WASHINGTON — An "independent" organization linked to the Republican Party is dredging up decades-old allegations of domestic abuse against Sen. Sherrod Brown, which prompted his former wife to say the use of her divorce records by the GOP is “shameless” and “disgusting.”

The organization, known as #MeTooOhio, is spending less than $100,000 to show a 60-second digital commercial that resurrects allegations that Brown in the 1980s physically abused his then-wife, Larke. The group called for him resign immediately, comparing his case with those of everyone from Bill Cosby to former Ohio State assistant football coach Zach Smith.

The group filed organization papers with the Federal Election Commission just last week ad listing its address in Alexandria, Virginia., a suburb of Washington, D.C. Listed at the exact same address are several groups affiliated with GOP campaign organizations, including one that helps fund the Republican National Committee. The RNC issued a statement Thursday condemning Brown based on the "explosive" ad, which the GOP credited to a "women's rights group."

That Ohio women group’s chief spokeswoman, Alice Stewart, went to school in Georgia and worked in Arkansas but has never lived in Ohio, and is a former adviser to the GOP presidential campaigns of Mike Huckabee and Ted Cruz.

"I think it's more important to focus on the content of the information rather than those who are informing the public about it," she said.

Stewart said there was no coordination between her group and Brown's opponent Jim Renacci, a Republican congressman from Wadsworth who was hosting a fund-raiser Thursday with Donald Trump Jr.

But after the video was made public by the Daily Caller web site in Washington, Renacci said in an emailed statement: “Brown’s well–documented history of domestic violence is deeply troubling. Ohioans deserve to know all the facts, and judge his fitness for public office for themselves.”

The ad resuscitates charges made in 2012 by Senate Republican candidate Josh Mandel in his unsuccessful race against Brown.

The Brown campaign, which long anticipated Republicans would attempt to inject his first marriage into the race, released a statement from the former wife, now Larke Recchie, saying “this isn’t the first time someone has gone after my family to score cheap political points.”

“I’m dismayed that Congressman Renacci would do something this shameless, despite the fact that I’ve already addressed this matter,” Recchie said.

“I was proud to support Sherrod in 2006 and 2012 — just as I am this time around,” she said. “Anyone who suggests he is not an honorable man is just wrong.”

“He’s a great father to our daughters Emily and Liz and he’s a wonderful grandfather to our grandchildren,” she said. “Disparaging my family for political gain is disgusting, and Congressman Renacci should know better.”

Recchie and her husband Joe held a fund-raiser in their central Ohio home last weekend for Brown’s re–election campaign.

Initially, nobody claimed credit for producing the commercial, but digital footprints led to Majority Strategies in Florida, a political consulting firm headed by Brett Buerck, a former Ohio Republican Party official who still does contract work for the state party as well as printing and production for Renacci’s Senate campaign. The state party also issued a statement condemning Brown over the ad.

Thursday night, Buerck confirmed his firm "is serving as the digital and direct mail consultant for (#OhioMeToo's) effort with all of the necessary legal firewalls in place."

The commercial was unveiled at a time when the Renacci campaign is floundering. He is being badly outspent in TV commercials by Brown, who is seeking his third term in the Senate. In addition, Ohio Gov. John Kasich has declined so far to endorse Renacci, who is an enthusiastic supporter of President Donald Trump.

Even though little money was spent on the commercial, the clear aim by Republicans was to encourage news organizations to write about Brown’s first marriage in an effort to damage his re-election prospects.

Leslie Shedd, a spokeswoman for the Renacci campaign, said to her “knowledge Larke has not refuted her allegations. There is a difference between forgiving someone and recanting statement you have made under oath.”

However, when Republicans used the same charges against Brown in a 1992 House race, Recchie was quoted as saying: “Divorce can often be an unfriendly ordeal, and ours was no exception. There was a lot of hurt on both sides, and it led only to angry words.”

Records from the 1986 divorce stand in stark contrast to a Tweet posted by Recchie from April 27 of this year: It shows Recchie and her husband Joe and Brown and his wife Connie Schultz in a raucous group shot on Grandparents Day at one of the grandchildren’s school. “So much fun!” she tweeted of the photo, which was a retweet of a photo Schultz had posted.

The commercial included video of comedian Chelsea Handler saying “every victim deserves to be heard.” Later, Handler tweeted: Hey Congressman Renacci — please don't use me in attack ads against candidates I support."

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