Bob McEwen
Encyclopedia
Robert D. "Bob" McEwen is a lobbyist and American politician
of the Republican Party
, who was a member of the United States House of Representatives
from southern Ohio
's Sixth District
, from January 3, 1981 to January 3, 1993. Tom Deimer of Cleveland's Plain Dealer described him as a "textbook Republican" who is "opposed to abortion, gun control
, high taxes
, and costly government programs." In the House, he criticized government incompetence and charged corruption by the Democratic
majority that ran the House in the 1980s. McEwen, who had easily won three terms in the Ohio House
, was elected to Congress at the age of thirty to replace a retiring representative in 1980 and easily won re-election five times.
After a bruising primary
battle with another incumbent whose district was combined with his, in which McEwen faced charges of bouncing checks
on the House bank, he narrowly lost the 1992 general election to Democrat Ted Strickland
. Following an unsuccessful run in the adjacent Second District
in 1993, McEwen was largely absent from the Ohio political scene for a decade, until in 2005 he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for Congress in the Second District special election to replace Rob Portman
, who beat him in 1993, and finished second to the winner in the general election, Jean Schmidt
. McEwen's 2005 platform was familiar from his past campaigns, advocating a pro-life
stance, defending Second Amendment
rights, and promising to limit taxes and government spending. In 2006, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination in the Second District.
, McEwen graduated from Hillsboro High School. He earned a Bachelor's in Business Administration
from the University of Miami
in Coral Gables
, Florida
in 1972. He also attended The Ohio State University
's College of Law for one year from 1972 to 1973.
McEwen is married to the former Elizabeth "Liz" Boebinger and has four children: Meredith, Jonathan, Robert, and Elizabeth. He is a member of many fraternal organizations and civic groups, including Sigma Chi
, the Farm Bureau, the Grange
, Rotary International
, the Jaycees, and the Optimist Club. He is a member of the Church of Christ
.
After two years in his wife's family real estate business, serving as a vice president of Boebinger, Inc., he was elected at the age of twenty-four to the Ohio House of Representatives
in 1974 from the 72nd House District representing southern Ohio. McEwen's district contained parts of Clinton, Fayette, Greene, and Highland Counties and all of Madison County. He was re-elected to two more two-year terms. In 1976, his plurality against Democrat L. James Matter was 14,816 votes, a number larger than the votes cast for Matter. (McEwen received 27,657 to Matter's 12,841.) McEwen was a supporter of the state lottery
in the House. Having previously directed Sixth District Congressman Bill Harsha
's re-election campaigns to Congress in 1976 and 1978, McEwen ran for Harsha's seat when he retired in 1980. Harsha was neutral in the eight-man primary that McEwen won but supported McEwen in the general election where he defeated psychologist
and minister Ted Strickland
, Harsha's opponent in 1976 and 1978, who went on to become Governor of Ohio.
In Congress, McEwen, who "had a reputation as a man who thinks about politics every waking moment," claimed Congressional Quarterly, was a staunch conservative
, advocating a strong military. In addition, he was a strong advocate for government works in his district — dams, roads, locks and the like much as Harsha had been — as McEwen was on the House's Public Works and Transportation Committee. The Chillicothe Gazette
would salute him for his work on funding for U.S. Route 35
, a limited access highway linking Chillicothe
to Dayton
. In general, however, McEwen advocated reduced government spending.
A vehement anti-Communist
, he visited Tbilisi
in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia in 1991 to help tear down the hammer-and-sickle iconography of the Communist regime. That year he also called for the House to establish a select committee to investigate the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue
– whether any soldiers declared "missing in action
" in the Vietnam War
and other American wars were still alive – by sponsoring H. Res. 207.
, Brown
, Clinton
, Fayette
, Highland
, Pickaway
, Pike
, Scioto
, and Ross
Counties plus Clermont County
outside the city of Loveland
, Harrison Township
in Vinton County
and the Warren County
townships of Clearcreek
, Deerfield
, Hamilton
, Harlan
, Massie
, Salem
, and Wayne
. The Washington Post
described the Sixth as "a fail-safe Republican district." It had been in Republican hands since a 1959 special election.
The Ohio General Assembly
redrew the Sixth District following the results of the 1980 Census. The boundaries from 1983 to 1987 included all of Adams
, Clinton
, Fayette
, Highland
, Hocking
, Jackson
, Pike
, Ross
, Scioto
, Vinton
and Warren
Counties, plus Waterloo
and York
Townships in Athens County
; Wayne Township
in Clermont County
; Concord
, Jasper
, Marion
, Perry
, Union
, and Wayne
Townships in Fayette County
; and Washington Township
and the Cities of Miamisburg
and West Carrollton
in Montgomery
County.
Effective with the 100th Congress
in 1987, adjustments were made by the legislature to the boundaries. A small part of the Montgomery County territory was detached, as were parts of Fayette County in Washington Court House
in Union Township
and the townships of Jasper
and Marion
. Part of Brown County
was added, Jackson
and Eagle
Townships. These were the boundaries for the rest of McEwen's service in Congress.
The district was largely rural and agricultural with no large cities. One of the major industries was the United States Department of Energy
's Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion
Plant at Piketon
, which manufacted uranium
for nuclear weapons. The district was 97% white
with a median household income of $21,761.
between Republican Richard D. McIntyre
, whom the Indiana Secretary of State had certified as winning a seat in the 99th Congress
, and Democrat Frank McCloskey
, in which the House declined to seat McIntyre, McEwen declared on the House floor, "Mr. Speaker, you know how to win votes the old fashioned way — you steal them." When McEwen was late in 1990 to the House because of a massive traffic jam on the I-495
beltway around Washington, D.C.
, he said on the House floor on February 21 that the District of Columbia's government should be replaced:
After McEwen was criticized for his remarks, he delivered a thirty-minute speech in the House on March 1, 1990, on "The Worst City Government in America". Because of the crime problem in the District, McEwen also attempted to pass legislation overturning the District council's ban on mace
, saying people in the District should be able to defend themselves. During the Persian Gulf War
in 1991, McEwen introduced legislation to end President Gerald Ford
's ban on U.S. government employees assassinating foreign leaders (Executive Order 12333) in order to clear the way for Saddam Hussein
's removal, McEwen objecting to the "cocoon of protection that is placed around him because he holds the position that he holds as leader of his country."
of Texas
, McEwen announced he would challenge Senator Howard M. Metzenbaum, a Democrat, in his 1988 bid for re-election, but McEwen found he lacked statewide support and would face a strong primary challenger in Cleveland mayor George V. Voinovich. He dropped out of the race in December. McEwen's name was floated in 1991 as a possible challenger in 1992 to Ohio's other senator, John Glenn
, another Democrat, but McEwen did not enter the race.
landslide of 1984 he beat Bob Smith nearly three-to-one, 150,101 to 52,727. In 1986 and 1988 he faced Gordon R. Roberts, defeating him two-to-one in 1986 (106,354 to 42,155 with independent Amos Seeley receiving a scattering) and three-to-one in 1988 (152,235 to 52,635). In the rematch, McEwen outspent Roberts twenty-to-one, $884,754 to $43,485. McEwen in 1990 beat his opponent, Raymond S. Mitchell — who the Dayton Daily News
said "is an unknown small businessman who hasn't thought things through" — by three to one. The tally was 117,200 to 47,415 in a race where Mitchell was outspent seventeen-to-one, McEwen spending $196,934 and Mitchell $11,171. Congressional Quarterly's Politics in America pronounced him "invincible" in his district.
of the Public Works Committee's Economic Development Subcommittee and was sixth in seniority on the full committee. During the 99th and 100th
Congresses, he was also a member of the Select Committee on Intelligence. During his last term, in the 102nd Congress
, he left Public Works and Veterans' Affairs for the powerful Rules Committee and served on its Legislative Process Subcommittee. He was chosen for the Rules Committee by Republican leader Bob Michel of Illinois
, but McEwen would grumble that "the Committee on Rules is stacked in a partisan manner 2 to 1 plus 1" by the Democratic majority. During the 102nd Congress, he was also on the Select Committee on Children, Families, and Youth.
Late in his Congressional career, he began regular appearances on public affairs programs such as Nightline and the MacNeil-Lehrer NewsHour
and was often a guest on C-SPAN
and the Cable News Network. Martin Gottlieb of the Dayton Daily News, a Democratic newspaper, thought McEwen's performances showed why he had remained in the background previously:
In his decade in Congress, McEwen compiled a conservative voting record, usually scoring in the single digits in the annual Americans for Democratic Action
ratings and 85% or higher in the American Conservative Union
's similar polls, though McEwen was never one of the most conservative Republicans in the House nor the most conservative Republican in the Ohio delegation.
McEwen often joined his fellow Republicans in making special order speeches in the House, which occur after the business for the day has concluded and are made to a nearly empty chamber. McEwen's ally Newt Gingrich
of Georgia
had discovered that, thanks to the C-SPAN cable network's promise of "gavel-to-gavel coverage" of the House, he and his fellow conservatives such as McEwen, Mississippi's Trent Lott
, California
's Robert K. Dornan, and Pennsylvania
's Robert S. Walker could speak directly to Americans. Congressional Quarterly wrote viewers often found "McEwen playing the trusty sidekick Sancho Panza
to Bob Dornan of California, both tilting at the latest liberal windmill."
, a thirteen-term veteran called "chairman of the caucus of the obscure" for his invisibility on Capitol Hill. However, Miller surprised everyone by deciding to run for a fourteenth term. The Democrats in the Statehouse would not reconsider the deal and Miller's Tenth District was obliterated.
The new district map was not agreed upon by the General Assembly until March 26, 1992, one week before the filing deadline for the primary originally scheduled for May 5. Governor George Voinovich
signed the new map into law on March 27, and on April 1 the General Assembly moved the primary to June 2. Miller's hometown of Lancaster
was placed in freshman David Hobson
's Springfield
-based Seventh District, but Miller chose to run in the Sixth District against McEwen since the largest piece of his old district — five counties — was placed in the new Sixth. Miller's decision was also impacted by his strong personal distaste for McEwen.
