Foster Friess Backs Josh Mandel, Ohio GOP Senate Challenger

Foster Friess, the billionaire backer of Rick Santorum who notoriously made a joke last week about "gals" putting "Bayer aspirin between their knees" in lieu of using contraception, has donated $5,000 to Josh Mandel, the Republican challenger of Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio).

Mandel supported Ohio's controversial "heartbeat bill," which would ban abortions from the moment the fetal heartbeat can be detected, often before women even learn they're pregnant. The ban would effectively outlaw abortions entirely in Ohio and, if passed, could prompt the Supreme Court to reconsider its landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

"Josh Mandel's endorsement of the heartbeat bill in Ohio has proven he's a ringleader in the GOP war on women," said Justin Barasky, Brown's re-election campaign spokesman, "so it's no surprise that he'd be standing shoulder to shoulder with someone who thinks it's funny to make offensive jokes about women's health."

Mandel's campaign could not be reached for comment.