(CNN) – One of the nation's most bitterly fought U.S. Senate races – the battle in Ohio between incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican state treasurer Josh Mandel - devolved into the GOP candidate calling his rival a liar at a debate Thursday.
Mandel was responding to charges from Brown that he skipped meetings as treasurer, and was attempting to skip rungs on the political ladder.
– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker
– Check out the CNN Electoral Map and Calculator and game out your own strategy for November.
"Senator, you are a liar," Mandel told Brown. "You are lying to the people of the state of Ohio. You are falsely attacking me, and I won't stand for it. You might want to try to push people around in Washington, but you're not going to push me around."
That charge drew an incredulous response from Brown, a first term Democrat.
"It's just a pretty remarkable thing for a young man to say, or a man of any age to say, in a debate," the senator said, drawing attention to Mandel's relative youth. The GOP candidate is 35.
"Senator, the reason you're agitated and frustrated tonight is because the people of Ohio disagree with you," Mandel charged.
Brown responded, "I don't need a lecture from somebody who can't wait to get to the next job and run for higher office and continue to try and move up the ladder."
Over $21 million has been spent on the Buckeye State race for the U.S. Senate, according to Federal Election Commission data. Both the Rothenberg and Cook political reports rate the Senate race as leaning in Brown's favor.
On Friday the conservative group Club for Growth said it was spending $800,000 to air a television ad around Columbus calling Brown "foolish on taxes."
An NBC/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll taken October 7-9 showed Brown leading Mandel, 52%-41%.
Ohio is also a key battleground in the presidential race.
From CNN Politics
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
| Advertising practices | Advertise with us | About us | Work for us | Help
Dan Quayle had more experience legislating when he ran for the Senate than Mandel has. What's more to the point, Quayle was willing to work with Democratic Senators like Kennedy: Mandel takes his marching orders from Ayn Rand and Grover Norquist.
Josh Mandel inexperience candidate
Not that much younger than President Kennedy who was elected to be president at the age of 43 and President Roosevelt was 42 when he took over the presidency. Mandel is running for the Senate at age 35 and he's the State Treasurer. Brown is just using the same trick as Democrats in calling Gov. Romney a liar in hopes people will believe the Democrat lie that they are telling.
The only smart way forward for the USA is to get rid of these gop goofballs and obstructionist and move forward like we have been with 0. Help from the gop ,vote all dems and Obama ,I am !!!!!!
His record as Treasurer is easy enough to access. Some of these GOP candidates seem to be so busy spinning that they forget that there is a record of everything that they have done and said. I guess the first job when you set out to fool the people is to thoroughly fool yourself.
Go brown go!! The Gop just can't stop lieing thinking we Americans a like stupid. We are not forest gump. Stupid is as stupid do like the Gop!!! Brown & Obama 2012 get gongress out!!!
When you are young and inexperienced and you know it all. You say stupid,brash things. Does humility exist within the republican party? Anywhere? Boldness does not take the place of intellect.
I heard that same crowd booed Mandel for being rude to Sherrod.
mandel going to lose just like the other republicans.
the president will win, ohio, pennsylvania,iowa, michigan, illions and that will give the win to the president and
we will celebrite for a long time.
Ugh.... Please let the tea party group become a distant memory. For the sake of this country, I beg you. They have added absolutely nothing for the betterment of anyone. Nothing at all.
Doesn't Brown have a ridiculously high approval rating? While I don't consider youth to be a reason to not vote for a candidate, I do consider one's maturity. Mandel is definitely not mature.
Tough talk doesn't make your rebuttal true Josh. I know you Karl Rove is breathing down your neck for you to win. But it's just not possible. A bunch of wasted money on a campaign that was destined to fail. L'chaim!
We want to see Willard's tax returns for the last 20 years. Willard is a criminal for not disclosing income from off-shore accounts on his tax returns.
Grover Norquist is an assult to all Americans. Grover Norquist is an evil unelected dictator. worse than hilter.
Any candidate sign anything wih Grover Norquist should be automatically disqualified for running any office.
Grover Norquist is in contempt of treason
Hit it out of the park for the POTUS and all Dems OHIO!
MN voter
This seems to be the general trend for ALL Republicans up for election in every state and national race. Let's not debate the issues at hand, lets target the opponent with thinly-veiled accusations on everything from "lying" to being "liberal". As an independent voter it says much about the level the Republicans have stooped to this election.
We need to vote out these extremist candidates and vote in some folks that will stand up to the likes of Grover Norquist and put COUNTRY AHEAD OF PARTY !
The Democrat thinks there is a ladder of promotion, for a public office? That's RIDICULOUS!
Mitt Romney lies. This is not a talking point, it is a fact. Concerning some of the commments on this page that Mitt Romney is not a liar.........define liar. So it is ok to say one thing in January, another in March, another in April, etc., etc., It is ok for Mitt to tell CEOs of large companies to demand their employees vote for him and not Obama? It is ok to change voting laws/rights and make it impossible for people to vote? It is ok to take away medicare and social security, but in debates state that you never said that and that you are not going to do that? I bet it is extremely easy to pull the wool over your eyes................you are a used car salesman's dream because you refuse to check the facts.
the republican party seems to keep producing lying an impolite people. Unbelievable that these unmannered people think they should hold public office. Romney has been more than rude in the debates so has ryan . The party as a whole lies and then tries to make people think its the other guy, Vote all republicans out. Lets start over . Forward
-Rick McDaniel
The Democrat thinks there is a ladder of promotion, for a public office? That's RIDICULOUS!
************************************
You're right, it is ridiculous, especially since he never said or implied that. Another GOP lie *YAWN*.
Known J Mandel since college and his ambition will get in the way of any potential political success. When he loses this contest it will take years for him to recover and perhaps have any political future. Too much too soon Josh. You're not as smart as you think you are. Sorry son.
Grover Norquist is an assult to all Americans. Grover Norquist is an evil unelected dictator. worse than hilter.
Any candidate sign anything wih Grover Norquist should be automatically disqualified for running any office.
Grover Norquist is in contempt of treason
--------------------------------------------
My old tag name was IF YOU SIGNED GROVER'S PLEDGE, YOU'RE A TRAITOR TO THE U.S. I feel your sentiment exactly. Even George H.W. Bush asked "who the hell is Grover Norquist?" There are REAL republicans who believe taxes need to be raised who are not in Grover's pocket. Just ask Ben Stein.
"was attempting to skip rungs on the political ladder."
That is not at all what Brown said. Look at what he said: "can't wait to get to the next job and run for higher office and continue to try and move up the ladder."
He wasn't saying Mandel "skipped" or was "trying to skip" anything. All he was saying...and this is very clear from his words, because the idea of "skipping" is not at all expressed in them...was that Mandel is voraciously ambitious and does not take his job seriously...doesn't take any of the jobs seriously...because and this is remarkably similar to Mittens and his governorship of MA), all he views each of them as is a rung on the ladder. His entire focus, after reaching the next rung on the ladder is getting to the one after that, because all he cares about is his own advancement. This had nothing to do with him "skipping" anything. It has to do with him not giving a crap about anything but climbing the ladder in the first place and devoting zero care and attention and work ethic to the rung he's currently on.