After being hurt in a fall in his bathtub after slipping on a bar of soap, Miller was expected to withdraw and the Republican leadership hoped for a deal as late as May 15, the day Miller was to hold a press conference Ohio political observers thought he would use to announce his withdrawal. However, Miller stayed in the race and the two incumbents faced each other in the Republican primary on June 2, 1992.
, which had been seized upon by Newt Gingrich
, a like-minded conservative House Republican, as an example of the corruption of Congress; members of the House had been allowed to write checks on their accounts, which were paid despite insufficient funds and without penalty. Martin Gottlieb of the Dayton Daily News said "McEwen was collateral damage" to Gingrich's crusade. McEwen initially denied bouncing any checks. Later, he admitted he had bounced a few. Then when the full totals were released by Ethics Committee investigators, the number was revealed to have been 166 over thirty-nine months. McEwen said that he always had funds available to cover the alleged overdrafts, pointing to the policy of the House sergeant at arms, who ran the House bank, paying checks on an overdrawn account if it would not exceed the sum of the Representative's next paycheck. In 1991, McEwen had also been criticized for his use of the franking privilege and his frequent trips overseas at taxpayer expense, but McEwen defended the trips as part of his work on the Intelligence Committee and in building relationships with legislatures overseas.
," and McEwen said of Miller, "His misrepresentations and falsehoods are gargantuan. I tried to be his best friend in the delegation. I am deeply disappointed at the meanness of his effort." Tom Deimer of Cleveland's Plain Dealer wrote that the two candidates were largely identical on the issues: "both are textbook Republican conservatives, opposed to abortion, gun control, high taxes, and costly government programs — unless located in their districts." Miller noted he had no overdrafts at the House bank, saying, "the score is 166 to nothing." McEwen said "every one of my checks was free and clear. Every month's statement had a balance." McEwen ran commercials against Miller claiming the long-time congressman "has fallen out of touch with Ohio" and "doesn't live in our district and isn't even registered to vote here." Miller struck back in a live-television interview by taking a Wheat Thin
, claiming it to be McEwen, and then taking a bite out of it.
Bob Taft
dismissed Miller's charges of voting irregularities in Highland, Hocking and Warren Counties, Miller filed suit in the Ohio Supreme Court. Miller dropped his court challenge in August and then only because his campaign treasury was exhausted. In the final count, McEwen won 33,219 votes to Miller's 32,922, a plurality of 297 votes. In the end, McEwen's geographic advantage (he retained 59% of his old territory) put him over the top. Ominously, however, Miller trounced him in the five counties that had been in Miller's old district.
After the final result, Miller refused to endorse McEwen, though McEwen tried to sooth feelings by introducing H.R. 5727 in the House to name the dam and locks on the Ohio River
near Gallipolis
after Miller. Miller carried an unsuccessful legal challenge to the redistricting to the United States Supreme Court, insisting district lines should be drawn on a politically neutral basis.
to Marietta
. This new district was very difficult to campaign in. It spilled across six media markets, meaning that McEwen had to buy ads in cities where most of the viewers couldn't vote in the district. It also lacked any large cities and possessed few unifying elements. His Democratic opponent was psychologist Ted Strickland
, whom he had defeated in his initial run in 1980.
Pat Buchanan
, the conservative columnist who challenged President Bush in the 1992 presidential primaries, came to Ohio to campaign for McEwen, as did Vice President Dan Quayle
and Oliver North
. Though George H. W. Bush
won the district, McEwen was narrowly defeated by Strickland in the general election on November 3. While he won 55-45 in the area he once represented, McEwen did not win in any of the counties that had once been in Miller's district, losing the unfamiliar territory 59-41. Strickland received 122,720 votes to McEwen's 119,252, a plurality of only 3,468. "I think McEwen's loss was a case of bounced checks and some arrogance," said Alfred Tuchfarber, a political science
professor at the University of Cincinnati
who runs the Ohio Poll. "He just had a certain personal arrogance about him that didn't go down well in a poor district." Strickland said, "I ran against Pat Robertson
, Pat Buchanan, the National Rifle Association
and Right-to-Life. They threw everything at me. I'm just so happy I beat back those guys. I think they're so divisive."
resignation to become a lobbyist for the insurance industry on January 31, 1993, three months after his re-election. "It's important that we have an experienced person to fight for jobs for Southwest Ohio. We need to bring economic growth to our area," McEwen said. "It's important that we have someone who can hit the ground running, representing our values of economic growth and low taxes." Though a congressman does not need to live in the district he represents, McEwen put his home in Hillsboro up for sale and rented a home in Bethel
in Clermont County.
In the Republican primary on March 16, McEwen faced trade lawyer Rob Portman
, who had worked in the White House
under President George H. W. Bush
; real estate developer Jay Buchert, the president of the National Association of Home Builders
; and several lesser known candidates: real estate appraiser Garland Eugene Crawford of Loveland
; pro-life activist Ken Callis of the Cincinnati suburb of Wyoming
; Robert W. Dorsey, a professor at the University of Cincinnati
and township trustee in Hamilton County's Anderson Township
; and Ku Klux Klan
leader Van Darrell Loman of Cheviot
. Three other candidates filed and qualified but withdrew from the primary, former Madeira
mayor Mary Anne Christie; Lebanon
attorney Bruce Gudenkauf, a member of the Warren County Republican Party's central committee; and Donnie Jones, city auditor in Norwood
.
In February the press reported that, according to campaign finance filings, McEwen trailed both Buchert and Portman in funds, Buchert having three times the treasury McEwen did. McEwen was endorsed by Oliver North
, whose prosecution in the Iran-Contra Affair
McEwen had labeled a "political witch hunt" when he was in Congress. McEwen also criticized Portman for lobbying Congress to pass the tax increase President George H. W. Bush
supported when Portman was a White House aide. He also criticized Portman for being a lobbyist for Oman
. McEwen brought his former House colleague Jack Kemp
to Ohio to campaign for him.
McEwen faced questions about the bounced checks he had written on the House bank. Buchert ran campaign commercials citing McEwen's checks, the expenses of his Congressional office, and his campaign finance disclosures, while noting Portman was "the handpicked choice of the downtown money crowd" and was "a registered foreign agent for the biggest Democrat lobbying firm in Washington," labeling Portman and McEwen "Prince Rob and Bouncing Bob." McEwen, who had taken a hard-line on his checks in 1992, relented in the campaign. Martin Gottlieb wrote, "McEwen says now that his problem was a form of excessive pride. He says he used to 'demand perfection' of himself." McEwen also said, "I felt I could never admit a mistake. . . . I am very, very sorry. I should have watched it more carefully. . . . I have learned a great deal." Les Spaeth, chairman of the Warren County Republican Party and former Warren County Auditor, said, "People very much disliked the check overdraft thing, but I think they don't see it as happening again. I think it's past. He made a mistake and he got caught. But that's overridden by the service he's given, particularly to our county."
After his successor in Congress, Ted Strickland, found election-related files on his office computers, questions were raised about whether McEwen had been illegally using his House office in his re-election campaign in 1992. McEwen's former chief of staff said McEwen knew nothing about it, and the chief of staff admitted "a technical violation of the rules."
McEwen won four of the five counties in the district — Adams, Brown, Clermont and Warren. In Adams, once part of his district, he received 77% of the vote, sixty-seven points ahead of Portman. However, McEwen finished third in the largest county in the district, Hamilton
, one he had never represented and which contained 57% of the Second District's registered voters. In the primary, Portman won only Hamilton County, but by a large enough margin to win the primary with 17,531 votes (35.61%), while McEwen received 14,542 (29.54%), Buchert 12,488 (25.37%), Dorsey 2,947 (5.99%), the rest scattering. The race in the Second District, one of the most Republican in the country, was determined in the primary — six times as many Republicans as Democrats voted in the primary — and Portman easily defeated attorney Lee Hornberger 53,020 (70.1%) to 22,652 (29.1%) in the special election on May 4.
Following the primary, the Dayton Daily News criticized McEwen for having voters return absentee voter request forms to his campaign office rather than directly to the county boards of elections. The Daily News also said the "primary was completely about personalities, rather than issues."
, area residing in northern Virginia
. Since 1997, he has been a partner with eleven other former Members of Congress in the Washington firm Advantage Associates, a lobbying and consulting firm. He founded FreedomQuest International, an international investment banking
firm based in Washington, D.C.
McEwen took to the lecture circuit, delivering speeches for $10,000 apiece. During the 2004 presidential election
, McEwen traveled widely to speak for George W. Bush
, focusing on Ohio. In 2006, he joined the law firm of Greenebaum, Doll, and McDonald as a consultant in its Cincinnati and Washington offices.
Days after President George W. Bush
nominated Second District Congressman Rob Portman
to be United States Trade Representative in March 2005, McEwen announced he would run for Portman's seat. He then moved from his home in Fairfax Station
, Virginia
and purchased a second residence, a condominium
in Hamilton County's Anderson Township
, east of Cincinnati
. McEwen drew upon his connections and quickly had high-profile endorsements from Focus on the Family
leader James Dobson
, former United States Attorney General
Edwin Meese
, Cincinnati Bengals
player Anthony Muñoz
, American Family Association
president Donald Wildmon
, Citizens for Community Values anti-pornography crusader Phil Burress, and former New York congressman Jack Kemp
, who came to the district to campaign for him. Kemp said in a rally in Clermont County on May 20 that "Bob and his wife Liz are like part of our family." Dobson wrote in his endorsement letter, "I have rarely been more excited about a candidate running in a highly significant race than I am about Bob McEwen for Congress . . . . If Bob returns to the House of Representatives, he will once again emerge as a tireless champion for the family and for traditional conservative values."
