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Ohio senator backs off Hitler, Stalin comments

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Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat U.S. senator from Ohio, is backing off comments in which he invoked Hitler and Stalin in the ongoing debate over collective bargaining.

"I should not have mentioned the hostility of tyrants, like Hitler, to unions," Brown said in a statement released Friday. "I don't want my mistake to distract from the critical debate in Ohio, and I apologize for it."

Brown's apology came a day after he said dictators Hitler and Stalin didn’t want unions, as he argued against legislative measures proposed in Ohio and Wisconsin that would limit collective bargaining for state workers.

“I am passionate about fighting for the middle class,” Brown said. "Ohio's teachers and nurses and police and firefighters are facing the loss of their collective bargaining rights, and I think that's wrong. But in speaking about this, I should not have mentioned the hostility of tyrants, like Hitler, to unions.

Senate Bill 5, the controversial collective bargaining reform bill, passed during an Ohio Senate vote on March 2, 17-16. The bill will now move to the Ohio House.

Sen. Shannon Jones (R-Springboro) introduced Senate Bill 5, which has the support of Gov. John Kasich and would eliminate collective bargaining for certain state employees – including police officers, firefighters and teachers, among others - and base future pay rates and increases on merit.[[In-content Ad]]

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