As freshman Ohio Senator J.D. Vance stepped to the forefront in the catastrophic aftermath of East Palestine’s train derailment – even earning quite a spread in the NY Times for his efforts on behalf of his fellow citizens – his Democratic senate mate, Sherrod Brown, skated through the whole mess pretty much under the radar. People have taken notice…

Sherrod ought to be doing more than Vance. Sherrod in the Dem sen so he should have more influence and he ought to be publicly criticizing Biden and telling him to move on solving the problem.

— Spiro Agnew fan (@redfang58) February 24, 2023

…with more than one going so far as to say he’s always been “the ghost of the senate” – only showing up for elections. Brutal stuff from constitutents.

That protective invisibility shield Brown once enjoyed may be fading away, though. A story broke in the Washington Free Beacon yesterday that might have people connecting dots/taking closer looks at Sherrod Brown they have never bothered to before.

One of Senator Sherrod Brown’s likely 2024 challengers says the Ohio Democrat should return all his campaign donations from Norfolk Southern and its lobbyists after one of the firm’s trains derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, and left the town’s residents fearing for their health.

“Sherrod Brown has taken thousands of dollars in donations from Norfolk Southern,” Republican businessman Bernie Moreno told the Washington Free Beacon. “That may explain why it took him so long to speak out about what happened in East Palestine.”

…At least five Norfolk Southern lobbyists have donated to Brown over the years, totaling over $31,000. Three of those lobbyists, disclosure forms show, lobbied the Senate and White House in 2022 over issues related to “rail safety.” Norfolk Southern has directly given Brown at least $10,000, campaign finance forms show. The most recent donation from a Norfolk Southern lobbyist came in 2021.

In recent weeks, Brown has been freely pointing fingers at Norfolk-Southern’s “corporate lobbyists” as the people most responsible for the disaster…

…. saying they have stymied congressional efforts to pass rail safety legislation.

…”There’s no question [Norfolk Southern] caused it with this derailment … they underinvested in their employees. They never look out for their workers, they never look out for their communities, they look out for stock buybacks and dividends,” Brown said on Feb. 19. “Something’s wrong with corporate America and something’s wrong with Congress and administrations listening too much to corporate lobbyists. And that’s gotta change.”

…even as he conveniently forgets what part he’s played in that pantheon of corporate gaming. That would definitely be “taker.”

…In 2019 Brown promised if he ran for president he would swear off corporate PAC money. Since that pledge, Brown has taken in more than $1 million in donations from corporate PACs and more than $7 million over the course of his political career.

Moreno, a potential Brown senate opponent, has been unrelenting on Twitter – will Brown return the tainted cash to the evil-doers?

He is just feeding the fires that Brown has kindled with his actions. Or…his INaction?

For one thing, while Vance and others have devoted every second outside of Washington business to overseeing East Palestine’s needs and concerns, Sen. Brown’s focus drifts to more pleasant options. Not into being a real nose-to-the-grindstone sort of guy (you don’t get nicknamed “The Ghost” for doing something), the senator found himself a ritzy fundraiser to jet off to instead.

Instead of visiting his constituents in East Palestine, Ohio Sen. @SherrodBrown went to a fundraiser in Hollywood Hills over the weekend hosted by a woman who thinks all Republicans are Nazis and that Thanksgiving is a colonizer holiday. pic.twitter.com/Xfw012lT6R

— Greg Price (@greg_price11) February 27, 2023

Then there was his defense of Joe Biden’s complete lack of interest in an Ohio visit, which certainly made him no friends. If the president can’t be bothered to show at the site of a major disaster, no worries says the Ohio senator. It’s not, you know, “a particularly big deal.”

Dem. senator Sherrod Brown on Biden not visiting East Palestine:

"I don't know if the president himself coming particularly matters … whether he comes here or not, I don't think is a particularly big deal."

Via @KarlSalzmann https://t.co/SrgclWZrTM pic.twitter.com/ZKFFMwc5F4

— Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) February 28, 2023

Next, there was this closed-door roundtable – an up close and personal that a small group from the affected area had with Brown and other officials. It all looks very down to earth and intense, as if government types were truly trying to take the pulse of what was going on on the ground.

Ohio Sen Sherrod Brown in East Palestine today:
This response shouldn’t be partisan–my focus is on working together w/other officials to get you the resources you need & holding Norfolk Southern accountable. They ought to pay for every cent of the cleanup, every single water test pic.twitter.com/VleHleACZv

— Darrel Rowland (@darreldrowland) February 27, 2023

Not exactly what happened, says the woman with her hair in a bun and wearing the flowered shirt in the picture above. She went on a local news program afterward. Jamie Cozza said officials had come in with an agenda, a version of “Rah, rah! Bring everyone back to town, let’s get this going and be a good news story!” She explained what they weren’t listening to, as in HELLO. You can’t “bring everyone back” when the people here who can’t leave are all sick and no one knows why.

Cozza went through details about independent dioxin etc, testing, which is running about $4500. Most people in that little town don’t have that kind of cha-ching up front, but the testing has to be done or they all stay sick. No business, no rah-rah, nothing can happen, no good news story.

Brown himself was at a loss for answers once rah-rah went off-script into reality.

Jamie recounted Sen. Brown saying residents' distrustful of EPA should get independent testing & later reimbursement. TESTING including for dioxins is around $4,500. Jamie noted most residents can't pay those $ upfront, Brown said "I'm not sure I've never dealt with this before."

— Status Coup News (@StatusCoup) March 1, 2023

He was completely unprepared for unscripted encounters in a completely fluid situation.

The coasting of the Ghost of the Senate may be about to end.

Some might call this sobering reading. Others might call it grim. Either way, if you’re Sherrod Brown, Chuck Schumer, or anyone who wants to keep Democrats’ Senate majority, it’ll keep you up late. H/t @JustR_02. https://t.co/6aHEQsLXrO

— Varad Mehta (@varadmehta) February 28, 2023

Ohio was already trending redder in every election and it might be that Brown’s days of collecting a government paycheck were already numbered. J.D. Vance co-sponsoring two separate bills for train safety and health issues with Brown won’t be enough to save his ghost sheet at the ballot box at this late juncture. East Palestine’s tribulations aren’t going away anytime soon.

This catastrophe coupled with his own ineptitude and indifference well may put the rail spike in his senate career.