Ohio2006 Blog

PLEASE GO TO OHIODAILYBLOG.COM

2007-11-02T07:33:00.001-05:00

My blogging operations have been transferred to Ohio Daily Blog.

Take Ted Out To The Ballgame

2007-10-17T07:11:00.001-05:00

My Geauga County friends Terry and Janet Carson went to Tuesday night's Indians game with John Hazley and a special guest:

OH-5: Nine File for Special Primary Elections

2007-09-28T17:33:00.000-05:00

Today was the final day for filing election petitions in Wood County for the November 6th special primary elections in the 5th Ohio Congressional District. Subject to verification of petition signatures, the candidate list looks like this (h/t CQ Politics):

State Rep. Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green)

State Sen. Steve Buehrer (R-Delta)

Retiree Michael J. Reynolds (R-Columbus Grove)

Libertarian business consultant Mike Smitly (R-Van Wert)

Teacher Mark Hollenbauh (R-Bowling Green)

Fred Pieper (R)

Former University Administrator Robin Weirauch (D-Napoleon)

Dr. Earl Campbell (D-Perrysburg)

George F. Mays (D-Norwalk)

I received an email earlier today from a reliable source indicating that Sandusky County Commissioner Brad Smith (R-Fremont), who was widely regarded as a strong potential candidate from the eastern reaches of the district, decided against running at the eleventh hour. Smith was not convinced that he had a serious chance of success and is unwilling to play the spoiler or be a pawn. Reportedly he does have future political ambitions, and does not want to do anything to jeopardize his reputation as a sincere public servant.

UPDATE: There is an interview with new Democratic candidate Dr. Earl Campbell here.

Calls for GOP Condemnation of Limbaugh "Phony Soldier" Remark Growing

2007-09-28T15:16:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to keep track as the number of Democrats calling on Republicans to condemn Rush Limbaugh's reprehensible remark on Wednesday that U.S. military personnel returned from Iraq who criticize the war are "phony soldiers." (Limbaugh also called Vietnam veteran Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) "Senator Betrayus" back in January.) Here is a scorecard:

Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Chair of the DCCC - "It minimizes the sacrifice our troops in Iraq and their families are making and has no place in the public discourse. Rush Limbaugh owes our military and their families an apology for his hurtful comments that minimize their service to our country."

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

New Fox Poll: Clinton & Obama Lead Three GOP Candidates

2007-09-28T14:43:00.001-05:00

In a new poll just out from Fox News, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) has a big (and growing) lead over three major GOP contenders in head-to-head matchups (parenthetical numbers are from July):

46% (46%) Clinton (D)
39% (41%) Giuliani (R)

48% (47%) Clinton (D)
35% (38%) Thompson (R)

46% (45%) Clinton (D)
39% (42%) McCain (R)

The poll didn't test Clinton against Romney, and it didn't include former senator John Edwards (D-NC). The poll shows Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) also leading against the three GOP contenders, although not by as much as Clinton (and his leads are shrinking):

41% (45%) Obama (D)
40% (41%) Giuliani (R)

45% (48%) Obama (D)
33% (30%) Thompson (R)

40% (47%) Obama (D)
38% (37%) McCain (R)

Among other findings, the poll puts approval of Bush at 34%, down from 37% right after the testimony of Gen. Petraeus before Congress. Approval of Democratic Party is at 50%, of the Republican Party is at 44%.

OH-14: O'Neill (D) Calls "Iraq Compact" Signed by LaTourette (R) a "Political Stunt"

2007-09-27T14:42:00.000-05:00

A few days ago Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Bainbridge Township) joined a group of 24 House members in signing a "bipartisan compact on the Iraq debate," which they call a pledge designed to reduce political infighting and promote a "bipartisan solution." Among other things, the document states that cutting funding for troops in Iraq would endanger service members, future military involvement in Iraq requires a "clearly defined and measurable mission," the Iraqi government must steer Iraq's future course, and U.S. troops must have adequate recuperation between deployments.

Challenger Bill O'Neill (D-South Russell), the former appellate judge and candidate for Ohio Supreme Court, is calling it empty hypocrisy. O'Neill earned a Bronze Star for his service in Vietnam and his son served in Afghanistan and Iraq. O'Neill's press release states:

"I agree that bipartisan efforts are the only way we are going to get our troops out of harm's way. But this compact appears to be nothing more than empty words in lieu of action - an attempt to put a happy face on what has become a foreign policy disaster.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Brunner: Vote Law "Institutionalized" Vote Caging

2007-09-27T13:45:00.000-05:00

An article published yesterday by McClatchy Newspapers' Washington Bureau says that new voting laws in Ohio and Florida could dampen Democratic voting in 2008, and the part about Ohio contains a hair-raising warning from Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner (D).

The article starts with this description of the overall problem:

Backers of the new laws say they're aimed at curbing vote fraud. But the statutes also could facilitate a controversial Republican tactic known as "vote caging," which the GOP tried in Ohio and Florida in 2004 before public disclosures foiled the efforts, said Joseph Rich, a former Justice Department voting rights chief in the Bush administration who's now with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights.

Caging, used in the past to target poor minorities in heavily Democratic precincts, entails sending mass mailings to certain voters and then using the undelivered letters to compile lists of voters for eligibility challenges.

Later it gets into the comments by Brunner:

In Ohio, which swung the 2004 election to Bush, new Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said in a phone interview that an election law passed last year and signed by former Republican Gov. Bob Taft effectively "institutionalized" vote caging.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-13 & 18: Space (D) and Sutton (D) Promote Mortgage Crisis Legislation

2007-09-27T12:59:00.000-05:00

Kudos to Rep. Zack Space (D-Dover) and Rep. Betty Sutton (D-Copley Township) for continuing to take the lead on legislation to address the continuing mortgage crisis.

Yesterday the House Ways and Means Committee passed legislative language introduced by Space that would severely cut the "foreclosure tax" that occurs when mortgage debt wiped out in bankruptcy is treated as taxable income to the now homeless and bankrupt borrower. According to the press release, Committee Chairman Charles Rangel told Space that he "would like to applaud your leadership on this important issue, especially given that foreclosure rates in Ohio have risen 138% since August of 2006. Your state is just one example of the tremendous reach of the housing crisis, and its impact on working Americans."

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Real Struggle To End Iraq War Will Be Waged in Ohio and Florida, Not in Congress

2007-09-26T17:59:00.001-05:00

Salon's Washington Bureau Chief Walter Shapiro has an article out that explains in straight-forward terms why Democrats in Congress can't end the war -- they don't have enough votes to override a veto, and Republicans won't join them in opposing it. Here is the end of the article, the last paragraph of which really jumped out at me:

With Congress slated to adjourn in mid-November, the clock is fast running out on legislative efforts to reshape the war. Symbolic gestures like "sense of the Senate" resolutions and toothless withdrawal plans -- even if they survive a filibuster -- are unlikely to cow the administration, especially next year when Bush has less than a year left in the Oval Office. Democrats in swing districts will be even more reluctant to engage in a scorched-earth battle with the administration over war funding as the congressional elections draw near.

But the date that is most important to keep in mind is Feb. 6, the morning after the Super-Duper Party-Pooper orgy of primaries when both parties are likely to have de facto presidential nominees. The victorious Democrat in particular will want nothing to happen in Congress that could possibly jeopardize winning back the White House. And congressional leaders (along with most back-benchers) will be shrewd enough to understand that electing a Democratic president is the only surefire route to ending this debilitating war.

That is why angry antiwar activists should realize that their targets are no longer skittish congressional Democrats and Beltway insiders who are their counselors in caution. This is not the moment for guerrilla theater and mau-mauing the moderates. For the true struggle on the home front to end the Iraq war is no longer going to be waged in the chambers of Congress. The coming battleground instead is the familiar terrain of Ohio and Florida -- and the hearts and minds of the swing voters who will decide the 2008 election.

OH-5: Grandillo (D) Out, Campbell (D) In

2007-09-26T16:21:00.001-05:00

A reader in Wood County informs me that Tiffin University administrator Mike Grandillo (D-Tiffin) has decided against running in the special primary election. However, petitions have been filed by Dr. Earl Campbell (D-Perrysburg), and there are reports that George F. Mays (D-Norwalk) may also file, so it appears that there will be a Democratic primary.

The other Democratic candidate, Robin Weirauch (D-Napoleon), has sent out a press release indicating that she file petitions today with 150 signatures, the maximum allowed, from all across the district.

OH-5: Two New GOP Candidates Declare

2007-09-26T13:08:00.001-05:00

There have been four or five potential Republican candidates under discussion in the comment thread to this post, but meanwhile the Toledo Blade has reported that on two new announced candidates, neither of them a familiar name. Michael J. Reynolds (R-Columbus Grove) is a retiree who misspelled the deceased Congressman's name as "Gilmore" in his campaign announcement, and Mike Smitly (R-Van Wert) is a business consultant who is actually a Libertarian.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-26T12:33:00.000-05:00

What's going on today in the state whose width (220 miles) is the same as its height (220 miles):

Ohio Farmers Support Strickland's Energy Plan

Assurances Regarding Production at Lordstown Included in UAW/GM Deal?

