CLEVELAND (WJW) — Just less than a month before voters head to the polls, the two candidates battling for Ohio Sen. Rob Portman’s seat faced off in their first and only statewide debate.
Democratic candidate Tim Ryan and Republican candidate J.D. Vance sparred on a wide range of topics including the U.S. economy, foreign policy, abortion and LGBTQ rights. You can watch the first half-hour of the debate in the player below.
On economic pressures
Candidates were first asked about what polls have showed is the top issue for voters: economic pressures, including record-high inflation.
Vance has said he feels the U.S. is already in a recession and accused President Joe Biden’s administration of reckless spending that has “poured fuel on the fire of inflation.”
“I believe we’ve gone in a fundamentally bad direction over the last couple of years,” Vance said. “I believe people deserve to go to the grocery store without breaking the bank.”
Ryan said Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act would create 600,000 jobs in Ohio. He also pointed to Ohio’s incoming Intel manufacturing plant, which he said represents a $100 billion investment in the state, and the federal CHIPS Act to bolster domestic semiconductor production as future-facing projects.
He also voiced his support for natural gas projects.
“In the Inflation Reduction Act we’re going all-in on natural gas. I’ve been a natural gas proponent since I’ve been in Congress,” Ryan said. “We need to increase our production of natural gas. I support streamlining the permitting process around natural gas so we can get it around the country and get it for lower cost to businesses.”
In rebuttal, Vance said Ryan “told a big fib,” claiming he supported banning fracking during his presidential run launched in 2016.
“That crushes the Ohio energy sector and that’s one reason why manufacturers are going to China,” Vance said. “Another reason manufacturers are going to China is because the Chinese undercut American wages. The only way to really combat that is tariffs, which I’ve supported. … In 2018, 2019 and 2020 you opposed the tariffs that started to bring some of that manufacturing and industrial base back to Ohio.”
Ryan said he feels “everybody is to blame” for the inflation crisis, and said proposes a “significant tax cut” for working-class people to line their pockets.
He also said he has supported Chinese tariffs his entire career, and even supported President Donald Trump’s strong stance on China.
When asked if he wanted President Joe Biden to run again, Ryan said: “No, I’ve been very clear. I’d like to see a generational change. … We need a new generation of leadership.”
On abortion access
Candidates were next asked about their stances on abortion access, the second-most important issue for Ohio voters, according to polls.
Ryan said he supports reestablishing Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court precedent that made access to abortion a constitutional right. He called the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of that decision this past summer “the largest governmental overreach in our lifetime” and said he thinks the federal government should codify abortion access.
“Government has no place in this matter. This needs to be left to the woman; it needs to be left to the doctor to make these decisions,” he said.
Vance, when asked if he supported a Republican bill in the Senate to ban abortions nationwide after 15 weeks, said he supports minimum national standards. Ohio’s law that would ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected — usually after six weeks of gestation — was blocked indefinitely by a Hamilton County judge just days ago.
“Ohio’s going to want to have different abortion laws than California, than Texas. I think Ohio should have that right,” Vance said. “We’re talking about 5-month-old babies, fully formed babies who can feel pain. No civilized country in the world allows elective abortion that late into pregnancy.”
Though Ohio’s controversial abortion ban carries no exceptions for rape or incest, Vance said he has “always believed in reasonable exceptions” for abortion access, including in the case of a 10-year-old Ohio girl who reportedly traveled to Indiana to terminate her pregnancy, which was the result of rape.
On LGBTQ+ rights
Outgoing Republican Sen. Rob Portman is co-sponsoring the Marriage Equality Act, which would codify same-sex marriage.
Vance said though same-sex marriage “is the law of the country” and he does not oppose it, he does not support the bill. He said the bill would make it easier for religious organizations to be sued for not complying with government mandates.
Ryan said he voted for the bill in the House, spurred by the Supreme Court’s apparent aims to nullify same-sex marriages and “get around” protections to accessing birth control.
Watch the first half of the debate in the player below:
On immigration laws and drug smuggling
Ryan, who previously called President Trump’s plans to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border “a vanity project,” later said in an interview with a Columbus TV station that he supported its continued construction. What changed? he was asked.
“To have a wall from sea to shining sea doesn’t make any sense,” Ryan said. “You can’t put a wall in the middle of the Rio Grande, but if you can put a barrier up somewhere that can prevent people from coming over, I’m all for it.
“It’s gotta be a comprehensive approach. … Figure out who’s in the country. If they’re here, pay a fine, pay back taxes, pass a background check.”
Vance said he would support a merit-based immigration policy similar to a 2019 bill introduced by Republican senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia, which would prioritize legal status for immigrants based on their education, skills, English fluency and other factors.
Speaking on the influx of synthetic opioids like fentanyl across the U.S.-Mexico border, Vance invoked the story of his own mother, whom he said “struggled with addiction” but has since been seven years sober.
