Both Ohio Senate candidates support President Donald Trump as he gets tougher on trade with China, the European Union, and Canada, but Democratic incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown's campaign has accused GOP Rep. Jim Renacci of changing his tone on the issue, according to the Dayton Daily News.
Renacci said this week that he trusts the president's methods on trade, even though they could result in some temporary economic discomfort for U.S. businesses and citizens.
"I think in the end, this is part of negotiations," Renacci told Fox News. "I think this is what the president does best. Let's see where we end up. What he wants is to have fair trade with these countries, and it's just not right now."
According to the Dayton Daily News, Brown has opposed every major free-trade agreement over the course of his more than 20-year political career, including the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993.
Brown spokeswoman Rachel Petri accused Renacci of switching his stance on trade for the purpose of the Senate race.
"Now that Congressman Renacci is running for Senate, he's trying to fool voters by pretending he's tough on trade," Petri told the Daily News.
The Daily News noted that "as a House member in 2011, Renacci urged President Barack Obama to push Congress to approve free-trade pacts with South Korea, Panama and Columbia."
"Renacci's own record proves he can't be trusted to stand up for Ohio workers against China — voting against efforts to crack down on Chinese currency manipulation and supporting the Trans-Pacific Partnership when the door was still open for China to join," Petri said.
Politifact, in 2015, noted that China was not involved in TPP negotiations and reported that experts believed the deal would most likely have a negative impact on China.
Renacci's campaign took exception to claims by Brown's campaign that attacked the congressman's record on trade, particularly pushing back against claims that he has been unwilling to be tough on China.
"Jim Renacci has a history dating back to his first term in Congress of voting for legislation to hold China accountable, and he also testified before the USITC demanding China be held accountable," Renacci senior communications adviser Leslie Shedd told TheBlaze. "In a desperate attempt to deflect from Brown's liberal voting record, that includes voting with Elizabeth Warren 94 percent of the time, career politician Sherrod Brown is slinging mud and spreading lies. The people of Ohio deserve better."
Renacci has testified before the International Trade Commission about how Chinese trade practices have negatively impacted Ohio, and in 2012, he voted in favor of a bill to apply certain provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 to nonmarket economy countries, including China.
When Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on steel imports in March, Brown was an early supporter of that action.
"This welcome action is long overdue for the shuttered steel plants across Ohio and steelworkers who live in fear that their jobs will be the next victim of Chinese cheating," Brown said in a statement at the time.
In June, Brown blocked a Republican-led effort aimed at limiting Trump's ability to impose tariffs for national security reasons, saying the tariffs were needed to help a struggling steel industry.