Senate Passes Bill to Delay Tamper-Proof Presciption Requirement

Ohio GOP Legislative Agenda Outlined

Brunner to Rule Whether Summit County Independent Candidates Are GOP

Read all about them at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-10: Palmer Says Kucinich and Bush "Like Petulant Children"

2007-09-25T22:19:00.001-05:00

Democratic primary challenger Rosemary Palmer (D-Cleveland) lost no time in lambasting Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) for his mystifying vote against extension and expansion of SCHIP health insurance coverage for children:

I was appalled by Congressman Kucinich’s vote against the State Children’s Health Insurance Program on the House floor tonight. This bill would have expanded an already successful program to provide health insurance to millions of children across the country. It takes some twisted logic for someone who claims to support health care coverage for all to oppose this necessary and overdue move in the right direction.

On one hand, President Bush vows to veto the bill, and on the other, Dennis Kucinich votes against it because he doesn’t think it is perfect. This is a perfect example of what is presently wrong with Washington decision-making. Polarizing positions work against functional compromise resulting in a government that cannot serve in the nation’s best interest. While fringe politicians like President Bush and Congressman Kucinich rant like petulant children, the nation remains stagnant and desperately needing effective leadership. Unfortunately, children in Northeast Ohio and around the country will pay the price for their obstinate actions.

4 of 10 Ohio GOP House Members Vote for SCHIP

2007-09-25T22:14:00.001-05:00

The House-Senate compromise bill to extend and expand SCHIP (H.R. 976, House Vote #906) passed tonight by a broad bipartisan majority of 265-159, with 45 Republicans voting "Yes" and 8 Democrats voting "No." Unfortunately, that is 24 votes short of the 2/3 majority needed to override the threatened presidential veto.

A substantial majority of Americans, including a majority of Republican voters, support the bill, as do a broad cross-section or trade organizations representing both the health care industry and insurance companies. Nevertheless, touting exaggerated claims that consumers would be driven from private to government insurance, and patently false claims that the bill would allow illegal aliens to obtain government health benefits, the White House and GOP leaders were able to keep enough Republican House members in line to preserve the threat of a presidential veto.

This vote against America's children will help define the 2008 election cycle. Those who opposed the bill will have much to explain to their constituents. In Ohio, the House members who voted "No" include four of the ten voting Republicans (Paul Gillmor being deceased and notyet replaced), and one Democrat -- none other than presidential aspirant Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland), who will no doubt say that the bill did not go far enough.

Here is the GOP roll call:

YES
Mike Turner
Dave Hobson
Pat Tiberi
Steve LaTourette
Deborah Pryce
Ralph Regula

NO
Steve Chabot
Jean Schmidt
Jim Jordan
John Boehner

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-25T14:05:00.000-05:00

Some interesting news items from the state whose highest point is Campbell Hill, 1550 feet above sea level:

Space Hosts Conference Call on SCHIP

Dann Pressuring Facebook on Child Safety

Sutton Pans US-Peru FTA

Oh, The Irony: Comparing Chabot and Schmidt Fund-Raising

Read all about them at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-14: Big Fund-Raiser for Bill O'Neill Saturday, With Ted & Lee

2007-09-25T11:03:00.001-05:00

September 30th is a reporting deadline for campaign contributions, so Congressional challengers should be focusing their time and attention this week on raising as much early campaign cash as possible. A strong campaign fund-raising report now means enhanced credibility and momentum going forward, which translates into better fund-raising down the road. In other words, now is the time to collect critical seed money for the campaign ahead.

Former state appellate judge Bill O'Neill (D-South Russell), taking on entrenched incumbent Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Chagrin Falls) in the 14th Ohio Congressional District, understands this very well. He is having a major fund-raising event at Lakeland Community College, 7700 Clocktower Drive, Kirtland, Ohio this Saturday, September 29th, from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. Highlighting the event are special guests Gov. Ted Strickland (D) and Lt Gov. Lee Fisher (D). That will be an exciting campaign reunion, since O'Neill (then a candidate for Ohio Supreme Court) traveled the state with those two and the other statewide Democratic candidates during the wildy successful "Dream Team" bus tour in August, 2006.

If you have an appetite for change on the political scene, this is an important race for you -- and now is definitely the time for you to help O'Neill out. The suggested donation for students and union members is $25, and for everyone else starts at $100 per guest (or $175 per couple). Higher levels are $150/$250 for "Patrons" and $300/$500 for "Friends." Event organizers Terry and Janet Carson ask that attendees start by making a contribution through O'Neill's ActBlue page, and they will then contact you before the event. Questions may be directed to Janet Carson at carsontrry-at-yahoo-dot-com.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-24T14:56:00.000-05:00

Some of what's happening today in the state that fought a boundary war with Michigan in 1835 over the "Toledo Strip":

Space Announces Law to Improve VA Health Care

Weirauch Declares Support for Striking GM Workers

Board Certified Teachers Clustered in Wealthier Districts

ABA Team Requests Death Penalty Moratorium; Strickland Will Think About It

Strip Club Referendum is Over 100,000 Signatures Short

Read all about them at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-7 & 16: More Buzz About Hobson (R) and Regula (R) Retiring

2007-09-24T09:41:00.000-05:00

In a piece in the Washington Post by Chris Cillizza and Shailagh Murray yesterday, the authors include Rep. Dave Hobson (R-Springfield) and Rep. Ralph Regula (R-Navarre) in a list of six GOP House members "who might bow out over the coming weeks and months." They also comment that "the sudden recent death of Rep. Paul Gillmor, a 20-year home-state colleague, could help tip the balance for" Hobson, and that Regula's "primary opponent invited Regula supporters to an upcoming fundraiser."

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-23T17:29:00.001-05:00

It's Sunday evening and I thought I'd clear out the feed reader - so here's a sampling of what's going on in the state whose name is derived from the Seneca word ohi:yo', meaning beautiful river:

County GOP Seeks Expulsion of Kucinich - As reported today in the Cleveland Plain Dealer blog Openers, the Cuyahoga County Republican Party has created a web site to support its plan to petition the Ohio General Assembly to ask the U.S. House of Representatives to expel Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland). Echoing Kucinich's primary challenger Rosemary Palmer (D-Cleveland), local GOP officials contend that Kucinich is ignoring his constituents for the sake of his long-shot presidential campaign. Of course, the chances of such an expulsion occurring are infinitely more remote than of Kucinich becoming president. Meanwhile, Kucinich will take his presidential campaign to NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno tomorrow evening. He will tout his soon-to-be-released autobiography, Courage to Survive. (I am NOT making this up.)

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Damschroder (R) Out; New GOP Names Mentioned

2007-09-21T16:36:00.001-05:00

I have received an email from a reader in the eastern part of the 5th Congressional District who confirms an anonymous commenter's report that former State Rep. Rex Damschroder (R-Fremont) has decided not to run. He goes on to say that because of that decision, and a local desire to have a candidate from the eastern portion of the district, there is a movement underway to get one of the following three people to jump into the race:

* State Rep. Jeff Wagner (R-Sycamore), a farmer, who can only run one more time due to term limits;

* Mayor Terry Overmyer (R-Fremont), a businessman who is the longest-serving mayor in Fremont's history; and,

* Three-term Sandusky County Commissioner Brad Smith (R-Fremont), an attorney, who worked for the Ohio House Republican Campaign Committee under JoAnn Davidson and has served as a City Councilman and an prosecutor.

Any of these candidates would have an uphill battle in the primary, but would carry a lot of votes in the eastern part of the district, and that could tilt the race from State Rep. Bob Latta (centrally located in Bowling Green) toward State Sen. Steve Buehrer (from the western town of Delta).

Clearly, there will be many more meetings held this weekend to figure this all out - but very interesting, not so much because any of these people have a realistic chance to win, but who they take votes away from, thus affecting the outcome.

Republican Defectors May Defeat Threatened Veto of S-CHIP Extension

2007-09-21T16:21:00.000-05:00

House and Senate leaders are negotiating a compromise bill to extend and expand the S-CHIP program, which allows children in certain low-to-middle income families to enroll in Medicaid. (The popular program will expire in ten days without Congressional renewal.) The compromise bill reportedly would permit states to extend the program to families with incomes up to 300% of the federal poverty level, sufficient to permit Ohio to go ahead with the plans reflected in the recently passed state budget.

However, Bush reiterated the other day that he would veto the compromise bill, and called on Congress to instead pass a law that essentially extends the program with very little increase. The Senate version of the extension passed with a veto-proof bipartisan majority (it got 68 votes), but the House version did not (225-204). Thus, the question becomes whether enough additional GOP legislators will defect in order to defeat a veto.

Suddenly, the signs are looking good.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Fave Comments on the MoveOn Molehill

2007-09-21T15:40:00.000-05:00

Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA), quoted in a piece by blogger Taylor Marsh, says what I wish Democratic leaders would say:

"I commend MoveOn for their ad and for speaking truth to power," said Stark. "Up is not down, the earth is not flat, and the surge is not working. General Petraeus betrayed his own reputation by standing with George Bush in opposition to the timely withdrawal of all of our brave men and women from Iraq. I thank MoveOn for their patriotic ad and call on Petraeus to help Bush end a war the President should have never started."

