by on 06.11.2009
I’m sure this isn’t a first, but it’s great to see candidates like Jennifer Brunner who are running for national office and not running away from supporting really progressive gay rights positions. Brunner, who is now Ohio’s Secretary of State, has a piece on Huffington on why she supports marriage equality and why understand the opposition. Further, she makes the great point that once marriage equality is law, lots of other issues become resolved. We can legislate each issue individually, or we can do it in one sweeping move. Bills like the Uniting American Families Act, which deals with immigration issues that international gay couples face, would be unnecessary and would free up the time of legislators to focus on the bigger issues rather than my rights on a piece-meal basis.
Source: "Leave It To Seaver" Blog
by on 06.10.2009
By Anastasia Pantsios - Jennifer Brunner unequivocally supports gay rights, as she makes perfectly clear in a piece posted today at Huffington Post, entitled "What Is There to 'Get' About Marriage Equality?"
In it, she points out how needlessly complicated the logistics of every-day life can become for gay people, for no reason that benefits anyone else. And she reminds us of a dark episode in Ohio's past: "Ohio decided the 2004 election, using the gay marriage ban as the ultimate wedge to drive a record number of evangelical Christian and conservative voters to the polls." She graciously doesn't mention that her predecessor, Ken Blackwell, while overseeing that election, actively campaigned for the gay marriage ban, making speeches around the state and robocalls to voters the weekend before the election. Just another reason why she's been such a breath of fresh air for Ohio.
Source: Ohio Daily
by on 06.10.2009
U.S. Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner has never been afraid to face opposition. Brunner is bucking Democratic doubters and is running against Lt. Governor Lee Fisher in the highly contested Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in 2010. Her commitment and tenacity to win the primary and then replace retiring Senator George Voinovich is reflected in her articulate and common sense support of marriage equality. “Marriage is a matter of choice. There is no room for discrimination against LGBT families in a society that was founded upon freedom and respect for individual rights,” said Brunner.
The Huffington Post is featuring Brunner’s position on the controversial issue on their blog today.
Source: Read more
by on 06.08.2009
Dayton Daily News Ohio Politics Blog - Democrat Jennifer Brunner, who is running for her party’s nomination for the 2010 U.S. Senate race, is supporting a bill in the Ohio House that would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. “Our state and our nation have long banned discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender and religion,” Brunner said in a press release. “These matters are not matters of choice, but of the diversity of the human condition. Discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are incompatible with our laws guaranteeing freedom from discriminatory treatment.
by on 06.08.2009
Letter to Editor by Debbie Kline, in The Plain Dealer - Jennifer Brunner unqualified for office? I suspect the author of the May 20 letter to the editor asserting such has been under a rock for the majority of Secretary of State Brunner's administration. Elections in Cuyahoga County have done a complete reversal from the days when they were known for corruption and inefficiency. Ohio has Brunner to thank for that.
In March 2007, fed up with incompetence at the state's largest Board of Elections, she asked for and received the resignations of all four board members -- two Democrats and two Republicans. That took courage.
Source: The Plain Dealer
by on 06.05.2009
Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner, who this week became the first recipient of the Northeast Ohio Chapter of the American Constitutional Society for Law and Policy's newly created Stephanie Tubbs Jones Public Service Award for her efforts in achieving a fair and efficient Ohio presidential election in 2008, supports passage of legislation that would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity: Ohio House Bill 176, known as the Equal Housing and Employment Act, and the federal Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), expected to be introduced in Congress sometime this year.
"Our state and our nation have long banned discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender and religion,'' Brunner said. "These matters are not matters of choice, but of the diversity of the human condition. Discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are incompatible with our laws guaranteeing freedom from discriminatory treatment. We must become a more tolerant society, respecting one another and guaranteeing equal rights to the freedoms and prosperity of our society to all."
Source: Read more
by on 06.04.2009
By Lisa Renee Ward, Glass City Jungle - This in via e-mail from the Brunner for Senator campaign: Brunner Calls on Congress to Aid Shuttered Dealerships Candidate Says Government Must Minimize Disruption to Affected Employees & Communities. Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner today called on the U.S. Senate to take an active role in assisting those auto dealers slated for closure by Chrysler and General Motors, as well as those communities hurt by plants and dealerships closing.
Source: Glass City Jungle
by on 06.03.2009
Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner today called on the U.S. Senate to take an active role in assisting those auto dealers slated for closure by Chrysler and General Motors, as well as those communities hurt by plants and dealerships closing. "We must ensure that our nation's auto dealers are treated fairly and equitably, and that they have an opportunity to close their operations in a manner that minimizes hardships to their employees and their communities," Brunner said. "Many Ohio auto dealers are third- and fourth-generation family businesses that play a vital role in their communities, and when they are forced to close through no fault of their own, government has a responsibility to step in and help." Brunner noted that the impact of these dealership closings is likely to be felt throughout Ohio, thereby hampering the state's economic recovery. "Every time a dealership or an auto plant closes, it means fewer Ohioans working, more unemployment, less community involvement, and a loss of thousands of dollars in sales tax revenue for the affected city or town, as well as the state," Brunner added. "In other words, it's a lose-lose proposition."
