Why I would vote for Mike DeWine -- it is personal, not political!

I happen to know both Richard Cordray and Mike Dewine.  Until November 2016, I would say that I had more interaction with Richard than Mike over time, but once simply act of kindness from Mike to my family changed permanently, and in a positive way what I think about Mike Dewine, the man and the father -- not necessarily the politician.

 My friendship with Mike is relatively new, and I feel a little strange calling him a friend, but he is certainly more than an acquaintance, because of one very telling personal interaction he had with me in the weeks after the election night in 2016. Although I had been acquainted with Mike and had been a visitor at his house with other supporters on the 4th of July, 1991, it wasn't until just after Thanksgiving, 2016, that I truly appreciated Mike DeWine, the man and the father of a child who departed this Earth before her time.

To set the stage, I was part of the team of lawyers and Republican activists in Columbus on election day in 2016 who were policing the election to make sure that election laws were not being violated by the other side during the Presidential general election.  While I was at the table taking calls, in walks Attorney General Mike DeWine and I, wearing my Texas Lone Star shirt that I wore to the National Republican Convention as a Delegate from Texas (and, of course, my Stetson), went over and reintroduced myself to Mike.  I think he actually remembered me from the 1990s when I did a little work as part of his issues team on his Senate campaign, Clearly, this Texan would not be of any use to Mike, but he didn't treat me that way, and after a few minutes of an exchange of pleasantries, I made sure that I didn't burn up the time he had to speak to those who could actually be of use to him politically in Ohio.  I went back to my phone, and didn't really think anything more of it, until that evening, when I ran into Mike and his wife, Fran, at the election watch party in downtown Columbus.  I learned about their son Patrick's success in his Ohio Supreme Court race that evening, and I had a chance to talk to Mike about my daughter, Emily, who was in hospice care as a result of the ravages of Juvenile Batten Disease and a severe bout of double pneumonia with an ultra-high (107.3 degree high) fever.  Mike sensed my worry and concern about Emily, and told me to contact him if he could ever do anything for me.  I gave him my card, and he put it in his pocket.  Being cynical about politicians (after all, I have been one here in Texas), I was fairly certain I would never hear from him.  I have never been more wrong about someone, and I should have known better, as the Mike DeWine I sorta knew never gave me any reason to doubt his sincerity or interest in me as a fellow human being.

When I returned home from Columbus to Texas, Emily was not in very good shape, and I didn't go into my office to pick up the mail until after Thanksgiving.  When  I did, I was surprised to see a card from Cedarville, Ohio, which could only have been from Mike DeWine.  Again, I am embarrassed now to say that my first thought as I was opening the card was that I was certain that is was a solicitation and that Mike hadn't wasted any time soliciting a donation from me.  How far from the truth that was!  Inside the envelope was a handwritten card from Mike, reiterating his interest in me and my family, and providing me with his cell phone number.   I didn't know until he announced for Governor that he had lost a child, a daughter, in a car accident many years' ago, and how profoundly that affected Mike, Fran and the entire DeWine family.  It was when I read the report of his announcement that it finally clicked with me:  Mike DeWine, the man, not the politician, had extended a helping hand to a another father who was going to have to bury a child before her time.  He will never know how that one simple act of kindness, with no prospect of a return gesture other than a simple thanks -- which I most assuredly did -- sustained me through Emily's deterioration through this day, and will continue to sustain me when I say my final goodbye to her.   

So, it is not for political reasons that I support Mike DeWine.  It is for friendship and for the brotherly love he extended to me when I was in need of support from an unexpected source.  Win or lose -- and I do hope he wins --- Mike DeWine will go down in my family history as the man who cared about his fellow man when he didn't have to, and at the time when we needed it most.  Wouldn't it be nice if all of our public servants were this human!  Mike will make a fine governor if the voters in Ohio give him the chance.

Good Luck Attorney General Mike DeWine.  God Bless You and God Bless the Voters of Ohio.