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH Sen-22: Interview with Mike Todd (D)

2007-09-21T15:22:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago I spoke with Michael Todd (D-Medina Township) about his campaign for the 22nd Ohio Senate seat of term-limited Ron Amstutz (R-Wooster). Todd is an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney for Summit County and a Township Trustee for Medina Township. He is also a member of the Ohio Democratic Party State Central Committee. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the Case Western Reserve University School of Law. He will face the winner of the GOP primary, for which State Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Lakeville) and State Rep. Jim Carmichael (R-Wooster) are declared candidates.

Listen to the audio and read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Karen Gillmor (R) and Wachtmann (R) Out - Plus GOP Poll Results

2007-09-21T10:33:00.001-05:00

The Columbus Dispatch blog The Daily Briefing reported yesterday that Karen Gillmor (R-Dublin), widow of Rep. Paul Gillmor (R), will not run in the special election in the 5th Ohio Congressional District. However, the same item reports that State Rep. Lynn Wachtmann (R-Napoleon) is circulating petitions, and Right Angle Blog posted an announcement from Wachtmann yesterday that he is making an announcement today in Henry County, ~~followed by stops in five other counties in the district, so Wachtmann appears to be in. (I'm waiting for a call back from Wachtmann's spokesperson to confirm.)~~ I was totally wrong, Matt at Right Angle Blog was right. Wachtmann is not running, and instead is endorsing State Rep. Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green).

A source in Wood County tells me that former State Rep. Rex Damschroder (R-Fremont) is also circulating petitions, so he is a good bet to enter as well. That makes the GOP field Latta, State Sen. Steve Buehrer (R-Delta), and probably Damschroder.

The following poll was taken of 300 primary voters by the Latta campaign (reportedly available to sbuscribers at Hotline.com):

Primary Election Matchups
Latta 34%
Wachtmann 20%
Buehrer 17%

Latta 30%
Wachtmann 18%
Buehrer 14%
Damschroder 12%

Favorable/Unfavorable
Latta 47%/ 3%
Wachtmann 35%/ 5%
Buehrer 30%/ 3%
Damschroder 29%/ 5%

Those are suprisingly good numbers for Wachtmann against Buehrer. I would have expected them to be tied, or for Buehrer to be ahead. The two of them have traded State Rep. and State Sen. seats due to term limits, much like Latta and State Sen. Randy Gardner (R-Bowling Green) in the eastern part of the 5th Congressional District.

A Reader Expresses Disgust at Senate Condemnation of MoveOn

2007-09-21T09:50:00.000-05:00

I'm "turning over the mic" to a reader who sent me this message about yesterday's political stunt by the GOP:

[T]he reason this has caused me to taste my own bile so bitterly this afternoon is it shows that this is the kind of pathetic b*llsh*t that our Senate has time for--perhaps being of the view that we have no domestic or international policy problems that we should actually be worried about.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Voinovich Supports, Brown Opposes Senate Resolution Condemning MoveOn.org

2007-09-20T13:52:00.000-05:00

This is absurd and outrageous. In an act of ideological posturing, the GOP has engineered a Senate resolution condemning MoveOn.org for an act of pure political speech, i.e., its newspaper ad criticizing Gen. David Petraeus on the eve of his Congressional testimony in support of staying the course in Iraq. Sen. George Voinovich (R) voted in favor of the resolution, of course. Twenty-two Democrats joined the GOP, but to his great credit Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) voted against.

Among Democratic presidential contenders, Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) did not vote and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) voted against. On the GOP side, Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) voted in favor.

It is a dark day when our government condemns political speech. Whether tasteful or outrageous, expression of political opinion is fundamental to democracy and is at the core of our most cherished freedoms. This brouhaha over MoveOn.org is not just a despicable diversionary tactic to deflect attention from popular opposition to the war, it is an affront to our basic civil liberties.

OH-18: Space (D) Comes Out Strong Against Threatened Veto of S-CHIP

2007-09-20T13:35:00.000-05:00

The folks at Open Left may be targeting Rep. Zack Space (D-Dover) with their misguided "Bushdog" campaign, based on his votes for funding Iraq without a withdrawal deadline and for amending FISA, but he can definitely count on my support. Space comes out strong on many critical progressive issues relating to the economy, health care, and energy policy, and this reaction to Bush's threatened veto of Congressional action to continue and expand the S-CHIP program (which provides Medicaid coverage to children in middle-to-lower income families that don't qualify for Medicaid directly) is a great example:

“Instead of doing the right thing by signing the legislation and protecting the coverage of millions of children, President Bush is compromising the health and safety of our children just as they are starting their lives. The President has essentially told them that they must start their lives on the wrong foot.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Weirauch (D) and Buehrer (R) Declare Candidacies

2007-09-20T12:06:00.001-05:00

Robin Weirauch (D-Napoleon) and Steve Buehrer (R-Delta) have officially announced that they are running in the special election in the 5th Ohio Congressional District. From Weirauch's campaign site:

Here's coverage on Buehrer from the Toledo Blade:

Pledging to uphold conservative values, State Sen. Steve Buehrer launched a congressional campaign for Ohio's Fifth District this morning at the Fulton County Courthouse.

"The solutions to our problems are not far away in marble buildings in Washington," Mr. Buehrer said. "They are here in the common sense wisdom of the heartland."

On the issue of Iraq, Mr. Buehrer said Congress should not attempt to "armchair quarterback" the war but allow the generals on the ground to implement their strategies.

OH-13 & 18: More From Sutton and Space on Mortage Crisis Legislation

2007-09-20T11:40:00.000-05:00

Rep. Betty Sutton (D-Copley) has sent out a press release with more from her floor speech in support of H.R. 1852, passed by the House on Tuesday. The legislation would "revitalize" the Federal Housing Administration by increasing the range of borrowers eligible for FHA mortgage reinsurance and making other changes, including providing for financial counseling for borrowers and emergency housing grants. As Sutton notes, 1 in 10 Ohio homeowners with a mortgage is at least a month behind on payments, and 1 in 4 with a subprime loan is delinquent or in foreclosure. Here are her remarks on the floor:

The American Dream is in peril for many families in this country as foreclosures rise and dreams shatter. The American Dream means owning a home, belonging to a community, and being able to provide a safe and stable place for our families. But for too many families, that dream can be a nightmare when predatory lending practices and a complacent government get in the way. We in Congress can help working families take steps toward achieving the American dream, and that’s exactly what we’ve done.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Predatory Lending: Edwards Takes the Lead by Endorsing AFFIL Principles of Fairness in Lending

2007-09-20T09:48:00.000-05:00

Ohio's place in the forefront of the mortgage foreclosure crisis highlights the larger issue of predatory lending in general. Abusive practices by lenders can lure or steer borrowers into loans with unnecessarily high interest rates or unfavorable terms, and some of the terms that lenders stick into loans simply ought to be banned.

Americans for Fairness in Lending is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of abusive credit and lending practices and calling for re-regulation of the industry. Sarah Byrnes, Campaign Manager for AFFIL, informed me in an email today that on September 13th former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) became the first presidential candidate to endorse their Six Principles of Fairness in Lending.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

P2008: Must-Read - Mark Halperin's Thoughts on Candidates

2007-09-20T08:53:00.000-05:00

Wow. Evan Smith and Paul Burka of Texas Monthly have each posted notes on comments made by Mark Halperin in Austin, Texas two nights ago. Halperin was political director at ABC News and creator of the insanely popular (among political junkies, anyway) internet site "The Note." Halperin was full of ideas and insights about the presidential race, so you have to go and read the full posts, but here are a few tidbits:

* Fred Thompson is toast. McCain, by contrast, should not be written off yet.

* Clinton's strength as a candidate is that she's learned from both her husband and George W. how to run a campaign.

Read the rest of this post at me new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Sen. Voinovich (R) Refuses to Walk the Walk on Iraq

2007-09-20T08:12:00.000-05:00

Sen. George Voinovich has repeatedly talked the talk on changing the Bush administration's stay the course/endless war handling of Iraq, but once again he rejected an opportunity to vote where his mouth is. Last night he joined all but six Republican members of the U.S. Senate in obstructing a proposed amendment by Sen. James Webb (D-VA) that would have required troops spend as much time at home training with their units as they spend deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Strickland Submits "Energy, Jobs and Progress" Bill

2007-09-19T15:16:00.000-05:00

I just received an email from the office of Ohio Senate Democratic Leader Teresa Fedor (D-Toledo), indicating that Gov. Ted Strickland has presented to the Senate Clerk his energy bill:

The bill will be introduced “by request” sometime in the next several days. Energy, Jobs and Progress provides much-needed transparency, accountability and consumer protections to Ohio’s system of electric utility oversight. The proposal also will stimulate job growth and protect Ohio’s air and water, generating 25% of electricity consumed by Ohioans through alternative sources such as wind, solar and clean coal by the year 2025.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-6: Iraq Trip Confirms Wilson (D) Anti-War Stance

2007-09-19T10:14:00.000-05:00

Just returned from a five-day trip to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, Rep. Charlie Wilson (D-St.Clairsville) didn't see anything to change his mind about calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq within six months. In fact, Wilson told the Youngstown Vindicator that Iraq is a "surreal situation":

While traveling in Baghdad, Wilson said there were deep craters in the roads caused by explosives. Also, he said, the number of suicide bombers is on the rise.

