U.S. Senate hopeful Matt Dolan stops in Medina County

MEDINA — A meet-and-greet took place this week between Medina County Republicans and Ohio District 24 State Sen. Matt Dolan, R-Chargrin Falls, who is exploring a run for the U.S. Senate. The stop was part of a statewide listening tour that the long-time politician, attorney, and partial Cleveland Indians owner hopes will give him better clarity on whether he should throw his hat in the mix. "As I'm exploring this run it's clear that Ohioans want a problem solver," Dolan said Wednesday. "We have a lot of folks who make a lot of noise but don't get anything done. I am the guy who can point to real success that's had positive impact on Ohio. That's the kind of attitude and agenda I'd bring to Washington. That means securing our borders and making America a vibrant place to invest in." A deep field of declared and potential candidates are vying for the U.S. Senate seat soon to be vacated by Rob Portman, R-Cincinnati, whose term is set to expire in 2023. Those who've made their candidacy official include U.S. Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan and former Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel, a Republican. "I don't think any candidate has really caught fire yet, among those who've already announced," Dolan said. "The talk we had in Medina was very spirited. There's was a lot of talk about the (federal bipartisan) infrastructure bill and how I've supported it and my potential opponents have not." Portman has been at the forefront of the U.S. Senate contingent pushing the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, which was passed on Tuesday by a 69-30 margin. That legislation is said to include $73 billion for electric grid and power infrastructure, $65 billion in broadband investments, $55 billion for water systems, $39 billion for public transit, and $11 billion for road safety. "If you spend any time in Ohio you can see our roads and bridges need to be fixed," Dolan said. "If you spend any time here you know broadband is an essential part of Ohio's economic growth. Southeast Ohio, rural areas, central Ohio, and urban areas all need help with access and affordability." "Ohio just made a huge investment in broadband and that was supported by every Republican," he added. "Now, all of the sudden just because it's a bipartisan bill in Washington my potential Republican opponents are against it. That's just not in touch with what Ohioans want. There's a time for politics and there's a time for meeting the needs of your constituents." An early draft of Ohio's new biennial budget included provisions that would have drastically limited municipal and publicly-owned broadband networks. That text would have prohibited public networks like Medina County Fiber and Wadsworth's CityLink from signing on new customers outside of areas deemed "underserved." Political subdivisions, unlike private providers, would have been prohibited from putting federal funds or public service revenue toward construction, deployment, purchase, lease or operation of broadband facilities or the provision of services to subscribers. The final biennial budget passed in July did not include those changes. "I was a big part of getting those things taken out," Dolan said. "The process can be messy sometimes and sometimes things are put in the budget just so people can understand the problems with it. Sometimes I can argue that something's really bad and someone else can argue that it's really good. There's those times where something like that gets put in and the people supporting it realize they didn't grasp the full consequences of it." Dolan was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 2004 and proceeded to twice win reelection in the 98th District. He left office in 2010 to run for Cuyahoga County executive, where he came up short against Democrat Ed Fitzgerald. Between that venture and a successful run to his District 24 seat in 2016, Dolan worked in the Cleveland Indians front office and ran the team's charity operations. He still holds an ownership stake in the franchise as the son of principal owner Larry Dolan and younger brother of Paul Dolan, who works as the team's chairman and CEO. While not elaborating on the matter, Dolan said he does not support Medina County Republican Party chairman Jim Renacci's campaign to unseat Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine. In April, Ohio Senate Bill 256 began granting parole eligibility to individuals convicted of violent crimes if those offenses occurred before they turned 18. That includes cases involving murder and rape with parole possible after serving 18 to 30 years in prison. Dolan voted yes on the measure and spoke about that choice Wednesday. "I supported it because it's not a provision where there's automatic release after 25 years," he said. "What it does do is let someone who's sentenced as a juvenile have a hearing after 25 years to determine if they should be eligible for parole or serve the remainder of their life in jail. Obviously, there are crimes so heinous they'll never be eligible for parole." "In some instances, perhaps the circumstances of a child's youth caused them to commit a crime and they've mended their ways," Dolan added. SB 256 also creates a new crime classification, aggravated homicide offenses, which involves the killing of three or more people and remains eligible for a juvenile sentence of life without parole. As Medina County's COVID-19 caseload experiences significant growth, Dolan encouraged residents to get vaccinated and said he supports decisions on school face masks being left in local hands. "I don't think the state of Ohio should be mandating what individuals and businesses can decide for themselves," he said. "If a business or school decides that masks are in the best interest for them, they should. I realize it's difficult but they need to make sure they're clear in the purpose and the science. Of course, individuals are always allowed to do what they think is in their best interest." "To be safe, wear a mask," Dolan added. "To be smart, get vaccinated. Everyone should just get vaccinated." Contact reporter Jonathan Delozier at 330-721-4050 or jdelozier@medina-gazette.com.