Onetime swing state Ohio has been reliably Red for quite a while now. So, when talk of how Democrats might beat the odds and retake control of the Senate the state hasn’t gotten much attention. That’s going to change because former Senator Sherrod Brown is leading John Husted who was appointed to fill out the remainder of Vance’s term. How worried are Republicans, especially in Ohio? They are openly begging big tech to step up and help them sell the plan of Data Centers – something Republican Husted supports and Democrat Brown opposes.
Wow. That was my reaction to reading this Alternet article. Not that Brown is leading in the race. There’s been reporting now and then indicating Ohioans miss his steady hand in the Senate. Brown actually concerned himself with the needs of his constituents and when remembering him and comparing him to Moreno and Husted think maybe they’d like to have him back. Of course, Ohio has become a deep red state but reports Brown might have a real shot at regaining his place in the Senate seem to have turned out to be more than wishful thinking. Brown is doing well enough GOPers are more than worried, they are flat-out panicking:
Republicans are losing in Ohio and they’re starting to panic, according to a memo released Wednesday.
Axios reporter Alex Isenstadt obtained a revealing memo from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), posting it on X Wednesday. A recent Fox News poll shows that former Sen. Sherrod Brown continues to hold a lead over appointed Sen. Jon Husted (R). But the NRSC claims it’s a dead heat.
According to the memo, Republicans in Ohio know that they can’t win on economic issues and instead are pivoting to talk about something else: promoting AI data centers. To do it, they desperately need “big tech” to help.
The part about Data Centers jumps out at me. Data Centers are facing growing opposition around the country. Grassroots activism has been stopping project after project in its tracks and to a degree elected officials have noticed. Add in complaints from those who live near existing ones and politicians from the local to the national level have good cause to worry about their careers if they come out in favor of even a single one, much less multiple ones in their jurisdictions. Yet that is what the Republican powers-that-be in Ohio are apparently going to to. BEG big tech for tons of money to convince regular Ohioans that Data Centers are just what’s needed. (Just not near where the politicians and/or uber rich people live of course!)
Alternet notes how the memo lays out this is a tough issue, and what is likely to happen if it’s a big factor in November and the GOP loses. It says (accurately) that voters in other places will see what happens in Ohio in the future and that opposition to them will grow. Well duh! Some politicians (and others) have been in a full court press to bum rush an awful lot of communities into hosting Data Centers despite the negative effects on water supplies, electric bills for regular folks, environmental concerns and negative effects on quality of life for those who live close to them. Gee, you think maybe said politicians have gotten their palms greased already, and are counting on a steady stream of big tech campaign donations for multiple election cycles to come?
I can’t help but wonder if promises have already been made to big tech and that in some way/form money has already changed hands. How else to explain so openly saying ‘We have to get this done NOW and if Husted loses to Brown we are screwed.’ And perhaps Republicans in other states as well. That would explain the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) getting involved. Most average folks don’t want Data Centers and those who are now stuck with them are pissed off it happened in their proverbial backyard. Yet the GOP is going all-in on this in Ohio because they fear that, as the saying goes with Presidential elections ‘As Ohio goes, so goes the nation.’ So keep an eye on this because more than control of the Senate is at stake:
Former MS NOW host Chuck Todd called it “really quite striking that the NRSC isn’t beating around the bush … they are begging for big tech to bring in reinforcements pronto in Ohio.”
Husted has been promoting tax cuts to bring in more data centers, while Brown is against them, arguing that large tech corporations shouldn’t receive public subsidies while also driving up water and energy bills for locals.
“If [Husted] loses and data centers get the blame, politicians across the country will take notice — and they will not go near the next one,” the memo says. “This has become a sleeper issue for the entire election cycle.”
As the linked article explains at the end Americans like AI (Really? I find it frustrating as hell!) but not bad thing associated with it. There are already 4,000 of these things and current plans are for 3,000 more. What matters is the public has gotten a good look at the effects Data Centers have on the places where they exist and don’t like it. In fact the article cites a May Gallup poll that says 7 in 10 Americans oppose more Data Centers!
Well, for now keep in mind the conclusion of the article (worth your time to read) noting that this summer Brown has pressed an ad campaign that paints Husted as “the face of data centers in Ohio.” Lets hope that, along with nostalgia for a Senator that actually tended to their needs is enough to carry Brown to victory. We need a net gain of four seats. Ohio is now a real possibility of being one of those four states that will get us there.
Actually the Data Center construction is the perfect scam for the Republicans to run on.
Their base don’t give two sh!ts about the environment and leaving their grandchildren a habitual planet to live on.
Likewise, as long as they are not affected by the project, and it falls on other people, they are good with that, at least until the consequences come calling at THEIR doorstep.
That pretty much sums them up.