Canton Repository - Kirk Schuring: Each Move Part of the Effort to Win the Seat of Retiring Ralph Regula BY EDD PRITCHARD Walt Grosjean knows Kirk Schuring's name. But the Wayne County Republican had never met Schuring. Never heard him make a speech. Grosjean's chance came on Oct. 7. Schuring attended a fundraiser for Ron Amstutz, a state senator now seeking an Ohio House seat. Grosjean has been attending Amstutz fundraisers at The Barn for years. He walks in just before the speeches start, grabs some food and listens while he eats. Schuring doesn't spend too much time at the lectern. He offers an explanation of some of the mailings folks have received. Says national Democratic Party groups are spending plenty of money on the Ohio 16th District election. "We're not going to be able to outspend the special interests," Schuring tells the 80-or-so people in the meeting room. He asks for help — take a yard sign, make some phone calls, go door-to-door. Grosjean's reaction is quick. No, he'd never met Schuring, "But I'm impressed," he says. BUSY WEEK Between noon on Oct. 7 and noon on Oct. 10, Schuring participated in three candidates forums and one debate, attended a fundraiser for old friend Amstutz, and traveled to Ashland to honor U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula. He spent Oct. 8 preparing for the debate. The afternoon of Oct. 9 he recorded telephone calls with Regula. Every move is part of the effort to drum up support for his bid to win a seat in Congress. Since first running for the Ohio House in 1994, Schuring hasn't lost an election. His experience as a candidate and elected official shows during each event. Schuring is at ease behind a podium or holding a microphone. He moves freely in a crowd, greeting people and stopping to listen. He enjoys trying to make a joke, sometimes at his expense and other times as a jab at opposing candidate, Democrat John Boccieri. It's always in good nature. On the campaign trail, Schuring likes pointing out that he's reached out to Democrats as well as Republicans, in the Ohio General Assembly trying to get things done. Audience members at the Alliance Chamber of Commerce Legislative Breakfast note that Schuring and Boccieri get along pretty well. No signs of animosity. Plenty of smiles between the two. WORK AS A TEAM When Schuring traveled to Smithville on Oct. 7 and to Wooster for the Oct. 8 debate, he brought along wife Darlene. She is just as steady in a crowd as her husband, shaking hands and making introductions. Darlene doesn't mind hitting the campaign trail. It's great to meet different people, she says. At both events she sees familiar faces, among the new folks she meets. Oct. 7 has two events for the couple. After meeting folks in Smithville, the Schurings race back to Jackson Township for a candidates forum organized by the Arts Community of Canton. Darlene drives, allowing Kirk some time on the cell phone to prepare. Once at the Main Hall on the Kent State University Stark Campus, Schuring is greeted by familiar faces. He points that out during his presentation, a subtle way of reminding folks that he's the local guy. The arts are important, especially in schools, Schuring tells the small crowd. Participating in the arts helps students foster innovation and creativity that can help them compete in a global market. "We need to promote the public value of the arts," Schuring said. 'This election is not about me. I'm just the face that's associated with it. This election is about you.' KIRK SCHURING, REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE FOR 16TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT SEAT WHAT OTHERS SAY ... Ron Amstutz, a Wayne County Republican who has served in the Ohio House and Senate with Schuring, urged supporters at his Oct. 7 fundraiser to — likewise — support Schuring's congressional bid. "This guy knows how to work," Amstutz said of Schuring. Amstutz reminded his supporters that Schuring is running in one of the country's five most competitive congressional races. It's attracted a lot of attention, money and disparaging campaign literature. "It's a lot of drive-by stuff that's pretty frustrating," Amstutz said of mailings. Mary Taylor, Ohio's auditor and the state's highest ranking Republican office holder, echoed Amstutz on Oct. 9 at an Ashland County Republican Party event. "People are angry, bitter, hateful and even a little downright mean," Taylor said of campaigning against Schuring. Taylor called Schuring the right man to take over for Regula, saying Schuring always responded to constituents. "Anybody who calls him, he works hard for." Mary Regula joined husband Ralph at the Ashland County event. "Just as you trusted Ralph, you can trust Kirk Schuring," she told the audience. How does Mrs. Regula know that? Well, she knows Darlene Schuring. "If Kirk gets out of line, Darlene will straighten him out." Bob DeSanto, Ashland County's Republican Party chairman, dislikes Boccieri's stance on the Iraq war. That's one reason he wants Schuring to win. But more than that, DeSanto believes Schuring will be someone who will do a a good job representing the district. "He's everything we stand for, folks," DeSanto told fellow Republicans.