Ed Meese came to Cincinnati on May 31 to campaign for McEwen saying "Ronald Reagan
relied on him heavily." Rival candidate Pat DeWine
, a Hamilton County Commissioner and the son of Senator Mike DeWine
, the same day questioned McEwen's post-Congressional career as a lobbyist, issuing a press release saying "no one who has ever served in Congress ought to be allowed to become a lobbyist. Ever." Congressman John Boehner
, whose Eighth District was to the west of the Second, endorsed McEwen on June 7. Boehner was a freshman in McEwen's final term. He said, "Bob is the most qualified to step in and represent that district." The Congressmen from other neighboring districts, Steve Chabot
and Mike Turner
, were silent in the primary race. McEwen a week before the primary was reported to have raised $366,429, McEwen donating $250,000 to his campaign; DeWine's total was $743,407.
DeWine focused his attention on the most experienced candidate, McEwen. DeWine attacked McEwen with charges used against him in his last two campaigns. Dewine charged McEwen had "wasted taxpayers' money" by having the most expensive Congressional office of any Ohio member of the U.S. House and criticized McEwen's bouncing of 166 checks on the House bank. DeWine also tried to depict McEwen as a carpetbagger
, asking in television advertisements "If Bob McEwen really cares about us, why has he spent the last twelve years living in Virginia
?" McEwen denied he had bounced any checks, repeating what he had claimed in 1992 and insisted that he had continued to reside in Ohio since he lost his re-election bid, noting he had never voted in Virginia nor held a Virginia drivers license. (McEwen did not live in the second district until April 11, when he bought a condominium in Anderson Township
; but DeWine did not live in the district until he bought a home there on April 6.) DeWine quoted correspondence from the Highland County
Board of Elections claiming the Board had cancelled McEwen's voter registration for living in Virginia.
DeWine also questioned McEwen's record on taxes, sending out mailings criticizing McEwen's vote on May 24, 1982 in the 97th Congress "in support of a Democrat budget that raised out taxes by $233 billion." Two mailings focused on this issue, one featuring a photograph of Ronald Reagan that was captioned "When President Reagan Needed Votes to Keep Taxes Low, Bob McEwen Said 'NO'", the other asking "Are We Still the Party of Lower Taxes?"
Jean Schmidt
, a former member of the Ohio House, benefited from the conservative vote being split by McEwen and Tom Brinkman
. The official returns showed Schmidt had won with 14,331 votes (31%). McEwen finished second with 11,663 (25%), Brinkman was third with 9,320 (20%), and DeWine, who spent $1 million on his campaign, finished a distant fourth with 5,467 (12%). The remaining vote was split by the seven others, none of whom received more than 5%. Following the primary, McEwen campaigned with Schmidt in the general election against the Democratic nominee, attorney Paul Hackett.
On October 12, 2005, the Internet domain name BobMcEwenForSenate.com was
registered. McEwen also considered a campaign for Lieutenant Governor
as the running mate of Secretary of State
J. Kenneth Blackwell, who sought to replace Bob Taft
as Governor. On December 16, 2005, The Cincinnati Enquirer
reported McEwen was considering challenging Schmidt for her congressional seat in 2006 and had formed an exploratory committee
. "I am in serious consideration," he told the newspaper. On January 18, 2006, McEwen confirmed that he would run in the May 2 primary against Jean Schmidt
.
He started his campaign with little in the way of reserve cash. "I won't let this distract me from my duties as a congresswoman," Schmidt told The Cincinnati Enquirer upon McEwen's announcement. "I have a job to do. I can't worry about this." Anti-pornography activist Phil Burress told the Associated Press that a race between Schmidt and McEwen would be tough. "They are two totally different types of personalities. Bob is a statesman, and I love that. Jean will get in your face in a heartbeat, and I like that too," said Burress. Also running were Deborah A. Kraus, who worked for the West Clermont school district's computer services department, and James E. Constable, who ran to protest the care his disabled son received from a state hospital.
McEwen finished second to Schmidt in the May 2 primary. Unofficial returns gave her 33,314 votes (47.75%) to McEwen's 29,611 (42.45%), Kraus's 4,358 (6.25%), and Constable's 2,480 (3.55%). McEwen won Adams, Brown, Pike, and Scioto Counties while Schmidt won Clermont, Hamilton, and Warren.
strongman Laurent Gbagbo
. "In December [2010], McEwen was hired at a rate of $25,000 per month to assist the Ivorian ambassador to the U.S. 'in exerting his influence in the most strategic way possible,' according to lobbying records." When asked about his representation of Gbagbo, McEwen said: "I was a member of the intelligence committee. There are not too many places in Africa I haven't been. So I'm knowledgeable of the issue and what's going on." "Despite allegations of human rights abuses, McEwen still supports Gbagbo, calling the current crisis 'a coup
in progress' by Gbagbo's opponents. He believes the international response is driven by French financial interests in the country."
named for McEwen. Clermont County was grateful to McEwen because he successfully forced the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to sell the county water from Harsha Lake after the state denied them water for years; the plant treats the Harsha Lake water he obtained for the county.
Politics of the United States
The United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
of the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, who was a member of the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from southern Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
's Sixth District
Ohio's 6th congressional district
Ohio's 6th congressional district is currently represented by Representative Bill Johnson . This district runs along the southeast side of the state, bordering Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania...
, from January 3, 1981 to January 3, 1993. Tom Deimer of Cleveland's Plain Dealer described him as a "textbook Republican" who is "opposed to abortion, gun control
Gun politics in the United States
Gun politics in the United States refers to an ongoing political and social debate regarding both the restriction and availability of firearms within the United States. It has long been among the most controversial and intractable issues in American politics...
, high taxes
Taxation in the United States
The United States is a federal republic with autonomous state and local governments. Taxes are imposed in the United States at each of these levels. These include taxes on income, property, sales, imports, payroll, estates and gifts, as well as various fees.Taxes are imposed on net income of...
, and costly government programs." In the House, he criticized government incompetence and charged corruption by the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
majority that ran the House in the 1980s. McEwen, who had easily won three terms in the Ohio House
Ohio House of Representatives
The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
, was elected to Congress at the age of thirty to replace a retiring representative in 1980 and easily won re-election five times.
After a bruising primary
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
battle with another incumbent whose district was combined with his, in which McEwen faced charges of bouncing checks
House banking scandal
The House banking scandal broke in early 1992, when it was revealed that the United States House of Representatives allowed members to overdraw their House checking accounts without risk of being penalized by the House bank ....
on the House bank, he narrowly lost the 1992 general election to Democrat Ted Strickland
Ted Strickland
Theodore "Ted" Strickland was the 68th Governor of Ohio, serving from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ....
. Following an unsuccessful run in the adjacent Second District
Ohio's 2nd congressional district
Ohio's 2nd congressional district is a district in southern Ohio. It is currently represented by Jean Schmidt.The district stretches along the Ohio River from the Hamilton County suburbs of Cincinnati east to Scioto County...
in 1993, McEwen was largely absent from the Ohio political scene for a decade, until in 2005 he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for Congress in the Second District special election to replace Rob Portman
Rob Portman
Robert Jones "Rob" Portman is the junior United States Senator from Ohio. He is a member of the Republican Party. He succeeded retiring Senator George Voinovich....
, who beat him in 1993, and finished second to the winner in the general election, Jean Schmidt
Jean Schmidt
Jeannette Marie Hoffman Schmidt, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Republican Party. The district stretches from eastern Cincinnati to Portsmouth....
. McEwen's 2005 platform was familiar from his past campaigns, advocating a pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
stance, defending Second Amendment
Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights that protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, along with the rest of the Bill of Rights.In 2008 and 2010, the Supreme Court issued two Second...
rights, and promising to limit taxes and government spending. In 2006, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination in the Second District.
Before Congress
Born in HillsboroHillsboro, Ohio
Hillsboro is a city in and the county seat of Highland County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,605 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hillsboro is located at ....
, McEwen graduated from Hillsboro High School. He earned a Bachelor's in Business Administration
Bachelor of Business Administration
The Bachelor of Business Administration is a bachelor's degree in Commerce and business administration. In most universities, the degree is conferred upon a student after four years of full-time study in one or more areas of business concentrations; see below...
from the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
in Coral Gables
Coral Gables, Florida
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in 1972. He also attended The Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
's College of Law for one year from 1972 to 1973.
McEwen is married to the former Elizabeth "Liz" Boebinger and has four children: Meredith, Jonathan, Robert, and Elizabeth. He is a member of many fraternal organizations and civic groups, including Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi is the largest and one of the oldest college Greek-letter secret and social fraternities in North America with 244 active chapters and more than . Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon...
, the Farm Bureau, the Grange
Grange movement
The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, also simply styled the Grange, is a fraternal organization for American farmers that encourages farm families to band together for their common economic and political well-being...
, Rotary International
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
, the Jaycees, and the Optimist Club. He is a member of the Church of Christ
Church of Christ
Churches of Christ are autonomous Christian congregations associated with one another through common beliefs and practices. They seek to base doctrine and practice on the Bible alone, and seek to be New Testament congregations as originally established by the authority of Christ. Historically,...
.
After two years in his wife's family real estate business, serving as a vice president of Boebinger, Inc., he was elected at the age of twenty-four to the Ohio House of Representatives
Ohio House of Representatives
The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
in 1974 from the 72nd House District representing southern Ohio. McEwen's district contained parts of Clinton, Fayette, Greene, and Highland Counties and all of Madison County. He was re-elected to two more two-year terms. In 1976, his plurality against Democrat L. James Matter was 14,816 votes, a number larger than the votes cast for Matter. (McEwen received 27,657 to Matter's 12,841.) McEwen was a supporter of the state lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
in the House. Having previously directed Sixth District Congressman Bill Harsha
Bill Harsha
William Howard "Bill" Harsha, Jr. was an American politician who represented Ohio as a Republican in the United States House of Representatives from January 3, 1961 to January 3, 1981.-Biography:...
's re-election campaigns to Congress in 1976 and 1978, McEwen ran for Harsha's seat when he retired in 1980. Harsha was neutral in the eight-man primary that McEwen won but supported McEwen in the general election where he defeated psychologist
Psychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
and minister Ted Strickland
Ted Strickland
Theodore "Ted" Strickland was the 68th Governor of Ohio, serving from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ....
