Election 2022: Jeff Crossman, Dave Yost face off for Ohio attorney general
Laura A. Bischoff
The Ohio attorney general runs the largest public interest law firm in the state but Democrat Jeff Crossman says incumbent Republican Dave Yost uses the office for political fights, rather than to serve all Ohioans.
"I think one of the real unfortunate or, quite frankly, reprehensible things that Yost has done in that office is use that office for political purposes," said Crossman, a state lawmaker from Parma who is running against Yost in the general election. "I completely and fundamentally disagree that that office should be used to file lawsuits based on political philosophy because as the attorney general, you're supposed to represent all the people in the state, not just the ones that agree with you politically."
Yost noted that Ohio led or joined 23 lawsuits against the federal government but skipped joining 16 other cases during his tenure as attorney general which started in 2019. Yost said he is joining lawsuits that seek to push back against inappropriate use of presidential executive power to usurp Congress.
"The idea that because Congress is divided, like the country is divided, that the president should just step in and become a monarch is to disassemble the American governance system. I'm against that," Yost said.
During Yost's term as attorney general, Ohio joined:
- a lawsuit that challenged vaccine mandates for federal contractors.
- two lawsuits seeking to block the Biden administration from enforcing rules against discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
- a lawsuit to overturn the federal ban on bump stocks, a mechanism for converting firearms into machine gun-like weapons.
The same day the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the constitutional right to abortion, Yost went to court to successfully get the stay lifted against Ohio's six-week abortion ban law. Weeks later, he cast doubt on the existence of a 10-year-old rape victim who traveled to Indiana for an abortion. Yost also said the child could have received an abortion in Ohio because state law provides exceptions for when the life of the mother or a major bodily function is at risk.
Some medical experts disagree that the girl would have qualified for one of those exceptions.
"No doctor is going to risk their license on a vaguely written exception that nobody has clarified," Crossman said.
Yost countered: "First of all, Mr. Crossman is not a doctor or a prosecutor, which calls into serious question his qualifications to say that. Secondly, neither I nor he nor any other doctor in this state can offer an opinion. You know why? Because we don't have a case file, we don't have a medical history, we don't have an examination."
Yost has declined to offer an apology to the 10-year-old or her family for questioning the existence of the case or her need to travel to Indiana for an abortion.
"I don't even know the 10-year-old. I've never mentioned her," he said.
Who is Dave Yost?
Yost, 65, served as Delaware County prosecutor and state auditor before beating Steve Dettelbach in the 2018 race for attorney general. The Ohio State University graduate worked as a newspaper reporter before jumping into politics and the law. He earned his law degree from Capital University.
"I distrust power, I distrust secrecy and I wanted to change the world for the better, as corny as it sounds," Yost said of his career choices.
Yost said the attorney general's office should be used to establish the rule of law for everyone, no matter their status.
If elected to a second term, Yost said his priorities are: increasing accountability for pharmacy benefit managers in Medicaid, continuing to fight against human trafficking and finding money for annual training for Ohio's 35,000 sworn police officers.
Yost maintains that annual training can't be mandated without funding. He also supports reforms such as creating a police professional licensing program, similar to licensing for doctors, engineers and other professions. He noted that it requires legislative action. "It wasn't on the top of the agenda this year, apparently," he said.
Here is his position on other issues:
Full abortion ban: Declined to say, citing ongoing litigation.
Eliminating training and checks to carry concealed weapons: Declined to say because his office represents the Legislature, which passed the new law.
Legalizing recreational marijuana: Opposed
Establishing database of police shootings: Supports.
Who is Jeff Crossman?
Crossman earned his undergraduate degree from Mount Union University, a master's degree from the University of Akron, and a law degree from Cleveland Marshall College of Law. Initially, he wanted to be a college professor but shifted to a legal career after he determined it would be a better opportunity to serve and address problems.
Crossman, 50, spent five years on the Parma City Council before joining the Ohio House in January 2019.
As a state lawmaker, he was among 26 Democrats who voted for Republican Larry Householder to become speaker − a vote he says he regrets and notes he called for Householder's removal from office after he was indicted in a federal public corruption case.
If elected attorney general, Crossman said he'd use the resources of the office to investigate public corruption, Householder and House Bill 6. "Ohio can be number one in the country for opportunity, like it used to be, but it can't be number one for opportunity while it's number one in the country for corruption," he said.
Yost filed a civil lawsuit to block FirstEnergy from collecting fees from Ohio consumers for two nuclear plants in northern Ohio −a move Crossman called insufficient.
Federal prosecutors are expected to reveal their corruption case in detail when Householder and former Ohio Republican Party chairman Matt Borges go to trial in January.
Crossman concedes that federal authorities may have asked state officials to hold off on investigations but said "That doesn't excuse the state attorney general, who has specific jurisdiction, the power of the office, the resources to conduct their own independent investigation."
Here is his position on other issues:
Full abortion ban: Opposes.
Eliminating training and checks to carry concealed weapons: Opposed
Legalizing recreational marijuana: Says it should be up to the voters to decide.
Establishing database of police shootings: Supports.