'Ohio needs an ass kicker not an ass kisser,' Rep. Ryan said during the first debate between candidates for the U.S. Senate seat in Ohio. 'Well-rehearsed line, Tim,' Vance shot back.
, jumped into Monday night’s Ohio Senate debate with the same goal: to paint the other as a phony who’s unworthy of the job.
“I don’t kiss anyone’s a-- like him,” Ryan said of Vance, paraphrasing a line Trump used at a recent Ohio rally to describe his relationship with Vance,Vance shot back: “Well-rehearsed line, Tim.” He had fended off a similar attack earlier in the hourlong debate by playing up ain which Ryan joked that he had to “suck up” to his “future boss,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
The debate here in Cleveland, televised across the state, was the first of two scheduled before Election Day. Ryan and Vance hope to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Rob Portman, and pollsa close race, with slim leads on either side falling with the margin of error. Vance has struggled to raise money but is being buoyed by more than $30 million worth of advertising bought by outside groups, while Ryan, a prolific fundraiser, has received little financial support from national Democrats.