, Harsha's opponent in 1976 and 1978, who went on to become Governor of Ohio.
Congressional career
American conservatism
Conservatism in the United States has played an important role in American politics since the 1950s. Historian Gregory Schneider identifies several constants in American conservatism: respect for tradition, support of republicanism, preservation of "the rule of law and the Christian religion", and...
, advocating a strong military. In addition, he was a strong advocate for government works in his district — dams, roads, locks and the like much as Harsha had been — as McEwen was on the House's Public Works and Transportation Committee. The Chillicothe Gazette
Chillicothe Gazette
The Chillicothe Gazette, Ohio's oldest newspaper, published daily at Chillicothe, Ohio, the seat of Ross County, Ohio, by the Gannett Company. The paper was founded as a weekly at Cincinnati, Ohio, then the capital of the Northwest Territory, November 9, 1793 as the Centinel of the Northwest...
would salute him for his work on funding for U.S. Route 35
U.S. Route 35
U.S. Route 35 is a north–south United States highway that runs northwest-southeast for approximately from northern Indiana to the western suburbs of Charleston, West Virginia. The highway's northern terminus is in Michigan City, Indiana, at U.S. Route 20. Its southern terminus is in Scott...
, a limited access highway linking Chillicothe
Chillicothe, Ohio
Chillicothe is a city in and the county seat of Ross County, Ohio, United States.Chillicothe was the first and third capital of Ohio and is located in southern Ohio along the Scioto River. The name comes from the Shawnee name Chalahgawtha, meaning "principal town", as it was a major settlement of...
to Dayton
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
. In general, however, McEwen advocated reduced government spending.
A vehement anti-Communist
Anti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
, he visited Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia in 1991 to help tear down the hammer-and-sickle iconography of the Communist regime. That year he also called for the House to establish a select committee to investigate the Vietnam War POW/MIA issue
Vietnam War POW/MIA issue
The Vietnam War POW/MIA issue concerns the fate of United States servicemen who were reported as missing in action during the Vietnam War and associated theaters of operation in Southeast Asia...
– whether any soldiers declared "missing in action
Missing in action
Missing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...
" in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and other American wars were still alive – by sponsoring H. Res. 207.
McEwen's district
When McEwen was first elected in 1980, the Sixth District of Ohio consisted of AdamsAdams County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,330 people, 10,501 households, and 7,613 families residing in the county. The population density was 47 people per square mile . There were 11,822 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile...
, Brown
Brown County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 42,285 people, 15,555 households, and 11,790 families residing in the county. The population density was 86 people per square mile . There were 17,193 housing units at an average density of 35 per square mile...
, Clinton
Clinton County, Ohio
Clinton County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 42,040. The 2008 Census Population Estimate places the figure at 43,200. It is named for former U.S. Vice-President George Clinton...
, Fayette
Fayette County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,433 people, 11,054 households, and 7,837 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile . There were 11,904 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...
, Highland
Highland County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 40,875 people, 15,587 households, and 11,394 families residing in the county. The population density was 74 people per square mile . There were 17,583 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
, Pickaway
Pickaway County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 52,727 people, 17,599 households, and 13,287 families residing in the county. The population density was 105 people per square mile . There were 18,596 housing units at an average density of 37 per square mile...
, Pike
Pike County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,695 people, 10,444 households, and 7,665 families residing in the county. The population density was 63 people per square mile . There were 11,602 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...
, Scioto
Scioto County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 79,195 people, 30,871 households, and 21,362 families residing in the county. The population density was 129 people per square mile . There were 34,054 housing units at an average density of 56 per square mile...
, and Ross
Ross County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 73,345 people, 27,136 households, and 19,185 families residing in the county. The population density was 106 people per square mile . There were 29,461 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
Counties plus Clermont County
Clermont County, Ohio
Clermont County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, just east of Cincinnati. As of 2010, the population was 197,363. Its county seat is Batavia...
outside the city of Loveland
Loveland, Ohio
Loveland is a city in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Considered part of the Greater Cincinnati area, Loveland is located near exit 52 off Interstate 275, about northeast of the Cincinnati city limits. It borders Symmes, Miami and...
, Harrison Township
Harrison Township, Vinton County, Ohio
Harrison Township is one of the twelve townships of Vinton County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,030 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southwestern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:...
in Vinton County
Vinton County, Ohio
Vinton County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,435. , the least populous in the state. Its county seat is McArthur. The county is named for Samuel Finley Vinton, a 19th-century United States Congressman from...
and the Warren County
Warren County, Ohio
Warren County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. The population was 212,693 at the 2010 census. Its county seat is Lebanon. Warren County was erected May 1, 1803, from Hamilton County, and named for Dr...
townships of Clearcreek
Clearcreek Township, Warren County, Ohio
Clearcreek Township is one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, located in the north central portion of the county. It had a population of 20,974 in 2000, up from 13,344 in 1990; of this total, 8,747 lived in the unincorporated portions of the township. It was originally...
, Deerfield
Deerfield Township, Warren County, Ohio
Deerfield Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, is located in the southwest corner of the county. The most urbanized of the eleven, it had 25,515 people in the 2000 census, down from the 26,359 in 1990...
, Hamilton
Hamilton Township, Warren County, Ohio
Hamilton Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, is in the south central portion of the county. The 2000 census found 9,630 people there, up significantly from the 5,900 in 1990. 8,645 of the total in 2000 lived in the unincorporated portions of the township...
, Harlan
Harlan Township, Warren County, Ohio
Harlan Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, and the last to be formed in that county, is located in the southeast corner of the county...
, Massie
Massie Township, Warren County, Ohio
Massie Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, Ohio, United States, is located in the northeast part of the county and the least populous of Warren County's townships. In 2000, the population was 1,061 up from 885 in 1990; of this total, 498 lived in the unincorporated...
, Salem
Salem Township, Warren County, Ohio
Salem Township is one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States, located in the central part of the county. The 2000 census found 4,133 people in the township, up slightly from the 4,038 in 1990; of this total, 2,847 lived in the unincorporated portions of the township. It is...
, and Wayne
Wayne Township, Warren County, Ohio
Wayne Township is one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, United States. It is located in the northeast part of the county and includes the village of Waynesville, Ohio. Its population in 2000 was 7,250, up from 5,744 in 1990; 4,436 of this total lived in the unincorporated portions...
. The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
described the Sixth as "a fail-safe Republican district." It had been in Republican hands since a 1959 special election.
The Ohio General Assembly
Ohio General Assembly
The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate...
redrew the Sixth District following the results of the 1980 Census. The boundaries from 1983 to 1987 included all of Adams
Adams County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,330 people, 10,501 households, and 7,613 families residing in the county. The population density was 47 people per square mile . There were 11,822 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile...
, Clinton
Clinton County, Ohio
Clinton County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 42,040. The 2008 Census Population Estimate places the figure at 43,200. It is named for former U.S. Vice-President George Clinton...
, Fayette
Fayette County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,433 people, 11,054 households, and 7,837 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile . There were 11,904 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...
, Highland
Highland County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 40,875 people, 15,587 households, and 11,394 families residing in the county. The population density was 74 people per square mile . There were 17,583 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
, Hocking
Hocking County, Ohio
Hocking County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 29,380. Its county seat is Logan. Its name is from the Hocking River, the origins of which are disputed but is said to be a Delaware Indian word meaning "bottle river".-Geography:According to the...
, Jackson
Jackson County, Ohio
Jackson County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 33,225. Its county seat is Jackson and is named for Andrew Jackson, a hero of the War of 1812 who was subsequently elected President of the United States....
, Pike
Pike County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,695 people, 10,444 households, and 7,665 families residing in the county. The population density was 63 people per square mile . There were 11,602 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...
, Ross
Ross County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 73,345 people, 27,136 households, and 19,185 families residing in the county. The population density was 106 people per square mile . There were 29,461 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
, Scioto
Scioto County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 79,195 people, 30,871 households, and 21,362 families residing in the county. The population density was 129 people per square mile . There were 34,054 housing units at an average density of 56 per square mile...
, Vinton
Vinton County, Ohio
Vinton County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,435. , the least populous in the state. Its county seat is McArthur. The county is named for Samuel Finley Vinton, a 19th-century United States Congressman from...
and Warren
Warren County, Ohio
Warren County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. The population was 212,693 at the 2010 census. Its county seat is Lebanon. Warren County was erected May 1, 1803, from Hamilton County, and named for Dr...
Counties, plus Waterloo
Waterloo Township, Athens County, Ohio
Waterloo Township is one of the fourteen townships of Athens County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 2,605 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the western part of the county, it borders the following townships:*York Township - north...
and York
York Township, Athens County, Ohio
York Township is one of the fourteen townships of Athens County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 7,740 people in the township, 1,947 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
Townships in Athens County
Athens County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,223 people, 22,501 households, and 12,713 families residing in the county. The population density was 123 people per square mile . There were 24,901 housing units at an average density of 49 per square mile...
; Wayne Township
Wayne Township, Clermont County, Ohio
Wayne Township is one of the fourteen townships of Clermont County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 5,025 people in the township, 4,533 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
in Clermont County
Clermont County, Ohio
Clermont County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, just east of Cincinnati. As of 2010, the population was 197,363. Its county seat is Batavia...
; Concord
Concord Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Concord Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,068 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Jasper Township - north...
, Jasper
Jasper Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Jasper Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 857 people in the township, 665 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
, Marion
Marion Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Marion Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 748 people in the township, 656 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
, Perry
Perry Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Perry Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 945 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Union Township - north...
, Union
Union Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Union Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,808 people in the township.-Geography:Located at the center of the county, it borders the following townships:*Paint Township - north...
, and Wayne
Wayne Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Wayne Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,367 people in township.-Geography:Located in the southeastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Marion Township - north...
Townships in Fayette County
Fayette County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,433 people, 11,054 households, and 7,837 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile . There were 11,904 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...