September 30, 2008 By Michael Freeze Local lawmakers' reactions to Congress' failed economic rescue plan appeared mixed, but all agreed Washington needs to work out an agreement for the best of the country. U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Navarre, who backed the bill, said in a statement, that although the nation is in a "very difficult and dangerous situation," something needs to be done to stabilize the financial markets. "I supported this revised legislation with great reluctance," said Regula, who is retiring from his congressional seat at the end of the year, "in order to protect American families, the taxpayer, the worker, the person with a pension plan, the person who holds savings in a 401(K) retirement account, small business people who need credit to operate their businesses and pay their employees, and homeowners - to stabilize our economy." The two men who are vying to replace Regula - State Sens. Kirk Schuring, R-Jackson Township, and John Boccieri, D-Alliance, chimed in on the failed House vote as well as the mood in nation's capital. Schuring, who did not say whether he would have voted for or against the bill, said that its failure demonstrates what is wrong with Congress. "This is just another example of how Washington is broken," Schuring said. "(Congress) has lost its ability to plan and use common sense to solve problems." Boccieri said in a prepared statement that Congress made the right move in halting the bailout plan. He said the bill was lacking in a plan to address the mortgage crisis. "In my judgment, Washington was prepared to commit too much taxpayer money to Wall Street with too few safeguards to prevent this from happening again," he said. "Now it's time for Congress to sit down and hammer out a bill that prioritizes immediate help for homeowners and reform on Wall Street." Schuring said he was disheartened that lawmakers could not settle on some kind of compromise and would rather go to their partisan corners and point fingers at each other. "This is a serious issue, he said. "Our stock market is teetering on a downfall. We need Republicans and Democrats to come together to solve the problem, but they decided to come apart." Boccieri said when Congress returns, it needs to put a quick, sufficient end to this political stalemate. "We need to act swiftly to keep people in their homes," Boccieri said, "limit excess and greed, put strong new safeguards in place on Wall Street, and find ways to provide short-term financial stability that don't validate or bail out reckless lending behavior."Schuring said he hopes, until Washington comes to a solution, the nation's grim financial condition will have mercy on those on Main Street. "I hope and pray that credit markets will remain stable," he said. "And that the stock market will not make a tremendous fall. We'll just have to wait and see. Those who need credit to purchase cars and expand their businesses hopefully won't be adversely affected by this. I pray that people who have retirement plans aren't adversely affected by this."

By Robert Wang and Edd Pritchard The crowd gathered Wednesday evening to meet John Boccieri didn't have many questions, but the first one was about the $700 billion bailout for Wall Street. The woman said she was a Republican, but she still didn't want to see Wall Street executives get help from the government. At the same time, she wondered if the Democrats would block the move. Plenty of area residents have questions about the Bush Administration's plan to spend up to $700 billion to buy weakened banks' troubled debt assets in the hopes of preventing a financial meltdown. Calls are rolling into Congressional offices and questions are being asked on the campaign trail. People point out that they had to show they could afford loans in order to buy their houses, and argue it's not fair to bail out people who have been irresponsible. Many are upset with the high pay and padded severance packages of executives who lead the troubled banks. MAKING A STATEMENT Meghan Dubyak, a spokeswoman for U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, said a substitute math teacher from Westerville drove to Washington, D.C., to personally tell Brown that he was against the plan. A spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Bethlehem Township, estimated 40 to 60 people a day were calling the congressman's Belden Village and Washington, D.C., offices to express disapproval of the federal proposal. Faxed form letters and e-mails opposing the so-called "bailout" are pouring in from throughout Regula's district, the spokeswoman said. Regula supports a financial rescue package that includes accountability and oversight of Treasury officials who would buy the assets and a cap on executive pay. He also wants taxpayers to benefit from any financial gain reaped by the sale of the assets. Dubyak said Brown's office has received 10,000 e-mail and phone messages since the federal plan was proposed last weekend. More than 95 percent expressed resistance to the idea of a "bailout." "We have folks on the phone all day long and answering calls," she said. "There's no break. They finish one call, and they pick up another." Dubyak said the Senate phone lines shut down at one point. Pat Lowry, the press secretary for U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, whose district includes Youngstown and the eastern sliver of Green, said Ryan's office has received about eight to 10 calls a day from constituents about the bill. Most of the callers are against any "bailout." "It's kind of divided into two camps," Lowry said. "Those who are just saying, 'No,' and those who are saying they don't like it but understand that something needs to be done." CANDIDATES' STANCE As for the two state senators bidding to replace Regula, Boccieri, D-Alliance, and Kirk Schuring, R-Jackson Township, both have urged caution as Congress and the Bush administration work on a plan. They also believe oversight is necessary. Both campaigns have been getting questions about the issue, representatives said. Residents have every right to be outraged over the bailout's magnitude and the growing national debt, Schuring said. Officials in Washington need to work together to save the country's financial system. "Rather than buying equity in these companies, the government should loan financial institutions the money they need so they can pay the American people back," Schuring said in a statement, adding that a federal oversight panel should monitor bailout decisions. At the Massillon event on Wednesday, Boccieri warned against federal officials making a "rush to judgment" on the issue. Boccieri said he disagreed with initial proposals that would have given a "blank check" to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. "We didn't get into this mess overnight. We need time to look at this," Boccieri said. "I hope they will take their time and find the right solution."