“The poison that was coming into the country … 15 years ago is not nearly as dangerous as the poison that’s coming into our country today,” Vance said. “Tim Ryan has dont nothing to stop the flow of fentanyl.
“He talks about wanting to be bipartisan and get things done, but Tim — you’ve been in Congress for 20 years and the border problem has gotten worse and worse and worse.”
Ryan said he helped form the congressional Border Security Technology Caucus, aimed at finding uses for technology to stop fentanyl from being smuggled into the country. He also floated a House resolution to designate fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction, opening up a “whole-of-government” approach to addressing the influx of synthetic opioids.
When asked whether he agreed with Vice President Kamala Harris’ recent comments that the U.S.-Mexico border is secure, Ryan said she “is absolutely wrong.”
“It’s not secure. We have a lot of work to do.”
On recent police shootings and funding for law enforcement
Vance, speaking to CNN in 2017, said: “There are legitimate concerns that a lot of Black Americans have that they’re not being treated fairly by some members of the police.”
Five years later, he said he still agrees with that position. In speaking with police unions, Vance said he’s told police departments want to do more community-style policing.
“The problem is it’s really hard to do that when you’re 25% to 30% understaffed,” he said.
Vance called for increased law enforcement funding and decried attacks on qualified immunity, which protects government officials who are sued in the course of their work from liability, except in instances of constitutional violations.
Ryan was asked how to address the issues of rising crime rates and simultaneously shrinking police budgets and rosters.
“We need more cops. We need better-paid cops. And yeah, we gotta get rid of bad cops,” he said.
Ryan said he secured nearly $500 million in federal funding now being spent on law enforcement agencies in Ohio.
What is the biggest threat to democracy?
Ryan said he feels the extremism seen during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in the U.S. Capitol is the biggest threat to American democracy.
“[Vance] is all-in with those people who are the election deniers, who call into question the most fundamental act we have … running around with people who want to ban books and get the government into our bedroom and in our doctor’s offices.”
Vance said he thinks the biggest threat to democracy are “Big Tech” groups like Meta — formerly known as Facebook — which have the ability to manipulate what Americans see and how they ingest news.
“You cannot have a multinational corporation that’s in bed with the communist Chinese censoring information about one of America’s political parties and doing it in a way that interferes with people’s knowledge and, ultimately, people’s votes,” he said. “Big Tech has way too much power and it benefits the Democrats.”
On federal marijuana laws
Ryan said he supports the federal decriminalization of marijuana and that too much is being spent on prosecution of pot crimes.
“We should legalize it. We should tax it. We should use it to fund our schools. We should make sure we retrain all these people who have had their lives destroyed by going to prison for marijuana crimes,” he said.
While Vance said he doesn’t think Americans should go to prison “for smoking a joint,” he said lawmakers should be careful about becoming “soft on crime.” People whose related convictions include violent charges should still be imprisoned, he said.
Who should be Senate majority leader?
If Democrats secure a majority in the Senate, Vance said he wouldn’t want Sen. Chuck Schumer to become majority leader. He said he would support “whoever runs” — presumably Sen. Mitch McConnell, if Republicans take the majority.
Ryan said he would “vote for the person who’s going to give the best deal to Ohio.”
“I’ve been a pain in the rear end to [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi. And if Chuck Schumer is in there, I will be a pain in the rear end to him, too,” he said.
Should members of Congress be term-limited?
“Absolutely,” said Vance.
Ryan said he thinks voters should be allowed to decide on term limits at the ballot box.
Wrapping up
In his closing statement, Ryan said leaders need to “rebuild” America’s middle class and support new manufacturing ventures in Ohio.
“America is a great place. This country has fed more people, clothed more people, cured more people and liberated more people than all the countries in the world combined,” Ryan said. “We have to rebuild the great American middle class. Ohio has always led the way.
“We have an opportunity to be the manufacturing powerhouse of the world.”
Vance, in his closing statement, said though Ryan has spent the last two decades in federal government “failing at his most basic job.”
“He talks a big game, but the record of accomplishment just isn’t there. Ohioans deserve certain things from their federal leadership. They deserve to go to the grocery store and be able to afford food without it breaking the bank. They deserve streets you can walk down safely. They deserve a country that has a secure border.
“The question here is whether we need new leadership … double down on the last two years of failed leadership or take this country in a new direction.”
Watch the second half of the debate in the player below:
The debate format and rules
The hour-long debate started at 7 p.m. at FOX 8 News. It was hosted by FOX 8’s Joe Toohey and NBC4i’s Colleen Marshall.
The debate can be viewed in the players above. It was also broadcast on FOX 8 News and FOX8.com and on Nexstar stations across the Buckeye state and West Virginia.
Those stations included WDTN 2 News in Dayton, NBC4 in Columbus, WKBN/WYTV in Youngstown, WTRF in Wheeling and WOWK in Charleston, West Virginia. The debate was also streamed on each station’s website.