; and Washington Township
Washington Township, Montgomery County, Ohio
Washington Township is one of the nine townships of Montgomery County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 56,607.Washington Township and Centerville voted November 4, 2008, on whether to create a merger commission.-Geography:...
and the Cities of Miamisburg
Miamisburg, Ohio
Miamisburg is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States. The population was 20,181 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area...
and West Carrollton
West Carrollton, Ohio
West Carrollton is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,143 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area....
in Montgomery
Montgomery County, Ohio
Montgomery County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. The population was 535,153 in the 2010 Census. It was named in honor of Richard Montgomery, an American Revolutionary War general killed in 1775 while attempting to capture Quebec City, Canada. The county seat is Dayton...
County.
Effective with the 100th Congress
100th United States Congress
-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President: George H.W. Bush * President pro tempore: John Stennis - Majority leadership :* Majority Leader, Democratic Conference Chairman, and Democratic Policy Committee Chairman: Robert Byrd...
in 1987, adjustments were made by the legislature to the boundaries. A small part of the Montgomery County territory was detached, as were parts of Fayette County in Washington Court House
Washington Court House, Ohio
Washington Court House is a city in Fayette County, Ohio, United States. It is the county seat of Fayette County and is located approximately halfway between Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio. The population was 14,192 in 2010 at the 2010 census...
in Union Township
Union Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Union Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 3,808 people in the township.-Geography:Located at the center of the county, it borders the following townships:*Paint Township - north...
and the townships of Jasper
Jasper Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Jasper Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 857 people in the township, 665 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
and Marion
Marion Township, Fayette County, Ohio
Marion Township is one of the ten townships of Fayette County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 748 people in the township, 656 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
. Part of Brown County
Brown County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 42,285 people, 15,555 households, and 11,790 families residing in the county. The population density was 86 people per square mile . There were 17,193 housing units at an average density of 35 per square mile...
was added, Jackson
Jackson Township, Brown County, Ohio
Jackson Township is one of the sixteen townships of Brown County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,221 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the eastern part of the county, it borders the following townships:*Eagle Township - north...
and Eagle
Eagle Township, Brown County, Ohio
Eagle Township is one of the sixteen townships of Brown County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,438 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the northeastern corner of the county, it borders the following townships:...
Townships. These were the boundaries for the rest of McEwen's service in Congress.
The district was largely rural and agricultural with no large cities. One of the major industries was the United States Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
's Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion
Gaseous diffusion
Gaseous diffusion is a technology used to produce enriched uranium by forcing gaseous uranium hexafluoride through semi-permeable membranes. This produces a slight separation between the molecules containing uranium-235 and uranium-238 . By use of a large cascade of many stages, high separations...
Plant at Piketon
Piketon, Ohio
Piketon is a village in Pike County, Ohio, United States, along the Scioto River. The village is best known for the uranium enrichment plant located there . The population was 1,907 at the 2000 census...
, which manufacted uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
for nuclear weapons. The district was 97% white
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
with a median household income of $21,761.
Strong words
McEwen was not a man to mince words. In the heated debate in 1985 over a Congressional seat in IndianaIndiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
between Republican Richard D. McIntyre
Rick McIntyre
Richard D. McIntyre, Sr. was a lawyer and public official from Indiana. He was born in 1956 and his original ambition was to become a Navy Pilot. He enrolled in Naval air training in Pensacola, but was forced to quit after a knee injury...
, whom the Indiana Secretary of State had certified as winning a seat in the 99th Congress
99th United States Congress
The Ninety-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1985 to January 3, 1987, during the fifth and sixth...
, and Democrat Frank McCloskey
Frank McCloskey
Francis Xavier "Frank" McCloskey was a six-term Democratic representative from Indiana from January 3, 1983 to January 3, 1995, widely remembered for his advocacy on behalf of Bosnian Muslims. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and later moved to Bloomington, Indiana after receiving an...
, in which the House declined to seat McIntyre, McEwen declared on the House floor, "Mr. Speaker, you know how to win votes the old fashioned way — you steal them." When McEwen was late in 1990 to the House because of a massive traffic jam on the I-495
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)
Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
beltway around Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, he said on the House floor on February 21 that the District of Columbia's government should be replaced:
The total incompetence of the D.C. government in Washington, DC, has become an embarrassment to our entire Nation. This experiment in home rule is a disaster. All of us who serve in this Chamber, well over 95% of us, have held other positions in government. We have been mayors. We have been township trustees, State legislators, and the rest. I am convinced, Mr. Speaker, that there are well over 2,000 township trustees in my congressional district who with one arm tied behind their backs, could blindfolded do a better job of directing this city than the city council of D.C. It is high time that this experiment in home ruleHome ruleHome rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
that has proven to be a disaster for our nation be terminated, that we return to some sort of logical government whereby the rest of us can function in this city.
After McEwen was criticized for his remarks, he delivered a thirty-minute speech in the House on March 1, 1990, on "The Worst City Government in America". Because of the crime problem in the District, McEwen also attempted to pass legislation overturning the District council's ban on mace
Mace (spray)
Chemical Mace is a tear gas in the form of an aerosol spray which propels a lachrymatory agent mixed with a volatile solvent. It is sometimes used as a self-defense device...
, saying people in the District should be able to defend themselves. During the Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
in 1991, McEwen introduced legislation to end President Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
's ban on U.S. government employees assassinating foreign leaders (Executive Order 12333) in order to clear the way for Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
's removal, McEwen objecting to the "cocoon of protection that is placed around him because he holds the position that he holds as leader of his country."
Considers Senate run
In October 1987, encouraged by Senator Phil GrammPhil Gramm
William Philip "Phil" Gramm is an American economist and politician, who has served as a Democratic Congressman , a Republican Congressman and a Republican Senator from Texas...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, McEwen announced he would challenge Senator Howard M. Metzenbaum, a Democrat, in his 1988 bid for re-election, but McEwen found he lacked statewide support and would face a strong primary challenger in Cleveland mayor George V. Voinovich. He dropped out of the race in December. McEwen's name was floated in 1991 as a possible challenger in 1992 to Ohio's other senator, John Glenn
John Glenn
John Herschel Glenn, Jr. is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator who was the first American to orbit the Earth and the third American in space. Glenn was a Marine Corps fighter pilot before joining NASA's Mercury program as a member of NASA's original...
, another Democrat, but McEwen did not enter the race.
Easily reelected
McEwen was easily re-elected to the House in every election but his last. In 1982, he defeated Lynn Alan Grimshaw, 92,135 to 63,435, and in the ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
landslide of 1984 he beat Bob Smith nearly three-to-one, 150,101 to 52,727. In 1986 and 1988 he faced Gordon R. Roberts, defeating him two-to-one in 1986 (106,354 to 42,155 with independent Amos Seeley receiving a scattering) and three-to-one in 1988 (152,235 to 52,635). In the rematch, McEwen outspent Roberts twenty-to-one, $884,754 to $43,485. McEwen in 1990 beat his opponent, Raymond S. Mitchell — who the Dayton Daily News
Dayton Daily News
The Dayton Daily News is a daily newspaper published in Dayton, Ohio. It is owned by Cox Enterprises. In the 2010 Associated Press Society of Ohio newspaper competition that takes place every year, DaytonDailyNews.com was named "the best large-newspaper web site in Ohio".-History:On August 15,...
said "is an unknown small businessman who hasn't thought things through" — by three to one. The tally was 117,200 to 47,415 in a race where Mitchell was outspent seventeen-to-one, McEwen spending $196,934 and Mitchell $11,171. Congressional Quarterly's Politics in America pronounced him "invincible" in his district.
In the spotlight in his last term
McEwen served on the Public Works and Transportation and Veterans' Affairs Committees from his election to 1991. By 1989, he had risen to be the ranking minority memberRanking minority member
In United States politics, the term ranking minority member refers to the most senior member of a congressional or state legislative committee from the minority party. This position is sometimes referred to as ranking member. On many committees the ranking minority member, along with the chairman,...
of the Public Works Committee's Economic Development Subcommittee and was sixth in seniority on the full committee. During the 99th and 100th
100th United States Congress
-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President: George H.W. Bush * President pro tempore: John Stennis - Majority leadership :* Majority Leader, Democratic Conference Chairman, and Democratic Policy Committee Chairman: Robert Byrd...
Congresses, he was also a member of the Select Committee on Intelligence. During his last term, in the 102nd Congress
102nd United States Congress
-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President:Dan Quayle * President pro tempore: Robert Byrd - Majority leadership :* Majority Leader: George Mitchell* Majority Whip: Wendell Ford- Minority leadership :...
, he left Public Works and Veterans' Affairs for the powerful Rules Committee and served on its Legislative Process Subcommittee. He was chosen for the Rules Committee by Republican leader Bob Michel of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, but McEwen would grumble that "the Committee on Rules is stacked in a partisan manner 2 to 1 plus 1" by the Democratic majority. During the 102nd Congress, he was also on the Select Committee on Children, Families, and Youth.
Late in his Congressional career, he began regular appearances on public affairs programs such as Nightline and the MacNeil-Lehrer NewsHour
The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
PBS NewsHour is an evening television news program broadcast weeknights on the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States. The show is produced by MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, a company co-owned by former anchors Jim Lehrer and Robert MacNeil, and Liberty Media, which owns a 65% stake in the...
and was often a guest on C-SPAN
C-SPAN
C-SPAN , an acronym for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, is an American cable television network that offers coverage of federal government proceedings and other public affairs programming via its three television channels , one radio station and a group of websites that provide streaming...
and the Cable News Network. Martin Gottlieb of the Dayton Daily News, a Democratic newspaper, thought McEwen's performances showed why he had remained in the background previously:
In the past, McEwen's ambition has taken the form of interest in higher office. Twice he made feints about seeking statewide office. But he didn't want to risk his congressional seat. Now he's found a way to nurse a healthy level of ambition without taking that risk. He has, of course, a pronounced tendency to be wrong about the issues . . . . Most typically, he appears as an ideological combatant. He seems to be selling himself to the nation's conservatives as an attractive spokesman. He's got enough talent to do it. In the days when McEwen was content to be a back-bencher, he was criticized on this page for his irrelevance on the important issues. Now, however, it is clear that the nation as a whole was better off when he was keeping his views to himself.
