Today, the Friends of Sherrod Brown campaign sent the following letter and email to Josh Mandel campaign manager Ray Yonkura:

Sarah Benzing, Campaign Manager 

July 19, 2012

To Mr. Ray Yonkura:

As I’m sure you know, The City Club of Cleveland is often referred to as “America’s Citadel of Free Speech,” and proudly owns the title of the longest continuous independent free speech forum in the country. In our eyes, the rich tradition and history of this venue make it the perfect location for the first agreed upon debate between Senator Brown and Treasurer Mandel.

It seems that both of our campaigns are generally on common ground when it comes to participating in a debate at this venue. As you are aware, we have accepted either October 1st, or October 8th, the City Club’s two proposed dates for a debate.

We eagerly await your campaign’s acceptance of either date. Once you signal your preference, we look forward to getting on the phone with you and the City Club to discuss format and lock down all the details.

As there has been no contact between our two campaigns about debates until this letter, we’re ready to work with you on City Club negotiations. 

We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Sarah Benzing

Campaign Manager

Friends of Sherrod Brown