenile court here for many years. There’s a difference between a Guardian ad Litem and an attorney appointed for a child: the former represents the child’s best interests, the latter represents what the child wants. Elected officials need to honor both perspectives when making decisions. That’s very difficult (and one of the reasons that both GALs and attorneys are available to kids – I’m speaking primarily about abused and negleced kids).
But one of the reasons I’m so miserable with our current administration (Bush), is that his is a totally patriarchical perspective. And that’s insulting, unnecessary, and probably illegal when you consider to whom elected officials are responsible.
Well, I’ve gone on enough (I’m stuck waiting for my car’s service to be completed).
Thanks again for your input. I hope you’ll continue to read.
I agree with you fully about Jennifer Brunner. I know and appreciate many of the Democrats running for statewide office this year (including those the Cleveland AFL-CIO recommended: Sherrod Brown, Ted Strickland, Rich Cordray and, of course, Jennifer Brunner). But your views of Ms. Brunner are definately true. She is the opposite of the current Secretary of State: She wants more people to vote; Jennifer Brunner’s background makes her uniquely qualified to serve as Secretary of State AND Jennifer actually wants the job.
John Ryan, Cleveland AFL-CIO
John,
Thanks for reading and commenting.
My only caveat to my post, based on a point a commenter raised on BuckeyePolitics, is to be sure that she doesn’t promote any measures that would make it easy for her to politicize the office. My sense is that her level of integrity is way too high to ever allow that to happen, intentionally or unintentionally.
Furthermore, in my opinion, she’s allowed, like anyone else, to have opinions about who she supports and which party represents her interests. I just can’t use the job, covertly or overtly, to achieve political purposes (the way that Blackwell has), other than to pursue initiatives and measures that will serve all Ohioans well.
Should there be credible evidence to the contrary, then that should be tossed into the ring – get it out now. Otherwise, let her do her campaigning and we’ll see.
[...] Here is my review of that session, and here’s an excerpt – the very first words of that post: I loved this candidate for Ohio Secretary of State. To me, Jennifer Brunner, the democratic candidate to replace Ken Blackwell (one of the GOP candidates for governor), represents the threshold that should be met by every single solitary individual who wants to run for elected office. Unrealistic? Utopian? Not analogous to other races? I don’t care. If you want my vote for anything, you better be able to approach her smarts, her humility, her confidence, her idealism and her ability to turn passions into realities. [...]
[...] “how did you do it” is often the first question I ask women like Ohio Secetary of State Jennifer Brunner (three children), recently installed Barnard College president, Debora L. Spar (a college friend [...]