Tipsheet

'Open the F**king Border': Sherrod Brown Campaign Operative Goes on Angry Tirade

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  October 24, 2024 5:30 PM

While vulnerable Democratic incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio has been gaslighting the American people about the border crisis, hiding behind a particularly bad border bill, one of his campaign operatives has made it abundantly clear that he's no fan of border security.

According to Ohio.news, Kevin Oyakawa is a Democratic staffer working to help get Brown and Rep. Emilia Sykes (OH-13), another vulnerable Democrat, reelected. Oyakawa made such a post from his Facebook account about those races on April 15, for which there is a screenshot. There's also a screenshot from Oyakawa's account of an October 6 campaign event for Sykes. 

The outlet released footage from earlier this month in which Oyakawa goes on an angry tirade not just about the border, but against Ohio voters who dare to prefer that their border be secure. Oyakawa can be heard using explicit language throughout.

"Like me, I'm out there just like, open the fu**king border, I don't give a s**t who the f**k comes in here," Oyakawa can be heard casually sharing. "We don't need border patrol," he also claimed. "But, the issue with even talking about immigration here in Ohio is that it's a losing issue... it's a losing issue for Democrats here," Oyakawa went on to admit. Such an admission brought more insults to the Ohio voters, though, as he then claimed it's "for like no fu**ing reason other than people's pure racism."

When it comes to immigration being such "a losing issue," Oyakawa also revealed "that's why it's probably really hard to find anything about like where [Sykes] stands on it," adding, "if she has to address immigration, she starts losing."

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The video clip also refers to Oyakawa as a "Regional Organizing Director" for Ohio Democrats. Such a position and the April starting date also lines up with his LinkedIn profile. 

Both Sykes' race against Republican Kevin Coughlin and Brown's race against Republican Bernie Moreno are in the "Toss-Up" category. 

Moreno's chances have been surging in recent weeks as we get closer to the election, with RealClearPolling showing Brown up by just +0.6. Decision Desk HQ, meanwhile, puts Brown and Moreno's chances both at 50-50, while Polymarket puts Moreno's chances at 59 percent. 

As the Ohio.news article also shared about the issue of immigration and the state of these races:

Immigration and border security has dominated the 2024 election, and it’s a losing issue for Democrats. Earlier this spring, a stunning poll revealed a majority of Americans, including Hispanic voters, favor mass deportations. 

...

Sykes’ district, which includes Akron and parts of Canton, is a tossup. Her opponent, Republican Kevin Coughlin, has called for securing the border. 

An August poll showed Sykes narrowly leading Coughlin, but 14% of the district remained undecided at that point—with the poll’s margin of error, the race is statistically tied.

Meanwhile, Bernie Moreno has utterly erased Sherrod Brown’s previously comfortable lead to 0.6%. The race for Brown’s vulnerable Senate seat maintaining Democrats’ slim majority is a dead heat. 

With President Donald Trump running away from Kamala Harris in polling and betting odds, the vulnerable three-term incumbent Brown’s efforts to hang on may be for naught, should Trump take Moreno with him. 

With Brown on life support and Sykes looking vulnerable, Oyakawa’s angry slurs against Ohioans are bound to hurt.

Coughlin has shared a link from Ohio.news about the story, as well as reposted the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) highlighting Oyakawa's remarks.