“There’s a real sense you have to be on guard in Iraq,” he said.

Wilson went to Iraq to see if there is any progress being made and to see if there’s a reason for a continued presence there of U.S. troops. Wilson couldn’t find a reason to continue to put U.S. soldiers in a dangerous and deadly situation.

Wilson estimates it would take at least 10 years to restore order to Iraq.

“That’s 10 years too long,” he said.

Quoted in a related article, Wilson adds:

"...We don't have the time or the resources [to remain in Iraq.] The president is calling for more money and more patience, but there's no political progress. There's no reason to do this for another 10 years."

Wilson voted for troop withdrawal in April, and will have another opportunity to do so shortly.

Polling since the Congressional testimony of Gen. Petraeus shows that most minds outside the beltway have not been changed about Iraq. A majority of Iraqis say that the "surge" has failed, a huge majority (72%) of our own troops say the U.S. should leave Iraq within a year, and the Strategic Visions poll released this morning shows that far more Ohioans want us out than want us to stay. There is plenty of public spuport for resisting the Bush administration's call to stay the course in Iraq, and it is encouraging that Rep. Wilson, a Blue Dog Democrat, will continue to vote for a phased withdrawal.

New Ohio Poll: Giuliani (R) and Clinton (D) Still Lead; Bush Approval at 28%

2007-09-19T08:59:00.000-05:00

A Strategic Vision poll released today shows former mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) with a 13 point lead over newly announced rival and former senator Fred Thompson (R-VA):

Rudy Giuliani 34%
Fred Thompson 21%
John McCain 9%
Mitt Romney 8%
Newt Gingrich 5%
Mike Huckabee 4%
Ron Paul 3%
Tom Tancredo 2%
Sam Brownback 2%
Duncan Hunter 1%
Undecided 11%

On the Democratic side, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) continues to dominate the field, with a 20 point lead over Barack Obama (D-IL):

Hillary Clinton 43%
Barack Obama 23%
John Edwards 11%
Bill Richardson 6%
Joseph Biden 3%
Dennis Kucinich 2%
Christopher Dodd 1%
Undecided 11%

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-13: Sutton (D) Speaks in Favor of Increasing FHA Mortgage Assistance

2007-09-18T15:58:00.001-05:00

Rep. Betty Sutton (D-Copley Township) spoke on the House floor today in support of H.R. 1852, a measure that would modernize and expand the role of the Federal Housing Administration in guaranteeing mortgage loans. Under the new rules, the FHA could guarantee refinanced mortgages loans for tens of thousands of borrowers who face delinquency due to interests rates resetting to sharply higher levels under adjustable rate mortgage loans with low introductory "teaser" rates:

"The American dream is in peril for many families in this country as foreclosures rise and dreams shatter," Rep. Betty Sutton, a Democrat from Ohio, a state particularly hard-hit by the default wave, declared in House debate on the measure.

She called the legislation, which backers say could help an estimated 250,000 families, "a bold step forward on what is going to be a long road to fix this broken system."

This is the first stand-alone bill by Congress in response to the mortgage lending crisis. In addition to changing the formula for determining eligibility for FHA mortgage insurance, it would also make funds available for financial counseling and provide grants for affordable housing. It also eliminates the statutory ceiling on the number of reverse mortgages that the FHA can guarantee.

UPDATE: I see that I have a press release from Rep. Zack Space (D-Dover) indicating that he voted for H.R. 1852 and that it passed with bipartisan support by a 348 to 72 margin. This is very good news.

Voinovich to Unveil "Compromise" Iraq Plan

2007-09-18T10:35:00.000-05:00

Hoping to build a bipartisan consensus, Sen. George Voinovich (R) will announce this afternoon what he considers a compromise plan for Iraq. His draft resolution calls for a "responsible reduction in the number of U.S. troops in Iraq" but states that "the withdrawal of U.S. troops cannot be precipitous and the U.S. will be engaged in Iraq for the foreseeable future." In other words, a few soldiers come home but basically the occupation continues indefinitely.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Senate to Vote on Restoring Habeas Corpus - Call Your Senators!

2007-09-18T07:50:00.000-05:00

A few months before last year's election, Sherrod Brown (D) dismayed his progressive supporters by voting for the Military Commissions Act. Subsequently, and to his great credit, he has acknowledged that the vote was a mistake. This week he has a chance to help rectify the error by voting for S. 185, the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act, which will restore the right of habeas corpus to non-citizens caught up in the Bush administration's program of indefinite detention of persons declared to be enemy combatants. This move is essential to restore our moral standing in the world and to protect against the erosion of our fundamental constitutional rights.

Here is video of Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) discussing hte Habeus Corpus Restoration Act:

Sherrod Brown's vote for this measure is assured, but Sen. George Voinovich (R) still needs persuading. Call the Congressional switchboard at 202-224-3121, toll free 888-355-3588, and tell him to do the right thing. And it would be good to call Brown and thank him. Also, you can sign up to be a citizen co-sponsor of the bill here.

OH Hse-43: Dyer (D) To Introduce Absentee Ballot Bill

2007-09-17T11:33:00.000-05:00

In the wake of news that over 200 absentee ballots arrived at the Summit County Board of Elections too late to be counted in last week's primary election, State Rep. Stephen Dyer (D-Green) announced today that he will introduce legislation that would require all absentee ballot postmarked before Election Day to be counted without regard to date of receipt.

“In light of what happened in Summit County last Tuesday, I felt we needed to ensure that all votes are counted,” Rep. Dyer said. “A post office mistake should not cost anyone their constitutional right to vote.”

Hat-tip to Marc Kovac at Capital Blog.

Coleman (D) Launches Campaign Site and TV Ad for Re-election Bid

2007-09-17T10:20:00.000-05:00

The mayoral campaign of Mike Coleman (D-Columbus) has sent out an email announcing the launch of his campaign site and the release of his first TV ad, which can be viewed at the site.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Weirauch (D) Launch Pending; Sherck (D) Decides Not to Run

2007-09-17T09:05:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: I just got a call indicating that the campaign launch will not in fact be held on Wednesday at 11:00; they are working on scheduling it and will let me know.

I spoke to Ben Krompak, campaign manager for Robin Weirauch (D-Napoleon), who indicated that her official campaign kickoff is tentatively set for 11:00 am this Wednesday in Bowling Green. Location and logistical details are still being worked out. He also let me know that the first portions of Weirauch's new campaign site are now up.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-10 & P2008: Kucinich (D) Protests Exclusion From Presidential Events; Hires New Campaign Manager

2007-09-17T08:03:00.000-05:00

On Saturday the presidential campaign of Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) sent out an email to supporters, complaining bitterly that Iowa Democratic leaders are "rigging the game" by excluding him from two events: yesterday's Democratic Steak Fry in Indianola hosted by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), and the forum on health care and financial security to be hosted on Thursday in Davenport by the AARP and Iowa Public Television. Event organizers claim that Kucinich does not have a sufficiently "active organization" in Iowa, but Kucinich correctly notes that at about 3% he actually leads event participants Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) in most Iowa polls.

Read the rest of the post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Free-For-All in Special Election

2007-09-13T23:42:00.000-05:00

The untimely demise of Rep. Paul Gillmor (R) has produced a blizzard of actual and potential candidates for his former Congressional seat. It is anticipated that primaries will be held on General Election Day (November 6th) and the special election will occur within a few weeks thereafter. The far-flung Northwest Ohio district stretches through Ashland, Crawford, Defiance, Fulton, Henry, Huron, Lucas, Mercer, Paulding, Putnam, Sandusky, Seneca, Van Wert, Williams, Wood and Wyandot Counties. Bush won 61% of the vote in this conservative district in 2004.

Two-time challenger Robin Wierauch (D-Napoleon), the assistant director of the Center for Regional Development at Bowling Green State University, is definitely in the race. Weirauch got 43% of the vote against Gillmor in 2006 and 33% in 2004. She and her advisors have been hoping that there would be no primary on the Democratic side, but I have been told that there are at least two other Democrats are seriously considering a bid. One is Appellate Judge James R. Sherck (D-Fremont), who ran unsuccessfully against Gillmor's predecessor Delbert Latta (R) four times from 1978 to 1984. The other is Mike Grandillo (D-Tiffin), a city councilman and vice president at Tiffin University.

Read the rest of the post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-8: Boehner Says American Lives and Treasure "Small Price To Pay" in Iraq

2007-09-13T14:23:00.001-05:00

Rep. John Boehner (R-West Chester) said on CNN today that the thousands of American soldiers killed and billions of U.S. dollars spent in the Iraq War are really a "small price to pay" and a "good investment" if the fantasy of stabilizing the Middle East and "stopping Al Qaeda here" comes true:

As if anything that happens in Iraq would "stop Al Qaeda." As if the lives of young Americans is "an investment." As if the modest (and debatable) amount of military progress produced by the surge, with no resulting political progress on the part of the Iraqis to date, was proof of anything except that Iraq is a quagmire.

