‘Schumer Shutdown’ Could Spell Bad News for Brown’s Campaign

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is not merely experiencing blame for what’s been dubbed the “Schumer Shutdown.” A key Senate race that he’s played a role in could also be affected, especially as the shutdown affects Ohioans, with former Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, running to challenge Republican Sen. Jon Husted.

Husted has been among those calling out the “Schumer Shutdown.” Even before Brown formally announced his run in August, Schumer was reportedly involved.

“Chuck Schumer was in Ohio twice,” Husted shared during his exclusive interview with The Daily Signal, adding that Brown is “Chuck Schumer’s hand-picked candidate” while also emphasizing a contrast between himself and Brown.

Brown has been quiet about the shutdown on X. He called out “Washington insiders” over on X earlier in the week and mentioned “fighting for Ohio.” Brown’s campaign announcement mentioned “standing up for workers” as well as “working as hard as possible for the people of Ohio.”

Brown, who lost last November to now Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno, voted 13 times for a continuing resolution when President Joe Biden was in office. This included seven continuing resolutions for fiscal year 2022 and 2023 and six more for fiscal year 2024 and 2025. Brown also expressed his concern about a potential shutdown over X in 2019 and 2023.

In September 2023, as a shutdown loomed, Brown was quoted by Ideastream Public Media expressing concerns.

“Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown calls the potential shutdown inexcusable,” the piece mentioned before directly quoting him. “It directly affects at least 57,000 Ohio workers—that’s the numbers we’ve come up with—the vast will get furloughed or have to work without pay.”

The Daily Signal reached out to Brown about such concerns he mentioned at the time in contrast to now.

Federal workers in Columbus—15,000 of them—will see the largest impact from a shutdown, according to NBC4i. Such a report also touched upon concerns for the Mid-Ohio Food Collective having enough food for those in need, with its system in place for providing for people becoming “complicated” if the shutdown drags on.

News 5 Cleveland warned about the effect a shutdown could have on assistance programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, as well as Women, Infants and Children.

“Other benefit programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children—or WIC—could run out of funding if the shutdown lasts more than a week or two,” the report mentioned. “The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program—also known as SNAP food stamps—will continue during the shutdown through October. But if the shutdown drags on, benefits could be delayed or disrupted beginning next month,” it later added.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 1.4 million Ohioans, accounting for close to 740,000 households, relied on SNAP for fiscal year 2022.

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine heeded the call from the Trump administration in August to send Ohio National Guard troops to the District of Columbia, extending their stay until the end of next month, according to Spectrum News 1. Guardsmen stationed there will be working without pay during the shutdown.

Ohio’s major cities are also affected. Cleveland is the home of the NASA Glenn Research Center, with many of those employees being furloughed, according to Cleveland.com. In Columbus, which already faces an air traffic controller shortage, those operating there are also working without pay during the shutdown.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee further spoke out against Schumer and Brown in a statement for The Daily Signal.

“While Jon Husted stands with President [Donald] Trump to ensure our troops are paid and the largest rural healthcare investment in history is secure, Sherrod Brown is hiding and unwilling to take accountability for letting his puppet master, Chuck Schumer, wreak havoc on Ohio families because they want to give free healthcare to illegal aliens,” said Nick Puglia, Regional NRSC press secretary.

Husted has been speaking out against Democrats’ role in the shutdown over X. Many of his posts highlight that narrative that Democrats are shutting down the government over immigration.

A Husted spokesperson also told The Daily Signal that “Sen. Husted voted to keep the government open and will continue to vote to reopen the government.”

An Emerson College poll from late August shows that Husted has the edge, leading 50%-44% against Brown. Cook Political Report and Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball also favor Husted, regarding the race as “Lean Republican.”

The Daily Signal also reached out to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee for comment on the state of the race.

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