In his decade in Congress, McEwen compiled a conservative voting record, usually scoring in the single digits in the annual Americans for Democratic Action
Americans for Democratic Action
Americans for Democratic Action is an American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA works for social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research and supporting progressive candidates.-History:...
ratings and 85% or higher in the American Conservative Union
American Conservative Union
The American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
's similar polls, though McEwen was never one of the most conservative Republicans in the House nor the most conservative Republican in the Ohio delegation.
McEwen often joined his fellow Republicans in making special order speeches in the House, which occur after the business for the day has concluded and are made to a nearly empty chamber. McEwen's ally Newt Gingrich
Newt Gingrich
Newton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
had discovered that, thanks to the C-SPAN cable network's promise of "gavel-to-gavel coverage" of the House, he and his fellow conservatives such as McEwen, Mississippi's Trent Lott
Trent Lott
Chester Trent Lott, Sr. , is a former United States Senator from Mississippi and has served in numerous leadership positions in the House of Representatives and the Senate....
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's Robert K. Dornan, and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
's Robert S. Walker could speak directly to Americans. Congressional Quarterly wrote viewers often found "McEwen playing the trusty sidekick Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza
Sancho Panza is a fictional character in the novel Don Quixote written by Spanish author Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra in 1605. Sancho acts as squire to Don Quixote, and provides comments throughout the novel, known as sanchismos, that are a combination of broad humour, ironic Spanish proverbs,...
to Bob Dornan of California, both tilting at the latest liberal windmill."
New district lines
McEwen easily won re-election in every race save his last and was seen as unbeatable in his district. However, Ohio lost two seats in the 1990 reapportionment. The Democrats and Republicans in the Ohio General Assembly struck a deal to eliminate one Democratic and one Republican district, as one congressman from each party was expected to retire. The Republican expected to retire was Clarence E. MillerClarence E. Miller
Clarence Ellsworth Miller, Jr. was a Republican Congressman from Ohio, serving January 3, 1967 to January 3, 1993....
, a thirteen-term veteran called "chairman of the caucus of the obscure" for his invisibility on Capitol Hill. However, Miller surprised everyone by deciding to run for a fourteenth term. The Democrats in the Statehouse would not reconsider the deal and Miller's Tenth District was obliterated.
The new district map was not agreed upon by the General Assembly until March 26, 1992, one week before the filing deadline for the primary originally scheduled for May 5. Governor George Voinovich
George Voinovich
George Victor Voinovich is a former United States Senator from the state of Ohio, and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he served as the 65th Governor of Ohio from 1991 to 1998, and as the 54th mayor of Cleveland from 1980 to 1989.-Personal life:Born in Cleveland, Ohio, his father was...
signed the new map into law on March 27, and on April 1 the General Assembly moved the primary to June 2. Miller's hometown of Lancaster
Lancaster, Ohio
Lancaster is a city in Fairfield County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 38,780. It is located near the Hocking River, approximately southeast of Columbus, Ohio. It is the county seat of Fairfield County...
was placed in freshman David Hobson
Dave Hobson
David Lee Hobson is an American politician of the Republican Party who served as a U.S. representative from the seventh congressional district of Ohio.Hobson was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and graduated from Withrow High School in 1954...
's Springfield
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
-based Seventh District, but Miller chose to run in the Sixth District against McEwen since the largest piece of his old district — five counties — was placed in the new Sixth. Miller's decision was also impacted by his strong personal distaste for McEwen.
After being hurt in a fall in his bathtub after slipping on a bar of soap, Miller was expected to withdraw and the Republican leadership hoped for a deal as late as May 15, the day Miller was to hold a press conference Ohio political observers thought he would use to announce his withdrawal. However, Miller stayed in the race and the two incumbents faced each other in the Republican primary on June 2, 1992.
House banking scandal
McEwen was caught up in the House banking scandalHouse banking scandal
The House banking scandal broke in early 1992, when it was revealed that the United States House of Representatives allowed members to overdraw their House checking accounts without risk of being penalized by the House bank ....
, which had been seized upon by Newt Gingrich
Newt Gingrich
Newton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
, a like-minded conservative House Republican, as an example of the corruption of Congress; members of the House had been allowed to write checks on their accounts, which were paid despite insufficient funds and without penalty. Martin Gottlieb of the Dayton Daily News said "McEwen was collateral damage" to Gingrich's crusade. McEwen initially denied bouncing any checks. Later, he admitted he had bounced a few. Then when the full totals were released by Ethics Committee investigators, the number was revealed to have been 166 over thirty-nine months. McEwen said that he always had funds available to cover the alleged overdrafts, pointing to the policy of the House sergeant at arms, who ran the House bank, paying checks on an overdrawn account if it would not exceed the sum of the Representative's next paycheck. In 1991, McEwen had also been criticized for his use of the franking privilege and his frequent trips overseas at taxpayer expense, but McEwen defended the trips as part of his work on the Intelligence Committee and in building relationships with legislatures overseas.
Miller and McEwen spar
The primary race was bitter. Miller called McEwen "PinocchioPinocchio
The Adventures of Pinocchio is a novel for children by Italian author Carlo Collodi, written in Florence. The first half was originally a serial between 1881 and 1883, and then later completed as a book for children in February 1883. It is about the mischievous adventures of Pinocchio , an...
," and McEwen said of Miller, "His misrepresentations and falsehoods are gargantuan. I tried to be his best friend in the delegation. I am deeply disappointed at the meanness of his effort." Tom Deimer of Cleveland's Plain Dealer wrote that the two candidates were largely identical on the issues: "both are textbook Republican conservatives, opposed to abortion, gun control, high taxes, and costly government programs — unless located in their districts." Miller noted he had no overdrafts at the House bank, saying, "the score is 166 to nothing." McEwen said "every one of my checks was free and clear. Every month's statement had a balance." McEwen ran commercials against Miller claiming the long-time congressman "has fallen out of touch with Ohio" and "doesn't live in our district and isn't even registered to vote here." Miller struck back in a live-television interview by taking a Wheat Thin
Wheat Thins
Wheat Thins are a popular baked snack cracker found in North America, distributed by Nabisco, a subsidiary of Kraft Foods Global Inc. in the US, Kraft Foods in Canada and in Australia through wholesaler USA Foods. Also Vegetable Thins, Pita Thins, and Rice Thins, which both are spun off from Wheat...
, claiming it to be McEwen, and then taking a bite out of it.
Close results
The 1992 primary was so close it forced a recount and prompted a lawsuit. When Ohio Secretary of StateOhio Secretary of State
The Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing elections in the State of Ohio. The Secretary of State also is responsible for registering business entities and granting them the authority to do business within the state, registering secured transactions, and granting access to public...
Bob Taft
Bob Taft
Robert Alphonso "Bob" Taft II is an Ohio Republican Party politician. He was elected to two terms of office as the 67th Governor of the U.S. state of Ohio between 1999-2007. After leaving office, Taft started working for the University of Dayton beginning August 15, 2007.-Personal background:Taft...
dismissed Miller's charges of voting irregularities in Highland, Hocking and Warren Counties, Miller filed suit in the Ohio Supreme Court. Miller dropped his court challenge in August and then only because his campaign treasury was exhausted. In the final count, McEwen won 33,219 votes to Miller's 32,922, a plurality of 297 votes. In the end, McEwen's geographic advantage (he retained 59% of his old territory) put him over the top. Ominously, however, Miller trounced him in the five counties that had been in Miller's old district.
After the final result, Miller refused to endorse McEwen, though McEwen tried to sooth feelings by introducing H.R. 5727 in the House to name the dam and locks on the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
near Gallipolis
Gallipolis, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,180 people, 1,847 households, and 1,004 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,156.2 people per square mile . There were 2,056 housing units at an average density of 568.7 per square mile...
after Miller. Miller carried an unsuccessful legal challenge to the redistricting to the United States Supreme Court, insisting district lines should be drawn on a politically neutral basis.
Defeated in the general election
The old Sixth District was centered in southwestern and south-central Ohio around McEwen's hometown, Hillsboro. After redistricting, McEwen found himself running in a huge area stretching from LebanonLebanon, Ohio
The population at the 2010 census was 20,033. As of the census of 2000, there were 16,962 people residing in the city. The population density was 1,440.6 people per square mile . There were 6,218 housing units at an average density of 528.1 per square mile...
to Marietta
Marietta, Ohio
Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Ohio, United States. During 1788, pioneers to the Ohio Country established Marietta as the first permanent American settlement of the new United States in the Northwest Territory. Marietta is located in southeastern Ohio at the mouth...
. This new district was very difficult to campaign in. It spilled across six media markets, meaning that McEwen had to buy ads in cities where most of the viewers couldn't vote in the district. It also lacked any large cities and possessed few unifying elements. His Democratic opponent was psychologist Ted Strickland
Ted Strickland
Theodore "Ted" Strickland was the 68th Governor of Ohio, serving from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ....
, whom he had defeated in his initial run in 1980.
Pat Buchanan
Pat Buchanan
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Buchanan is an American paleoconservative political commentator, author, syndicated columnist, politician and broadcaster. Buchanan was a senior adviser to American Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan, and was an original host on CNN's Crossfire. He sought...
, the conservative columnist who challenged President Bush in the 1992 presidential primaries, came to Ohio to campaign for McEwen, as did Vice President Dan Quayle
Dan Quayle
James Danforth "Dan" Quayle served as the 44th Vice President of the United States, serving with President George H. W. Bush . He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from the state of Indiana....
and Oliver North
Oliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
. Though George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
won the district, McEwen was narrowly defeated by Strickland in the general election on November 3. While he won 55-45 in the area he once represented, McEwen did not win in any of the counties that had once been in Miller's district, losing the unfamiliar territory 59-41. Strickland received 122,720 votes to McEwen's 119,252, a plurality of only 3,468. "I think McEwen's loss was a case of bounced checks and some arrogance," said Alfred Tuchfarber, a political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
professor at the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
who runs the Ohio Poll. "He just had a certain personal arrogance about him that didn't go down well in a poor district." Strickland said, "I ran against Pat Robertson
Pat Robertson
Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson is a media mogul, television evangelist, ex-Baptist minister and businessman who is politically aligned with the Christian Right in the United States....