AP Story: Dems Target Five Congressional Races in Ohio

2007-09-13T09:50:00.000-05:00

There is an AP news story out based on an interview with Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, confirming that the Democratic party is targeting five U.S. House races in Ohio. Here are my notes on those five contests:

1st District SW Ohio (Hamilton, Butler Counties). Includes part of Cincinnati and western suburbs. Cook PVI R+1. Bush won 50% of the vote in 2004. Incumbent Steve Chabot defeated second-time challenger Councilman John Cranley by 53% to 47% in 2006.
Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Westwood)
State Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Price Hill)
2nd District SW Ohio (Adams, Brown, Clermont, Pike, Hamilton, Warren, Scioto Counties). Includes part of Cincinnati and eastern suburbs, Lebanon,Portsmouth. Cook PVI R+13. Bush won 64% in 2004. Incumbent Jean Schmidt defeated Dr. Victoria Wulsin by less than 3,000 votes (51% to 49%) in 2006.
Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland)
Former County Commissioner Phil Heimlich(R)
Dr. Victoria Wells Wulsin (D-Indian Hill)
Steve Black (D-Indian Hill)
Jeff Sinnard (D)
14th District NE Ohio (Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Portage, Summit, Trumbull Counties). Includes northeast suburbs of Akron, Willoughby, Mentor, Ashtabula. Cook PVI R+2. Bush won 52% in 2004. Incumbent Steve LaTourette defeated law professor Lew Katz (D) by 58% to 39% in 2006.
Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-Chagrin Falls)
Former State Appellate Judge William O'Neill (D-South Russell)
15th District Central Ohio (Franklin, Madison, Union Counties). Includes part of Columbus and northwestern suburbs, Hilliard, Marysville. Cook PVI R+1. Bush won 50% in 2004. Retiring incumbent Deborah Pryce defeated Mary Jo Kilroy by just over 1,000 votes (50% to 50%) in 2006.
Franklin County Commissioner Mary Jo Kilroy (D-Columbus)
16th District NE Ohio (Ashland, Medina, Stark, Wayne Counties). Includes Canton, Massillon, Alliance, Wadsworth, Medina, Wooster, Ashland. Cook PVI R+4. Bush won 54% in 2004. Incumbent Ralph Regula, rumored to be retiring, defeated novice Rev. Tom Shaw (D) by 59% to 41% in 2006.
Rep. Ralph Regula (R-Navarre)
State Sen. Kirk Schuring (R-Canton)
State Sen. John Boccieri (D-New Middletown)

Regula and Schuring are in italics because it is unclear who will be running. There is no GOP candidate in the 15th because nobody has yet stepped forward, although apparently Rev. Aaron Wheeler (R-Worthington), an African-American former Democrat, is moving toward jumping in.

The only thing mildly surprising here is including the 14th. The various national prognosticators have not deemed this anything but a safe district for the GOP. However, I was at the Meet the Bloggers interview with Bill O'Neill last night (about which I will write much more in a separate post), and I can confirm that this is a serious race. Two things stand out: (1) O'Neill is taking contributions now that he is no longer a judicial candidate, he recognizes that he must raise about $2 million, and he is aggressively pursuing that goal; and (2) because of his prior judicial races (three for Appellate Judge, two for Supreme Court Justice), O'Neill's name has appeared on ballots throughout the 14th District five times. Yes, this is a race. O'Neill sees his campaign as riding the crest of the "dream team" statewide campaign wave (he was along on those bus trips with Strickland, Brown, Brunner, Dann, Cordray, Sykes, and Espy in 2006), and he is going to get support from the other members of that team. Dann has already appeared at two fund-raisers and will do another, and Strickland will be hosting on on September 29th.

Uh Oh. Is Bush's Next Move an Attack on Iran?

2007-09-13T08:27:00.000-05:00

CQ Politics columnist Craig Crawford is convinced that with George Bush "around the corner" on keeping control of his Iraq policy, he can "move on to his other military target: Iran," which Crawford expects "he will probably do before the year is out."

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Marc Dann Lowers the Boom on Failing Charter Schools

2007-09-12T22:01:00.000-05:00

Attorney General Marc Dann (D-Liberty Township) took a tough step against failing charter schools today, and bully for him. This afternoon he filed lawsuits against two schools in Montgomery County, home turf of Ohio House Speaker and charter school champion State Rep. Jon Husted (R-Kettering), alleging that they are failed charitable trusts and should be closed. The schools in question are Colin Powell Leadership Academy in Dayton and the New Choices Community School in Englewood.

Read the rest of this post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Ohio GOP to Rank and File: No Dinner For You!

2007-09-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

Joe Hallett reports in the Columbus Dispatch blog "The Daily Briefing" that the Ohio Republican Party has canceled its state dinner planned for Friday and will instead have an afternoon of training sessions for county chairmen and other party activists.

Yikes! Do you think the party will at least feed them lunch?

Continued at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Weirauch (D) Prepares to Campaign

2007-09-12T14:33:00.000-05:00

~~Just received word that Robin Weirauch (D-Napoleon) will have a campaign kickoff event this Saturday . . . More details to follow.~~

Ooops. I have just been informed that the event Saturday is not a formal campaign kickoff but merely an internal meeting to prepare for the campaign. Formal campaign activities are still on hold out of respect for the late Rep. Paul Gillmor (R).

OH-92: Phillips (D) In; Thompson (R) Likely Opponent

2007-09-11T21:54:00.001-05:00

This interesting article in the Athens News indicates that city council member Debbie Phillips (D-Athens) will indeed renew her bid for the 92nd Ohio House District seat, being vacated by State Rep. Jimmy Stewart (R-Albany) in order to run for the 20th Ohio Senate seat of retiring State Sen. Joy Padgett (R-Coshocton). Phillips is quoted as saying that she will make a formal announcement in the company of Gov. Ted Strickland (D) in the next few weeks.

The article also reveals that Athens County Auditor Jill Thompson (R) will probably oppose Phillips for the open House seat. Stewart indicates that he will support Thompson if she runs.

Susan Gwinn, chair of the Athens County Democratic Party, comments in the article that Stewart may not be sufficiently conservative to attract wide Republican support in the 20th Ohio Senate District. The conservative blogger Brian at "One Oar in the Water" concurs, noting that Stewart received a lifetime rating of only 40 from the United Conservatives of Ohio, compared to 80 for Padgett. As Gwinn notes, Republicans sometimes stay away from the polls when they perceive a candidate as being too liberal, thus opening the door for a Democratic opponent to carry the day.

Gwinn says that a number of Democrats have talked to her about running for the 20th Senate District seat, but she is not revealing out any names at this point.

Ohio's Federal Legislators React to Petraeus and Crocker

2007-09-11T14:02:00.000-05:00

Judging by the initial reactions of Ohio members of Congress to the testimony of Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, we won't be seeing many defections in either direction from the pro-war and anti-war camps. After stating in the spring that their continued support for the surge depended on a showing of success by September, Reps. John Boehner (R-West Chester), Deborah Pryce (R-Upper Arlington), and Pat Tiberi (R-Genoa Township) have all told the Columbus Dispatch that they are persuaded to support Petraeus' recommendations on the basis that there has been some military progress on the ground in Iraq. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Urban) likewise expressed satisfaction with the military progress and also asserts that there has been "some progress . . . socially and politically as well," although where that wishful thinking comes from is not clear.

The same Dispatch article quotes several Ohio Democrats arguing against continuing the surge.

Read the rest of the post at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

OH-5: Karen Gillmor Won't Run; Latta (R) and Weirauch (D) Likely In

2007-09-07T12:56:00.001-05:00

Stuart Rothenberg reports that Karen Gillmor, widow of Rep. Paul Gillmor (R), has decided not to enter the special election to fill the 5th Ohio Congressional District vacancy. Rothenberg says that State Rep. Bob Latta (R) is likely in, and State Sen. Randy Gardner (R) is also being mentioned:

Latta served in the state senate (1997-2000) and ran for the 5th District back in 1988, but lost to Paul Gillmor in the primary by 27 votes. Latta was running for the open seat vacated by his father, Delbert Latta (R), who served in Congress for three decades beginning in 1958. (Congressman Latta served briefly on the House Judiciary Committee during the Nixon impeachment.)

Bob Latta is term-limited and represents similar territory in the Bowling Green area with state Sen. Randy Gardner (R), who is also mentioned as a potential candidate.

Rothenberg also thinks Robin Weirauch (D) will jump into the special. She ran against Gillmor in 2004 and 2006, and the second time won a respectable 43% of the vote. Bush won 60% of the vote in this district in 2004, but both Gov. Ted Strickland (D) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) carried it in 2006.