The candidates:
The rules:
Each candidate had five minutes to answer the topic question. During that time, moderators jumped in to make sure that both JD Vance and Tim Ryan were given equal time to answer within the five-minute window.
The moderators, FOX 8’s Joe Toohey and NBC4i’s Colleen Marshall also had the option to jump in with follow-up questions. A bell signaled when the time was up.
The polls:
In a September, FOX 8/Emerson College/The Hill poll, Ohio voters supported Republican candidate JD Vance, who led his opponent, Tim Ryan, 44% to 40% in the race for U.S. Senate. Thirteen percent of voters are still undecided, with 3% planning to vote for someone else.
“Independent voters favor JD Vance by a two-point margin, 51% of which name the economy as their most important issue. Additionally, a stark gender divide exists on the Senate ballot, reflective of other Senate polling this cycle. Men break for Vance by 19 points, whereas women break for Ryan by eight points,” said Spencer Kimball, Executive Director of Emerson College Polling.
Read an archived version of the candidates’ live responses below:
On economic pressures
VANCE: “I believe we’ve gone in a fundamentally bad direction over the last couple of years. I believe people deserve to go to the grocery store without breaking the bank.”
RYAN: “In the Inflation Reduction Act we’re going all-in on natural gas. I’ve been a natural gas proponent since I’ve been in Congress. … We need to increase our production of natural gas. I support streamlining the permitting process around natural gas so we can get it around the country and get it for lower cost to businesses.”
Is China the enemy?
Vance said Tim Ryan during his recent presidential run supported banning fracking.
VANCE: “That crushes the Ohio energy sector and that’s one reason why manufacturers are going to China. Another reason manufacturers are going to China is because the Chinese undercut American wages. The only way to really combat that is tariffs, which I’ve supported. … In 2018, 2019 and 2020 you opposed the tariffs that started to bring some of that manufacturing and industrial base back to Ohio.”
Ryan said “everybody is to blame” for the inflation crisis. He proposes a “significant tax cut” for working-class people.
He said he has supported Chinese tariffs his entire career, including President Donald Trump’s stance on China.
When asked if he wanted President Joe Biden to run again, Ryan said: “No, I’ve been very clear. I’d like to see a generational change. … We need a new generation of leadership.”
On abortion
Ryan said he supports reestablishing Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court precedent that set access to abortion as a constitutional right.
“This is the largest governmental overreach in our lifetime,” he said. “We should codify Roe v. Wade.”
Vance, when asked if he supported a Republican bill in the Senate to ban abortions after 15 weeks nationwide, said he supports minimum national standards.
“Ohio’s going to want to have different abortion laws than California, than Texas. I think Ohio should have that right,” Vance said. “We’re talking about 5-month-old babies, fully formed babies who can feel pain. No civilized country in the world allows elective abortion that late into pregnancy.”
On partisan campaign claims
Vance clarified a statement in an April interview suggesting President Biden was intentionally letting fentanyl cross the border in order to kill Republican voters. He said he feels Biden’s anti-MAGA rhetoric is “beyond the pale.”
“[Biden] says he wants to kill the MAGA movement. That’s not the rhetoric of a unifier,” he said.
Ryan told MSNBC that Americans need to condemn and confront extremism and said Vance is a part of that movement.
“This is a dangerous group and we need to confront it,” he said.
On the Russia-Ukraine war
Ryan, responding to President Biden’s claim that the world may be on the verge of Armageddon, said he thinks the U.S. should be “aggressive” in its response to Russia’s threat to use nuclear weapons in its ongoing war with Ukraine.
“We cannot have a butcher like Vladimir Putin rolling into Ukraine,” he said.
Ryan said he’s met with Ukrainians now living as refugees in the Cleveland area — daughters and wives of men still fighting in the country.
Vance said Putin was “wrong” to invade Ukraine and said Ukraine is to be admired for repelling the Russian invasion. But he said “nobody knows” how to respond to a nuclear threat, and he wants a U.S.-first foreign policy.
“Does that mean we should be in a nuclear shooting war?” he said. “I want to protect [U.S.] children and I want a foreign policy establishment that puts the interest of our citizens first.”
On U.S. intervention in a potential Taiwan-China conflict
Ryan said he believes the U.S. should intervene if China attacks Taiwan. He said he has “always supported strong investments into our defense,” including those proposed by President Trump.
Vance said Taiwan is “different” from the Ukraine conflict “because of how important it is for national security.” Vance said the U.S. relies on the country for semiconductors, but that the U.S. needs to become more independent in their manufacturing.
On LGBTQ+ rights
Outgoing Sen. Rob Portman is co-sponsoring the Marriage Equality Act, which would codify same-sex marriage.
Vance said though “gay marriage is the law of the country” and he does not oppose it, he does not support the bill. He said the bill would make it easier for religious organizations to be sued for not complying with government mandates.
Ryan said he voted for the bill in the House, spurred by the Supreme Court’s apparent aims to nullify same-sex marriages and “get around” protections for access to birth control.
