On April 2nd 3BP discussed the latest over-the-top crazy idea from Jennifer Brunner, her out-of-nowhere idea to require a loyalty oath before voting in the May primary.
For obvious reasons, this was panned statewide by everyone without a Brunner bumper sticker on their car. (well, provided Brunner could afford bumper stickers)
The Dispatch, Plain Dealer and even the Akron Beacon Journal came out against the directive, with columnist Dennis Willard going so far as to state:
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner should rescind the directive she issued last Friday to make every voter looking to switch major political party affiliations for the upcoming primary sign a loyalty oath.
Rescinding really isn’t strong enough. Brunner should burn the directive on the Statehouse lawn, admit her mistake and apologize.
Subtle, eh?
Well, in the above mentioned post we wondered why exactly Ohio’s two top elected leaders, Governor Strickland and Lt. Governor Fisher, hadn’t spoken out against the directive. After all, they never had a problem showing disagreement with other statewide officeholders, namely Mary Taylor, when they disagreed with her ideas.
Well, Lee Fisher played it smart. After everyone and their mother had agreed Brunner’s idea was absolutely ridiculous, Fisher decided to use her new directive to fire the first major salvo of the Ohio Democratic primary.
In a letter to his supporters he states, “sometimes it’s courageous to admit you’re wrong and reverse your decision. And that’s exactly what the Secretary of State should do in this case. She should allow local elections officials to do what they’ve always done — interpret the law in a way that favors the ability of people to exercise their sacred right to vote.”
The mention of the word “courage” is a not-so-subtle swipe at Brunner’s efforts to co-opt it as the theme of her campaign.
The question now becomes how this attack will be covered by the media. Will they give it enough coverage as to require a substantive response from Brunner? If so, we’ll have our first slapfight of the primary. And it’s about time, right?
So, now that Fisher has weighed in, there is absolutely no logical reason as to why the elected Governor of Ohio can’t weigh in himself.
Go ahead, Governor. We’re waiting.