I keep thinking about County Commissioner Ben Konop (D-Toledo). I realize that he doesn't currently live in the district, but he made an impressive showing when he ran against Rep. Mike Oxley (R) in the 4th Congressional District in 2004, coming closer than any other Democratic Congressional challenger.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-06T15:24:00.000-05:00

I will not be posting much, if anything, until next Tuesday, September 5th, while I attend to some family matters. Meanwhile, some good things to note (read all about them at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog):

Strickland Denies Scurrilous Report of Racist Remarks

Joy Padgett To Retire

Brunner To Seek Approval For Electronic Voting Machine Tests

Police Say Nothing Suspicious About Death of Rep. Gillmor

New Poll Shows Ohio Trending Blue in Presidential Race

2007-09-06T08:46:00.001-05:00

Dave Harding at ProgressOhio.org calls our attention to this Quinnipiac poll out today, which registers a significant shift in Ohio regarding the presidential race. As the pollsters puts it, Ohio "is turning blue in the 2008 campaign, with Democratic candidates winning 11 of 12 matchups with Republican contenders." Here are intra-party results, which show Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) consolidating her lead over Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) but Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) slipping somewhat against Fred Thompson (R-VA)(parenthetical numbers are from August 8):

44% (41%) - Clinton (D)
15% (16%) - Obama (D)
11% (11%) - Edwards (D)
8% (8%) - Gore (D)

21% (29%) - Giuliani (R)
15% (11%) - Thompson (R)
10% (11%) - McCain (R)
9% (8%) - Gingrich (R)
8% (8%) - Romney (R)

Here are the head-to-head matchups, which show Edwards as having the best overall advantage over likely Republican nominees but he and Clinton both doing well, while Obama is virtually tied with Giuliani and McCain:

47% (43%) - Clinton (D)
40% (43%) - Giuliani (R)

46% - Clinton (D)
41% - McCain (R0

49% (47%) - Clinton (D)
37% (36%) - Thompson (R)

50% - Clinton (D)
37% - Romney (R)

42% (39%) - Obama (D)
41% (42%) - Giuliani (R)

41% - Obama (D)
42% - McCain (R)

46% (44%) - Obama (D)
34% (32%) - Thompson (R)

46% - Obama (D)
32% - Romney (R)

47% - Edwards (D)
38% - Giuliani (R)

46% - Edwards (R)
38% - McCain (R)

50% - Edwards (D)
32% - Thompson (R)

50% - Edwards (D)
30% - Romney (R)

It is still early to pay too much attention to polls, and of course the late Ohio primary will have no impact on the nominations. Still, the shift of support to Democratic candidates is substantial and very significant. The overall climate in Ohio appears, at this time, to be moving in the direction of the Democratic Party.

Among the Democrats, all three major candidates have seen their favorability ratings improve since last month:

51%/43% (49%/41%) - Clinton (D)
47%/25% (44%/25%) - Obama (D)
54%/26% (46%/29%) - Edwards (D)

Clinton's margin is still less than the other two, but it is interesting that she has pulled her favorables above the critical 50% line. However, the amount of improvement is very slight. On the Republican side, Giuliani's favorability rating of 48%/30% remains essentially unchanged from his August score of 48%/29%.

Bush's approval rating is up slightly but still bad at 64%/32%. In July he was at 66%/29%.

News and Notes: The National Scene

2007-09-05T15:32:00.000-05:00

Read all about the following items at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Oprah to Stump for Obama?

Republican Malaise Goes Way Beyond Bush

California Electoral Vote Proposal Looks DOA

Thompson to Upstage New Hampshire GOP Debate

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-05T14:14:00.000-05:00

Read all about the following at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Jean Schmidt: AGAIN with the Plagiarism!

Space Gets P.O. Named for Glenn

Maple Heights Featured in New York Times Story on Mortgage Crisis

Report Finds Staggering Increase in Income Inequality in Ohio

Condolences on Death of Rep. Gillmor

Cleveland Crime Down in 2006, But Way Up Since 2004

OH-10: Palmer (D) Issues Debate Challenge to Kucinich (D)

2007-09-05T13:20:00.000-05:00

At a press conference this morning, Rosemary Palmer (D-Cleveland) challenged Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) to participate in five debates.

See the video and read excerpts at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

The Trouble With Larry

2007-09-05T11:51:00.000-05:00

Like the body that refuses to quietly disappear in the Hitchcock classic, the scandal involving Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) and what he did or did not solicit in a men's room at the Minneapolis airport simply will not go away. Roll Call has the audio of a voicemail message that Craig inadvertently left at a wrong number on his way to the Saturday news conference to announce his resignation.

Read the rest of the story at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Strickland Popularity Still Very High

2007-09-05T11:50:00.001-05:00

A new Quinnipiac Poll shows that Gov. Ted. Strickland (D) is strongly approved by a broad cross-section of Ohioans. His approval rating is 58% favorable/18 unfavorable, down slightly from his 61%/15% rating on July 11 but still very, very good. The numbers among Republicans are also good (54%/19%), and interestingly are quite similar to independents (55%/21%).

The poll also shows that 58% of Ohio voters favor policies that would make them pay higher consumer prices on imported goods in order to save American jobs, and 77% say the quality of goods from China is "not so good" or "poor." A majority of Ohioans among all three political categories favor import restrictions even if they mean higher prices (Democrats 63%/28%, Republicans 51%/37%, independents 58%/33%).

By a slim margin (49%/45%), Ohioans agree with Strickland that electronic gaming machines should be illegal in the state.

span style="font-weight:bold;">ADDENDUM: The same poll shows that approval for the Ohio Legislature is down at 38% approve, 37% disapprove. Although Republicans control both chambers, approval is actually lower among Republicans (38%) than among Democrats or independents (40%).

OH-5: Gillmor (R) Dead

2007-09-05T11:49:00.001-05:00

CNN is reporting that Rep. Paul Gillmor (R) was found dead today. He was 68 years of age.

UPDATE: An aide said that Gillmor was found by staff members who went to his apartment after he failed to show up for work. No word on the cause of death.

Gillmor served in the Ohio Senate for 20 years and was elected Senate President in 1981. He ran for Governor in 1986 but lost to James Rhodes (D). He was first elected to Congress in 1988.

2nd UPDATE: Taegen Goddard quotes an "interconference email" as saying that a special election will be required in the 5th Ohio Congressional District. Also, the emails states that "while Republicans are favored to retain the seat, such an election will likely be costly and an added burden to the GOP."

Rest in peace. My thoughts and prayers are with the Congressman's family.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-09-04T21:25:00.000-05:00

Some items of interest from the state that's round on the ends and "hi" in the middle:

Proposed Medicare Change Would Curtail Benefits for 21,500 Ohioans Who Use Home Oxygen

Huttlinger Out as Campaign Manager?

Daily Left Has Video Interview with OH-16 Challenger Boccieri

Brunner Challenged on Ideas for Expanding Role of Secretary of State

Read all about them at Ohio Daily Blog.

Sen. Craig (R) Wavers on Resignation

2007-09-04T20:38:00.001-05:00

Amazing. Sen. Craig (R-ID) is indicating through a spokesperson that perhaps he isn't really going to resign after all.

Critics have been asking why Sens. David Vitter (R-LA) and Ted Stevens (R-AK) aren't being pressured to resign in light of their respective sexual and ethics scandals, given the brusque manner in which Craig was rushed to the exit. But Craig, apparently, is beginning to wonder if the whole thing wasn't a tiny bit unfair. He only pled guilty to a misdemeanor, after all ... and even to the extent that the taint of homosexuality underlies the allegations, right wing commentators keep bringing up the fact that Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) remains in Congress seventeen years after it was revealed that a male prostitute conducted an escort service from Frank's apartment. Craig's spokeman said:

"We're still preparing as if Senator Craig will resign September 30, but the outcome of the legal case in Minnesota and the ethics investigation will have an impact on whether we're able to stay in the fight -- and stay in the Senate."

Does this mean that Craig will actually remain in the Senate?

No. Nah, nope, nyet, no way. But it does mean that the GOP will have to deal with the specter of Craig rising from the political coffin, like some bizarre remake of "The Trouble With Harry," as he tests the water for a possible retreat from his resignation decision. This can't be good news for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who just got finished declaring that the Craig episode is over. Oh no, not quite, not yet.

OH-7: Businessman Dave Woolever (D) to Challenge Hobson (R)

2007-09-04T15:22:00.000-05:00

Dave Woolever (D-Stoutsville), owner and operator of Peppy's Pizza in Circleville, Ohio, has announced that he will challenge Rep Dave Hobson (R-Springfield) in the 7th Ohio Congressional District. Pledging to focus his campaign on the war in Iraq, the economy, and constituent services, Woolever says that "as a small business owner and a life long resident of this district, I know the challenges faced by those who are the life blood of this country. This campaign will be all about a change in direction for the seventh district, the State of Ohio and the nation." Calling Hobson a "rubberstamp for lobbyists," Woolever points out on his web site that Hobson has received $136,7220 from the oil and gas industry and $171, 815 from the drug companies and asks, "What have they gotten for their money?"

Continued at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog.

