Congresswoman Betty Sutton Headlines Northern Medina County Democratic Club Picnic

Congresswoman Betty Sutton came to Brunswick on a warm Sunday afternoon to tell Medina County Democrats that "fast track authority" on trade agreements is "dead". Her announcement brought cheers from the partisan crowd. The crowd also cheered Congresswoman Sutton when she talked about ending the war in Iraq, protecting American jobs, helping fund education, and guaranteeing affordable health care for all Americans. As Congresswoman Sutton pointed out, jobs, health care, and education are all linked together, and addressing one without addressing the other two doesn't make sense.

Ms. Sutton wasn't the only Democrat attending who is interested in Congress. State Senator John Boccieri who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the 16th Congressional Crowd brought two of his children along. He talked about his experiences as an Air Force officer in Iraq and how that has shaped his views on veteran issues and on the Iraq War.

A lot of people outside of Medina County don't realize that at least part of Medina County has been represented by a Democrat in Congress since 1976. From 1976-2002 all of Medina County was represented by Democrats. First there was Congressman Donal Pease and then Congressman Sherrod Brown.

That changed after the 2000 census when the Republicans changed the district so that only the three northernmost Medina County townships were included in the 13th Congressional Distict. The other 14 Medina County townships and all the municipal corporations in those townships became part of the 16th Congressional District. Senator Borrieri wants to make sure that all of Medina County is represented by a Democrat.

Beside the Congresswoman and State Senator, other elected officials attended the picnic. Medina County Prosecutor Dean Holman, Medina County Court of Common Pleas Judge James Kimbler, Ninth Disrict Court of Appeals Judge Clair Dickinson, Medina Township Trustee Mike Todd, Medina City Council President and Medina County Democratic Chair Pam Miller, Medina County Coroner Dr. Neil Grabenstetter, and Brunswick City Councilman Vince Carl also were present. The Party was hosted by the NMCDC and its President, Anastatia Birosh.