, Pat Buchanan, the National Rifle Association
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
and Right-to-Life. They threw everything at me. I'm just so happy I beat back those guys. I think they're so divisive."
Runs in the Second District in 1993
McEwen then sought election to the House in the Second District near Cincinnati, immediately west of his former district, and which contained some territory he represented in the 1980s. The election was to fill the vacancy caused by Willis D. Gradison'sBill Gradison
Willis David "Bill" Gradison Jr. is an American politician, who served for almost two decades in the U.S. House of Representatives.-Early life and education:...
resignation to become a lobbyist for the insurance industry on January 31, 1993, three months after his re-election. "It's important that we have an experienced person to fight for jobs for Southwest Ohio. We need to bring economic growth to our area," McEwen said. "It's important that we have someone who can hit the ground running, representing our values of economic growth and low taxes." Though a congressman does not need to live in the district he represents, McEwen put his home in Hillsboro up for sale and rented a home in Bethel
Bethel, Ohio
Bethel is a village in Clermont County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,637 at the 2000 census.Bethel was founded in 1798 by Obed Denham, in what was then the Northwest Territory....
in Clermont County.
In the Republican primary on March 16, McEwen faced trade lawyer Rob Portman
Rob Portman
Robert Jones "Rob" Portman is the junior United States Senator from Ohio. He is a member of the Republican Party. He succeeded retiring Senator George Voinovich....
, who had worked in the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
under President George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
; real estate developer Jay Buchert, the president of the National Association of Home Builders
National Association of Home Builders
The National Association of Home Builders is one of the largest trade associations in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, DC, NAHB's mission is "to enhance the climate for housing and the building industry...
; and several lesser known candidates: real estate appraiser Garland Eugene Crawford of Loveland
Loveland, Ohio
Loveland is a city in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Considered part of the Greater Cincinnati area, Loveland is located near exit 52 off Interstate 275, about northeast of the Cincinnati city limits. It borders Symmes, Miami and...
; pro-life activist Ken Callis of the Cincinnati suburb of Wyoming
Wyoming, Ohio
Wyoming is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 8,261 at the 2000 census.Wyoming has a renowned education program - the Wyoming City School District was ranked first in the State of Ohio on the 2004-2005 State Report Card, with an index score of 108.2...
; Robert W. Dorsey, a professor at the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
and township trustee in Hamilton County's Anderson Township
Anderson Township, Hamilton County, Ohio
Anderson Township is one of the twelve townships of Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. Located in the southeastern part of the county and less than 15 minutes from downtown, the township has been named one of the Cincinnati area's most desirable neighborhoods to live...
; and Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
leader Van Darrell Loman of Cheviot
Cheviot, Ohio
Cheviot is a city located in west central Hamilton County, Ohio. The population was 9,015 at the 2000 census.- History :In 1814 a Scottish immigrant named John Craig purchased a half section of of Green Township from Elias Boudinot. He built an inn and tavern on the Harrison Pike. In 1818 Craig...
. Three other candidates filed and qualified but withdrew from the primary, former Madeira
Madeira, Ohio
Madeira is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 8,923 at the 2000 census. Madeira has a Council-Manager form of government, where the elected City Council appoints a paid City Manager to run the day to day operations of the city. Madeira is served by its own Police...
mayor Mary Anne Christie; Lebanon
Lebanon, Ohio
The population at the 2010 census was 20,033. As of the census of 2000, there were 16,962 people residing in the city. The population density was 1,440.6 people per square mile . There were 6,218 housing units at an average density of 528.1 per square mile...
attorney Bruce Gudenkauf, a member of the Warren County Republican Party's central committee; and Donnie Jones, city auditor in Norwood
Norwood, Ohio
Norwood is the second most populous city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The city is an enclave of the larger city of Cincinnati. The population was 21,675 at the 2000 census. Originally settled as an early suburb of Cincinnati in the wooded countryside north of the city, the area is...
.
In February the press reported that, according to campaign finance filings, McEwen trailed both Buchert and Portman in funds, Buchert having three times the treasury McEwen did. McEwen was endorsed by Oliver North
Oliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
, whose prosecution in the Iran-Contra Affair
Iran-Contra Affair
The Iran–Contra affair , also referred to as Irangate, Contragate or Iran-Contra-Gate, was a political scandal in the United States that came to light in November 1986. During the Reagan administration, senior Reagan administration officials and President Reagan secretly facilitated the sale of...
McEwen had labeled a "political witch hunt" when he was in Congress. McEwen also criticized Portman for lobbying Congress to pass the tax increase President George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
supported when Portman was a White House aide. He also criticized Portman for being a lobbyist for Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
. McEwen brought his former House colleague Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp
Jack French Kemp was an American politician and a collegiate and professional football player. A Republican, he served as Housing Secretary in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1993, having previously served nine terms as a congressman for Western New York's 31st...
to Ohio to campaign for him.
McEwen faced questions about the bounced checks he had written on the House bank. Buchert ran campaign commercials citing McEwen's checks, the expenses of his Congressional office, and his campaign finance disclosures, while noting Portman was "the handpicked choice of the downtown money crowd" and was "a registered foreign agent for the biggest Democrat lobbying firm in Washington," labeling Portman and McEwen "Prince Rob and Bouncing Bob." McEwen, who had taken a hard-line on his checks in 1992, relented in the campaign. Martin Gottlieb wrote, "McEwen says now that his problem was a form of excessive pride. He says he used to 'demand perfection' of himself." McEwen also said, "I felt I could never admit a mistake. . . . I am very, very sorry. I should have watched it more carefully. . . . I have learned a great deal." Les Spaeth, chairman of the Warren County Republican Party and former Warren County Auditor, said, "People very much disliked the check overdraft thing, but I think they don't see it as happening again. I think it's past. He made a mistake and he got caught. But that's overridden by the service he's given, particularly to our county."
After his successor in Congress, Ted Strickland, found election-related files on his office computers, questions were raised about whether McEwen had been illegally using his House office in his re-election campaign in 1992. McEwen's former chief of staff said McEwen knew nothing about it, and the chief of staff admitted "a technical violation of the rules."
McEwen won four of the five counties in the district — Adams, Brown, Clermont and Warren. In Adams, once part of his district, he received 77% of the vote, sixty-seven points ahead of Portman. However, McEwen finished third in the largest county in the district, Hamilton
Hamilton County, Ohio
As of 2000, there were 845,303 people, 346,790 households, and 212,582 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,075 people per square mile . There were 373,393 housing units at an average density of 917 per square mile...
, one he had never represented and which contained 57% of the Second District's registered voters. In the primary, Portman won only Hamilton County, but by a large enough margin to win the primary with 17,531 votes (35.61%), while McEwen received 14,542 (29.54%), Buchert 12,488 (25.37%), Dorsey 2,947 (5.99%), the rest scattering. The race in the Second District, one of the most Republican in the country, was determined in the primary — six times as many Republicans as Democrats voted in the primary — and Portman easily defeated attorney Lee Hornberger 53,020 (70.1%) to 22,652 (29.1%) in the special election on May 4.
Following the primary, the Dayton Daily News criticized McEwen for having voters return absentee voter request forms to his campaign office rather than directly to the county boards of elections. The Daily News also said the "primary was completely about personalities, rather than issues."
Returns to private life
After his defeat, McEwen remained active in politics, but press accounts said he spent most of his time in the Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, area residing in northern Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Since 1997, he has been a partner with eleven other former Members of Congress in the Washington firm Advantage Associates, a lobbying and consulting firm. He founded FreedomQuest International, an international investment banking
Investment banking
An investment bank is a financial institution that assists individuals, corporations and governments in raising capital by underwriting and/or acting as the client's agent in the issuance of securities...
firm based in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
McEwen took to the lecture circuit, delivering speeches for $10,000 apiece. During the 2004 presidential election
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...
, McEwen traveled widely to speak for George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, focusing on Ohio. In 2006, he joined the law firm of Greenebaum, Doll, and McDonald as a consultant in its Cincinnati and Washington offices.
2005 congressional run
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
nominated Second District Congressman Rob Portman
Rob Portman
Robert Jones "Rob" Portman is the junior United States Senator from Ohio. He is a member of the Republican Party. He succeeded retiring Senator George Voinovich....
to be United States Trade Representative in March 2005, McEwen announced he would run for Portman's seat. He then moved from his home in Fairfax Station
Fairfax Station, Virginia
Fairfax Station is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, ZIP code 22039. The population as of the 2010 Census was 12,030. As a suburb of Washington, DC, it is a bedroom community for many who work in the federal government.-Averages:...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and purchased a second residence, a condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
in Hamilton County's Anderson Township
Anderson Township, Hamilton County, Ohio
Anderson Township is one of the twelve townships of Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. Located in the southeastern part of the county and less than 15 minutes from downtown, the township has been named one of the Cincinnati area's most desirable neighborhoods to live...
, east of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
. McEwen drew upon his connections and quickly had high-profile endorsements from Focus on the Family
Focus on the Family
Focus on the Family is an American evangelical Christian tax-exempt non-profit organization founded in 1977 by psychologist James Dobson, and is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Focus on the Family is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations that rose to prominence in the 1980s...
leader James Dobson
James Dobson
James Clayton "Jim" Dobson, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder in 1977 of Focus on the Family , which he led until 2003. In the 1980s he was ranked as one of the most influential spokesman for conservative social positions in American public life...
, former United States Attorney General
United States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
Edwin Meese
Edwin Meese
Edwin "Ed" Meese, III is an attorney, law professor, and author who served in official capacities within the Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Administration , the Reagan Presidential Transition Team , and the Reagan White House , eventually rising to hold the position of the 75th Attorney General of...
, Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...
player Anthony Muñoz
Anthony Muñoz
Michael Anthony Muñoz , is a Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive tackle who played most of his career for the National Football League's Cincinnati Bengals...
, American Family Association
American Family Association
The American Family Association is a 501 non-profit organization that promotes conservative Christian values, such as opposition to same-sex marriage, pornography, and abortion, as well as other public policy goals such as deregulation of the oil industry and lobbying against the Employee Free...
president Donald Wildmon
Donald Wildmon
Donald E. Wildmon is an ordained United Methodist minister, author, former radio host, and founder and chairman emeritus of the American Family Association and American Family Radio.-Biography:...
, Citizens for Community Values anti-pornography crusader Phil Burress, and former New York congressman Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp
Jack French Kemp was an American politician and a collegiate and professional football player. A Republican, he served as Housing Secretary in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1993, having previously served nine terms as a congressman for Western New York's 31st...
, who came to the district to campaign for him. Kemp said in a rally in Clermont County on May 20 that "Bob and his wife Liz are like part of our family." Dobson wrote in his endorsement letter, "I have rarely been more excited about a candidate running in a highly significant race than I am about Bob McEwen for Congress . . . . If Bob returns to the House of Representatives, he will once again emerge as a tireless champion for the family and for traditional conservative values."
Ed Meese came to Cincinnati on May 31 to campaign for McEwen saying "Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
relied on him heavily." Rival candidate Pat DeWine
Pat DeWine
Richard Patrick "Pat" DeWine is an American lawyer and politician from Ohio. He is the son of former U.S Senator Mike DeWine and like his father is a Republican....
, a Hamilton County Commissioner and the son of Senator Mike DeWine
Mike DeWine
Richard Michael "Mike" DeWine is the Attorney General for the state of Ohio. He has held numerous offices on the state and federal level, including Ohio State Senator, four terms as a U.S. Congressman, Ohio Lt. Governor, and was a two-term U.S. Senator, serving from 1995 to 2007.- Biography :Born...
, the same day questioned McEwen's post-Congressional career as a lobbyist, issuing a press release saying "no one who has ever served in Congress ought to be allowed to become a lobbyist. Ever." Congressman John Boehner
John Boehner
John Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...
, whose Eighth District was to the west of the Second, endorsed McEwen on June 7. Boehner was a freshman in McEwen's final term. He said, "Bob is the most qualified to step in and represent that district." The Congressmen from other neighboring districts, Steve Chabot
Steve Chabot
Steven Joseph "Steve" Chabot is the U.S. Representative for . He is a member of the Republican Party. He previously represented the district from 1995 to 2009.-Early life, education and career:...
and Mike Turner
Mike Turner
Michael R. Turner is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party.The district covers most of the city of Dayton and includes most of Montgomery County, much of Warren County, and is home to all of Highland and Clinton Counties.-Early life, education...
, were silent in the primary race. McEwen a week before the primary was reported to have raised $366,429, McEwen donating $250,000 to his campaign; DeWine's total was $743,407.
DeWine focused his attention on the most experienced candidate, McEwen. DeWine attacked McEwen with charges used against him in his last two campaigns. Dewine charged McEwen had "wasted taxpayers' money" by having the most expensive Congressional office of any Ohio member of the U.S. House and criticized McEwen's bouncing of 166 checks on the House bank. DeWine also tried to depict McEwen as a carpetbagger
Carpetbagger
Carpetbaggers was a pejorative term Southerners gave to Northerners who moved to the South during the Reconstruction era, between 1865 and 1877....
, asking in television advertisements "If Bob McEwen really cares about us, why has he spent the last twelve years living in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
?" McEwen denied he had bounced any checks, repeating what he had claimed in 1992 and insisted that he had continued to reside in Ohio since he lost his re-election bid, noting he had never voted in Virginia nor held a Virginia drivers license. (McEwen did not live in the second district until April 11, when he bought a condominium in Anderson Township
Anderson Township, Hamilton County, Ohio
Anderson Township is one of the twelve townships of Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. Located in the southeastern part of the county and less than 15 minutes from downtown, the township has been named one of the Cincinnati area's most desirable neighborhoods to live...
; but DeWine did not live in the district until he bought a home there on April 6.) DeWine quoted correspondence from the Highland County
Highland County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 40,875 people, 15,587 households, and 11,394 families residing in the county. The population density was 74 people per square mile . There were 17,583 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
Board of Elections claiming the Board had cancelled McEwen's voter registration for living in Virginia.
DeWine also questioned McEwen's record on taxes, sending out mailings criticizing McEwen's vote on May 24, 1982 in the 97th Congress "in support of a Democrat budget that raised out taxes by $233 billion." Two mailings focused on this issue, one featuring a photograph of Ronald Reagan that was captioned "When President Reagan Needed Votes to Keep Taxes Low, Bob McEwen Said 'NO'", the other asking "Are We Still the Party of Lower Taxes?"
Jean Schmidt
Jean Schmidt
Jeannette Marie Hoffman Schmidt, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Republican Party. The district stretches from eastern Cincinnati to Portsmouth....
, a former member of the Ohio House, benefited from the conservative vote being split by McEwen and Tom Brinkman
Tom Brinkman
Thomas E. Brinkman, Jr. is a Republican former member of the Ohio House of Representatives from Cincinnati. He is known for his opposition to higher taxes and public spending, and has been nicknamed "Dr...
. The official returns showed Schmidt had won with 14,331 votes (31%). McEwen finished second with 11,663 (25%), Brinkman was third with 9,320 (20%), and DeWine, who spent $1 million on his campaign, finished a distant fourth with 5,467 (12%). The remaining vote was split by the seven others, none of whom received more than 5%. Following the primary, McEwen campaigned with Schmidt in the general election against the Democratic nominee, attorney Paul Hackett.
Facing Schmidt in 2006
registered. McEwen also considered a campaign for Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of Ohio
The position of lieutenant governor of Ohio was established in 1852. The lieutenant governor becomes governor if the governor resigns, dies in office or is removed by impeachment. Before 1852, the president of the Ohio State Senate would serve as acting governor if a vacancy in the governorship...
as the running mate of Secretary of State
Ohio Secretary of State
The Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing elections in the State of Ohio. The Secretary of State also is responsible for registering business entities and granting them the authority to do business within the state, registering secured transactions, and granting access to public...
J. Kenneth Blackwell, who sought to replace Bob Taft
Bob Taft
Robert Alphonso "Bob" Taft II is an Ohio Republican Party politician. He was elected to two terms of office as the 67th Governor of the U.S. state of Ohio between 1999-2007. After leaving office, Taft started working for the University of Dayton beginning August 15, 2007.-Personal background:Taft...
as Governor. On December 16, 2005, The Cincinnati Enquirer
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The Cincinnati Enquirer, a daily morning newspaper, is the highest-circulation print publication in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. The Cincinnati Enquirer, a daily morning newspaper, is the highest-circulation print publication in Greater Cincinnati (Ohio) and Northern Kentucky. The...
reported McEwen was considering challenging Schmidt for her congressional seat in 2006 and had formed an exploratory committee
Exploratory Committee
In the election politics of the United States, an exploratory committee is an organization established to help determine whether a potential candidate should run for an elected office. They are most often cited in reference to United States Presidential hopefuls, prior to the primaries.Exploratory...
. "I am in serious consideration," he told the newspaper. On January 18, 2006, McEwen confirmed that he would run in the May 2 primary against Jean Schmidt
Jean Schmidt
Jeannette Marie Hoffman Schmidt, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Republican Party. The district stretches from eastern Cincinnati to Portsmouth....
.
He started his campaign with little in the way of reserve cash. "I won't let this distract me from my duties as a congresswoman," Schmidt told The Cincinnati Enquirer upon McEwen's announcement. "I have a job to do. I can't worry about this." Anti-pornography activist Phil Burress told the Associated Press that a race between Schmidt and McEwen would be tough. "They are two totally different types of personalities. Bob is a statesman, and I love that. Jean will get in your face in a heartbeat, and I like that too," said Burress. Also running were Deborah A. Kraus, who worked for the West Clermont school district's computer services department, and James E. Constable, who ran to protest the care his disabled son received from a state hospital.
McEwen finished second to Schmidt in the May 2 primary. Unofficial returns gave her 33,314 votes (47.75%) to McEwen's 29,611 (42.45%), Kraus's 4,358 (6.25%), and Constable's 2,480 (3.55%). McEwen won Adams, Brown, Pike, and Scioto Counties while Schmidt won Clermont, Hamilton, and Warren.
Lobbying
Following his primary challenge to Schmidt, McEwen worked as a lobbyist for Côte d'IvoireCôte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
strongman Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Koudou Gbagbo served as the fourth President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 until his arrest in April 2011. A historian by profession, he is also an amateur chemist and physicist....
. "In December [2010], McEwen was hired at a rate of $25,000 per month to assist the Ivorian ambassador to the U.S. 'in exerting his influence in the most strategic way possible,' according to lobbying records." When asked about his representation of Gbagbo, McEwen said: "I was a member of the intelligence committee. There are not too many places in Africa I haven't been. So I'm knowledgeable of the issue and what's going on." "Despite allegations of human rights abuses, McEwen still supports Gbagbo, calling the current crisis 'a coup
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
in progress' by Gbagbo's opponents. He believes the international response is driven by French financial interests in the country."
Namesake
There is a water treatment plant in Clermont County's Batavia TownshipBatavia Township, Clermont County, Ohio
Batavia Township is one of the fourteen townships of Clermont County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 17,503 people in the township, 15,039 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
named for McEwen. Clermont County was grateful to McEwen because he successfully forced the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to sell the county water from Harsha Lake after the state denied them water for years; the plant treats the Harsha Lake water he obtained for the county.
See also
- Election Results, U.S. Representative from Ohio, 6th District
- List of United States Representatives from Ohio
- Election Results, U.S. Representative from Ohio, 2nd District