Cordray Not Impressed by Bush's Proposal to Assist Mortgage Borrowers at Risk

2007-08-31T14:49:00.001-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

This morning President Bush outlined a relatively modest proposal to assist some of the mortgage borrowers at risk of losing their homes. (He also urged passage of helpful tax changes proposed by Sens. George Voinovich (R-OH) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI.) However, Bush minimized the extent of the overall problem, saying that the "recent disturbances" in the subprime mortgage industry are "modest in relation to the size of our economy," and emphasizing that it is "not the federal government's job" to bail out the mortgage lending industry. The Bush administration continues to oppose measures such as new laws to prevent lenders from steering low-income borrowers into riskier loans or raising the investment limits on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac so they can buy more mortgages.

Ohio Treasurer Rich Cordray (D-Grove City) was quick to react to the President's proposal. While "somewhat heartened," Cordray is "concerned that action by federal agencies is long overdue and will be far too little":

I have been immersed in the foreclosure problem at the local and state level and I can say with confidence that its effect on the economy is in no way "modest" ...

The U.S. Census Bureau earlier this week ranked the poorest cities in America. The only state with two cities in the top five was Ohio. This is not surprising for a state that has been a national leader in foreclosures for the past decade and experiences at least one foreclosure filing for every 71 households in the state.

The greatest tragedy is when families lose their homes, but the cascade of problems is extensive. Neighborhoods with vacant foreclosed properties decline. Property values sink. Other homeowners cannot afford to sell their homes. Local government services supported by property values suffer greatly as the need for services spikes. There are other less obvious problems: in some Ohio counties, for example, sheriffs must devote up to half of their work week to conducting foreclosure sales. ...

Some authorities - including those at the federal level - may say this is a ripple effect which can be handled. I see that ripple building to an economic and social tsunami: In Ohio, between 150,000 to 200,000 borrowers hold subprime mortgages with so-called ‘exploding ARMS’ which are beginning to reset now and which will continue to reset at large levels.

The president’s plan will help 80,000 homeowners across the nation and I can say with certainty every one of them will need it. But it will not be enough: in 2006 there were 79,072 new foreclosure filings - in Ohio alone.”

Cordray gets it. The foreclosure crisis in Ohio is like nothing seen here since the Great Depression. Strong measures are needed, and soon, or Bush's rosy comments about the strength of the overall economy eventually may be inducted into the same Hall of Shame as President Herbert Hoover's announcement in February 1930 that the preliminary shock of the stock market crash had passed and employment was on the mend.

Sen. Warner (R-VA) Will Retire

2007-08-31T14:18:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

It's official. This means that popular former Gov. Mark Warner (D-VA) becomes the likely next senator if he runs, as expected. There are now six Senate races where Democrats stand a very decent chance of picking up seats:

Colorado - Sen. Wayne Allard (R) is retiring; Rep. Mark Udall (D) takes on former Rep. Bob Schaffer (R).

Maine - Sen. Susan Collins (R) looks vulnerable to Rep. Tom Allen (D).

Minnesota - Sen. Norm Coleman (R) is on shaky ground against a wide open field that includes Al Franken (D).

New Hampshire - Sen. John Sununu (R) is in real trouble if former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen (D) gets in.

Oregon - Sen. Gordon Smith (R) has a tough race against Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D).

Virginia - Sen. John Warner (R) is retiring; it will probably be Mark Warner (D) against Rep. Tom Davis (R), former Sen. George Allen (R), or former Gov. Jim Gilmore (R). [UPDATE: Rep Davis has officially declared.]

2nd UPDATE: Stuart Rothenberg now rates Colorado, Virginia and New Hampshire as "toss up" races and Maine, Minnesota and Oregon as "narrow advantage to incumbent party." The only Democratic seat in either category is Louisiana, where Rothenberg says that Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) has a "narrow advantage." Her probably opponent is state treasurer John Kennedy (R), who just switched parties.

Thompson: Too Little, Too Late?

2007-08-31T13:53:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

I agree with Jerid on Buckeye State Blog that former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN), who will be announcing his official campaign with a web video and a whirlwind tour on Thursday, is probably entering the race too late. He is unlikely to mount a successful campaign at this point.

Former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) has a huge lead in Iowa and has spent heavily to create a strong organization on the ground. Since his strong showing in the Ames straw poll, former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) has emerged as a "conservative alternative," undercutting Thompson's appeal on that basis. Thompson's fund-raising has been disappointing, so it is unclear how much he can pour into this state. Nevertheless, Thompson must make a very strong showing in Iowa - probably a second place finish - to do well in later contests.

Thompson is skipping the New Hampshire debate next week, and neither his rigid social conservatism nor his southern roots are helpful there. It is also virtually a home court for Romney, who is polling well. So don't look for Thompson to finish strong in the Granite State.

As pointed out today on The Trail, that makes South Carolina and Florida critical contests for Thompson. He has to win one or both convincingly. Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) has been polling well in both states, especially in Florida. Romney will be a strong opponent in South Carolina if he wins Iowa and/or New Hampshire as expected. It's a high hurdle for Thompson, and I don't see Thompson as such a stellar performer as to be expected to pull it off. His testing-the-water phase was hardly error-free, his staff turnover has hindered the creation of a solid foundation, and there are hints that he is not the kind of hard-charging campaigner who can make up a lot of ground quickly. I expect him to be a top tier candidate and to shake up the dynamics of the GOP race, but I do not expect him to become the eventual nominee.

Troop Fatalities Have NOT "Fallen Because Of The Surge"

2007-08-31T12:16:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

They keep saying it, but it isn't true. The above graph, courtesy of Kevin Drum based on information from Juan Cole, shows us the reality. YES, U.S. troop deaths have declined from May through August of 2007. They do that each year, because scorching summer temperatures bring activity in general to a halt. But, NO, the number of deaths are not down. Compared to 2006, they are consistently up, month after month. They are higher this August than last August, and were almost as high this August as they were in January, February, and March of this year when the surge was just getting set up. As Dr. Cole puts it:

I mean, how brain dead do the Bushies think we are, peddling this horse manure that US troop deaths have fallen? (There are always seasonal variations because in the summer it is 120 F. in the shade and guerrillas are too heat-exhausted to fight; but the summer 2007 numbers are much greater than those for summer 2006; that isn't progress.) And why does our corporate media keep repeating this Goebbels-like propaganda? Do we really live in an Orwellian state?

When you hear the puppets in the pep parade repeating the lie that U.S. troop deaths have fallen because of the surge, remember this post!

Breaking Story - Tony Snow Resigning

2007-08-31T11:38:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new digs, Ohio Daily Blog:

Announcement at 12:45 pm. Not unexpected, but another major departure from the Bush administration.

UPDATE: CNN says Snow is leaving September 14th and Deputy Press Secretary Dana Perino will replace him.

2nd UPDATE: It ain't the cancer, it's the dough. Snow says his cancer recovery is going well, but his $168,000 salary (highest level among White House staff) is not sufficient. He made a lot more as a commentator on Fox News and syndicated columnist, etc.

3rd UPDATE: Snow has three children. Can't afford to raise them on $168,000. The White House opposes letting states extend SCHIP Medicaid eligibility to children in families of four with household incomes any higher than $51,625.

Snow says it "was a blast," he had "fun."

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-08-31T09:44:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

It's Friday before a holiday in the Buckeye State - what's going on?

Strickland, Brown, and Brunner to Return Donations Related to Hsu - Joining a national wave of Democratic candidates, Gov. Ted Strickland (D), Sen. Sherrod Brown (D), and Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner (D) are all giving to charity the amounts of contributions received from New-York-based donor Norman Hsu (or, in Brown's case, individuals connected to him). Hsu is the subject of a 1991 warrant in California arising out of a fraud case, and is suspected of improprieties in bundling contributions purportedly from others.

Death of Two Prominent Ohio Democrats Mourned - Charlie Vanik, an outspoken liberal and 26-year member of Congress from Cleveland, died Wednesday in Florida, and Joe Shump, chairman of the Montgomery County Democratic Party for a quarter-century ending in 1994, died Wednesday at Kettering Memorial Hospital.

Smith Promotes "Second Chance" Bill - State Sen. Shirley Smith (D-Cleveland) held a forum yesterday to promote S.B. 197, her proposal to allow low-level repeat felons who have stayed out of trouble for five years to have their records sealed or expunged in order to help them find employment. Smith's proposal has gained national attention, not all of it favorable. Critics assert that multiple offenders don't deserve another chance, that employers are entitled to know the record of people they hire, and that there may be liability issues if such an employee commits another crime. However, there is broad support for the proposal among inner city residents and from those working in corrections and re-entry. Also supporting the bill is Sen. Jon Peterson (R-Delaware), who said "This bill is about redemption. There is a reason we call is the Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections -- there's a redemptive quality to it, and we should be able to move forward."

Strickland Renews Vow to Reform Ohio Education System - On a visit to Kent State University to discuss Ohio's troubled education system, Gov. Strickland said "I'm owning this problem." He restated his pledge to reform Ohio schools and provide adequate, equitable funding. To date his focus has been higher education rather than elementary and secondary education, including naming former State Sen. Eric Fingerhut to the new position of chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents, creating The University System of Ohio to foster collaboration and cooperation among public institutions of higher learning, and increasing funding to such institutions while restricting tuition increases.

