News: Challenging Chabot

Richard Lerner stands in the kitchen of his Amberley Village home, which also functions as his campaign headquarters. As one of two Democrats vying for a shot at U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot, the Westwood Republican who has held the 1st Congressional District for 10 years, Lerner is learning a lot.

“It’s very challenging just to get things done,” he says as he spreads mustard onto a sandwich.

He apologizes for eating during the interview. His dog barks and the phone starts to ring.

“This has all been kind of new and challenging,” he says, pouring dog food from a large yellow tub. “You begin to realize unless you can finance your own effort — and I can’t — you have to get money from somewhere.”

War and deficits
Lerner is dealing with the two major challenges Chabot’s opponents have faced during a decade of attempts to unseat him — a lack of campaign funds and an eroded Democratic infrastructure.

Chabot already has $376,626 in campaign funds according to the Center for Responsive Politics. He outspent Democratic challenger Greg Harris 35 to 1 during the 2002 race.

Then there are the political challenges inherent in the 1st District, which includes most of Cincinnati, the western portion of Hamilton County and southwest Butler County. Last year’s primary showed 24,504 registered Republicans and only15,066 registered Democrats in the district.

Harris, who faces Lerner in the March 2 primary, is looking for another attempt at Chabot after a late start in the 2002 race.

“In 2002 I was more than willing to duke it out with Chabot, but I didn’t have the money to get in the ring,” Harris says. “My quandary is, how do I get my message heard?”

Both Harris and Lerner opposed the war in Iraq, favor major health care reforms and express concern about the role of large corporations in politics and the economy. Both accuse Chabot of inadequately representing the district.

“He does not have his finger on the pulse of this city by any means,” Harris says.

He cites Chabot’s absence at the opening of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and his opposition to the National Endowment for the Arts.

“We have great arts and culture in Cincinnati, we really support these institutions — and we have a congressman who opposes the NEA,” Harris says.

Harris says he likes Chabot personally. Last time they ran against each other, the congressman sent Harris’ newborn son a gift — a stuffed elephant.

“He’s perhaps one of the most honest members of the United States Congress,” Harris says. “He has a philosophical anchor. He believes in what he’s doing. I just happen to think the philosophy he’s grounded in is totally wrong.”

Lerner agrees.

“What does Steve Chabot do?” Lerner asks, biting into a pepper. “He’s a very strong advocate for tax cuts and lower government spending. Those are sort of his signature items.”

But Lerner and Harris question why Chabot supported an unnecessary war that racked up one of the largest national deficits in history. Harris says a $300 check from Bush’s tax cuts doesn’t make up for the cost of the war. Spending should help secure the shaky future of social security or help stem sky-rocketing college tuition, he says.

“Underlying all that is a system that is fundamentally flawed, where the big money really has a negative influence on stalling much needed reforms,” Harris says.

Mobilizing the party
Harris, 32, former director of Citizens for Civic Renewal, is the executive director of the Ohio County Community Foundation, a youth development organization. He’s a big advocate of domestically producing energy with new technology and removing insurance companies from their middleman position in the health care system. He has a doctorate in English from Miami University.

Two years ago Harris launched his campaign in March, missing the filing deadline for the primary election; he had to earn the party nomination with write-in votes. This year his campaign began much earlier and has teamed with the local Howard Dean presidential campaign in an Over-the-Rhine office. He has already picked up the endorsement of the party leadership and he expects more support from labor organizations. Although he only received 36 percent of the vote in 2002, Harris won 54 percent in the city of Cincinnati.

He says two factors will be vital if he’s to defeat Chabot. America Coming Together, a non-partisan organization that registers voters, has a $90 million budget; Ohio is one of its seven target states. Harris hopes voter registration efforts will help him. Second, the Democratic Party is in better shape this year, according to Harris.

“In 2002 when I ran, it was very hard to be a Democrat in the aftermath of 9/11,” he says. “The Democratic base wasn’t mobilized.”

Lerner says he isn’t sure Chabot can be defeated.

“I think there are other reasons to run besides winning and losing,” he says. “I’m relying pretty heavily on Ronald Reagan’s wisdom: Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed, there are many rewards. If you disgrace yourself, you can always write a book.”

Lerner, retired at 62, spent 15 years in Washington, D.C., as a White House and congressional correspondent with United Press International and as a press secretary for former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley (D-N.J.). He says his experience gives him a national perspective.

“My hope is that I could do a lot of listening,” he says. “I’d like to try a bottom-up, instead of a top-down, approach. You tell me what your primary concern is. Don’t worry about what my concern is.”

Lerner’s decision to run after the party endorsed Harris created some conflict between the candidates.

“We had some conversations before this race and we had a gentlemen’s agreement to abide by the Democratic Party endorsement and not challenge each other in the primary, because it would take much needed resources from the general election,” Harris says. “When I got the endorsement, he filed anyway.”

Lerner’s recollection is different.

“I don’t remember it that way,” he says. “There may well have been some miscommunication.”

This article appears in Feb 18-24, 2004.