...Joined by area labor leaders in front of Trumbull County Democratic Party Headquarters downtown, Ryan, D-17 Ohio, said that Gov. Ted Strickland, while serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, consistently voted "on behalf of the working families" against what he characterized as "reckless globalized trade agreements" such as the North American Free Trade Agreement that put Americans out of work, including 40,000 Ohioans.
In contrast, Kasich, the Republican candidate to oust Strickland, and Portman, who is running against Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by George Voinovich, supported NAFTA in Congress, as well as most favored nation trade status for China, which he said cost 90,000 jobs in the state....
......Portman and Kasich not only supported NAFTA in Congress, but Kasich also opposed programs to assist workers who lost jobs due to foreign trade, said Sherry Killin, recording secretary for United Steel Workers of American Local 98-L, which represented workers at the former Denman Tire....
Ryan said that since Portman and Kasich pushed for these agreements that caused thousands of job losses in the area, "...it would be a form of masochism..." to vote for Portman and Kasich.