Source: Read more
by on 06.03.2009
Dave Harding's Blog, ProgressOhio - The northeast Ohio chapter of one of the nation’s leading progressive organizations of lawyers and jurists awarded Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner on Tuesday the first-ever Stephanie Tubbs Jones Public Service Award. The Northeast Ohio Chapter of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy presented Secretary Brunner the award during the chapter’s annual luncheon here. Named for the late congresswoman from Ohio’s 11th Congressional District, the ACS’ Northeast Ohio chapter said the award is given to the person who best reflects the late congresswoman’s commitment to justice and her passion for the equal rights of all people.
Source: ProgressOhio
by on 06.03.2009
CLEVELAND -- The Northeast Ohio Chapter of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy has awarded Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner its first-ever Stephanie Tubbs Jones Public Service Award. The award, named for the late 11th District Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, is to be given to the person who best reflects the late congresswoman's commitment to justice and her passion for the equal rights of all people. Brunner was selected unanimously by the chapter's members.
Source: WKYC.com
by on 06.01.2009
Jennifer Brunner has experience as a jurist and an executive and is now determined to reach the U.S. Senate.
By Michael Daniels, Outlook, June 2009 -- To the surprise of some, delight of others, and chagrin of a few, Brunner has thrown her hat in the ring for the US Senate seat being vacated in 2010 by Ohio’s current senior Senator George Voinovich. On the same day Brunner declared her intentions, so did Lt. Governor Lee Fisher, with the endorsement of Governor Ted Strickland. “Lee is the Lt. Governor and it would be ex- pected that the Governor would endorse him,” she says without animosity.
Many pols thought that Strickland’s endorsement of Fisher might encourage Brunner to get out of the race, and some still think that might happen. Those who believe that don’t know Brunner very well. Let me assure you, she’s in the race to stay, and she’s in the race to win. “I wouldn’t jump into this race for political leverage,” Brunner says with quiet confidence. “I want the job, I know I can do it well, and I know I can win.”
“There are a few main reasons that I’m running,” she continues. “The first is my commitment to public service, and the way I work with others. The US Senate is a very deliberative body, charged with guiding and supervising legislation and deliberating on weighty issues. I have the skills of collegiality and cooperation that it takes to get things done in that environment, and I’ve proven that throughout my career,” she says.
Source: Read more
by on 05.31.2009
By Jessica Wehrman, Dayton Daily News, May 31, 2009 - The 2010 election to replace retiring Republican Sen. George Voinovich is a little less than 18 months away. We haven’t a clue who the Democratic candidate in that race will be. But have no doubt: The race is on. As evidence, check out the heavy influx of press releases from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee last week on Rob Portman: Beginning on Friday, May 22, the DSCC sent out a steady stream of e-mails jabbing at the likely Republican nominee. … It also indicates that while Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and Fisher are among the Democrats duking it out to see who will face Portman, the DSCC is trying to make sure that Portman doesn’t enter the general election in too strong a position.
Source: Dayton Daily News
by on 05.31.2009
The Columbus Dispatch, May 31, 2009 - Jennifer Brunner says that if she's elected to the U.S. Senate next year, one of her priorities will be to toughen the just-passed credit-card bill to limit interest rates consumers can be charged.
Source: Read more
by on 05.30.2009
By Ron Selak, Jr., Warren Tribune Chronicle -- Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, chasing her opponent Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher in campaign contributions in the U.S. Senate race, said being behind now isn't high on her list of concerns as she focuses on the 2010 election. ''At the first turn of the Kentucky Derby, you don't predict who the winner is,'' Brunner said. ''It's going to be a long race.'' The Democrat expects the dollars to continue to flow in steadily and more rapidly - like they have in past races - until at the end, she'll be neck and neck with Fisher.
Source: Warren Tribune Chronicle
by on 05.30.2009
By David Skolnick, Youngstown -- In a Friday interview with The Vindicator, Brunner said, “My experience growing up here in Ohio and working in public service from many different vantage points leaves me in a position to believe that I can be of help to my state at a time when public-minded people are desperately needed.” Brunner made the comments after speaking at a Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber event at the Byzantine Center at the Grove in Youngstown. . . . When asked by The Vindicator if there’s anything she could reasonably foresee that would get her out of the Senate race, Brunner said, “No. Nothing." As for the potential of a divisive primary, Brunner said, “I’ve emphasized to any opponent in the primary the need for us to focus on our messages and to rely on the strength of our messages so that we emerge from the primary stronger and not a party divided.”
Source: The Vindicator (Youngstown)