I Read the News Today, Oh Boy ... More Subprime Lending Woes

2007-08-31T09:43:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new digs, Ohio Daily Blog:

I read a lot of newspapers online, but we still get the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the New York Times in paper form and that's what we read during breakfast. This morning I turned to the business sections in each and was struck once again by the number of stories that relate to one degree or another to the crisis in the subprime mortage lending industry. From the PD:

* Mortgage worries are hurting automakers because "consumers were in no mood to buy a car this month as they faced rising mortgage payments and roiling financial markets, and some analysts already predict 2007 will be the worst year for U.S. auto sales in nearly a decade."

* The Gross Domestic Product grew by a healthy 4% in the second quarter, but economists expect it to slow to around 2% in the present quarter due to the current housing and credit woes arising from the subprime lending fiasco;

* Nobel economics laureate Joseph Stiglitz predicts a "prolonged economic downturn," although probably not a recession, due to the crisis. "Mortgage payments are going up, house prices coming down, incomes are stagnating. It's not a pretty picture. So the dynamics could unravel more and where it stops, we can't be sure," Stiglitz told reporters during a conference in Malaysia.

* Fairview Park-based Colony Mortgage Corp., employer of 88 at nine locations, is closing in September.

Turning to the Times:

* The Bush administration finally will announce several steps to help low-income mortgage borrowers with credit problems. Included is a change that will make borrowers who fall behind due to payment increases incorporated into adjustable rate mortgages eligible for mortgage insurance from the Federal Housing Administration, which may help them obtain refinancing. Previously Bush had insisted that market fundamental are strong and that no intervention is necessary, despite urgent pleas from Democratic leaders.

* The reason that the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States has been felt so strongly all around the world is the explosion in the global financial market of new finance vehicles like derivatives and structured products. Structured products are pooled assets that have been sliced into small, specialized pieces. The investments are so complex that international investors failed to appreciate the potential risks involved.

* H & R Block announced yesterday that the sale of its subprime lending unit, Option One Mortgage, might fall apart as credit markets deteriorate.

* The Mortgage Bankers Association, an industry group, has released a study showing that a significant portion of mortgage foreclosures involve investors seeking to turn a quick profit rather than homeowners paying for their primary residence. However, a big majority of foreclosures do in fact involve homeowners. The national average revealed in the study is 16% of defaults among loans based on strong credit relate to investors, while 12% of defaults among loans based on weak credit relate to investors.

That's a lot of news, most of it bad, and it shows how pervasive and troubling the crisis has become. In sum, the experts don't think the crisis will propel the country into another recession, but it is likely to result in at least a sustained economic downturn, with negative effects felt around the world.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-08-30T16:48:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Newsy bits from our fair state:

Strickland Announces Wind Project Grants; Coal Plants Opposed - Mark Niquette reports in The Daily Briefing that today Gov. Ted Strickand (D) followed up yesterday's speech presenting his energy plan by announcing grants worth up to $5 million from the Ohio Wind Production and Manufacturing Incentive Program for two wind energy projects, one in Champaign and Logan Counties and the other in Wood County. Environmentalists are in favor of renewable alternative energy sources like wind and solar, but are deeply skeptical about "clean coal" and coal gasification. ActForChange.com is conducting a campaign that calls on Ohioans to contact Strickland and local lawmakers and urge them to oppose two coal-fired plants planned for Meigs County. However, coal is a huge resource in Ohio and Strickland is from coal country. There is tremendous pressure on Strickland and the legislature to include coal technologies in Ohio's energy plan.

Homeownership Preservation Clinic Underway in Cleveland - The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development is sponsoring a six-hour clinic today (2:00 pm to 8:00 pm) at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Cleveland, where borrowers who are having difficulty making their monthly mortgage payments can meet with representatives from fifteen area loan servicers, as well as attend workshops and meet with housing counselors about ways to prevent foreclosure. The clinic is being supported by the Ohio Treasurer, Ohio Department of Commerce, and Ohio Housing Finance Agency, who note that "the number of foreclosures is expected to increase in the next two years as many adjustable rate mortgages with lower 'teaser' rates are reset to higher interest rates and higher monthly payments." If unable to work out terms with their lender, borrowers at risk are encouraged to call the HOPE Hotline at 888-995-HOPE (4673).

Fedor Endorses Union-Backed Fuel Economy Measure - Ohio Senate Minority Leader Teresa Fedor (D-Toledo) today filed a resolution in the Ohio Senate backing passage of a bill in Congress to raise the corporate fuel economy (CAFE) standard from the present 27.5 mpg to 32 mpg by the year 2022. Former Secretary of Transportation Rodney Slater hosted a press conference to praise the measure. However, as pointed out today on The Daily Briefing, environmental groups favor a stronger measure, already passed by the U.S. Senate, that would raise the CAFE standard faster - to 35 mpg by 2020. Fedor (and the United Auto Workers) say the slower measure is needed avoid harming the domestic auto industry, and thus protect jobs. However, a recent analysis by the Union of Concerned Scientists concluded that switching to the higher 35 mpg standard by 2018 would "increase US employment by 241,000 jobs in the year 2020, including 23,900 in the auto industry."

Rate Finalists in the DSCC Bumper Sticker Competition

2007-08-30T10:06:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Here are the four contenders, submitted by rank and file Democrats in the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee-sponsored competition to come up with a nationwide DSCC slogan for 2008. What do you think?

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Vote for your favorite here. Then come back and tell me what you think in the comments.

Here are some initial thoughts:

1) Why so much red? The red/blue symbolism has prevaded popular culture pretty strongly. All else being equal, shouldn't the Democrats use blue as part of the Democratic brand?

2) All the slogans are grounded in reacting to the mess created by Republican rule. Given the dismal approval ratings for Bush that makes a certain amount of sense, but wouldn't it be better to convey a positive message as well?

3) Is it possible to distill the Democratic jobs-health care domestic agenda to a slogan?

4) No graphics! Where's the donkey?

5) Why just one slogan?

Tell me what you think.

Strickland's Energy Plan

2007-08-30T09:31:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Faced with a utility deregulation policy that has failed to produce lower rates, and threatens to cause much higher rates if things go as they have in several other states, Gov. Ted Strickland unveiled a hybrid energy plan yesterday in a speech at the Ohio Statehouse. The governor's office is working with the Legislative Service Commission to put his plan into a bill, with hopes of getting some version of it passed by the end of the year.

Interestingly, some of the pressure to go back to complete regulation of utility rates is coming from business interests, faced with the frightening prospect of skyrocketing electricity prices. However, Strickland's plan does not do that. Instead, as reported in the Dispatch, utilities are given "the choice of returning to a regulated environment by having the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approve their rates or opting for market pricing -- but only if they can prove to the PUCO that a competitive market exists."

However, the plan doesn't stop there. Strickland also calls for requiring that one quarter of the energy sold in Ohio by 2025 come from 'advanced energy technologies,' which would include fuel cells, so-called "clean coal," and nuclear power as well as renewables like wind, solar, low-impact hydroelectric, and geothermal power. As noted in the Toledo Blade story, at least half of the alternative energy would have to come from renewables. Also, half of the total alternative energy would have to be generated within Ohio, in order to boost the Ohio economy.

The plan lacks detail at this stage, and the general reaction from all sides has been "let's wait and see." However, there are some elements that set off alarm bells even at this stage. The alternative energy sources advanced by the plan include nuclear power and coal gasification, and both of those alternatives raise serious environmental concerns. The target of 25% alternative energy may seem impressive now, but given the trend to green energy it may actually be behind the curve by the year 2025. However, the general direction of the plan is encouraging, and there does appear to be potential for broad support for the plan.

UPDATE: Todd Hoffman has video from Strickland's speech on the Ohio Democratic Party Blog.

News and Notes: The National Scene

2007-08-30T08:09:00.001-05:00

The political pulse of the nation (ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump):

GAO to Report Failure by Iraqi Government - The AP says that a General Accounting Office report ordered by Congress will conclude that the Iraqi government has failed to achieve 15 out of 18 political and security goals laid out by lawmakers to assess Bush's new war strategy. The Bush administration will argue that it was unfair of Congress to instruct the GAO to count only full completion of each benchmark as "success."

Clinton to Give Up Contributions From Donor Wanted for Fraud - Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) will give to charity $23,000 received from businessman Norman Hsu, subject of an arrest warrant in California stemming from a 1991 fraud case. Hsu had been scheduled to co-host a Clinton gala next month featuring Quincy Jones.

Conservative Media Watchdog Group Complains About Network News Coverage - Unbelievable. A right wing group is complaining that Democratic candidates get more airtime on network morning news shows than Republicans. The networks say Republicans are less interested in appearing on their shows. Why should they? They're too busy being fawned over on Fox News Channel and conservative talks shows across the radio dial. If we're going to consider whether the amount of airtime is fair, let's take all of that into account, please.

Wyoming GOP Moves Caucus Up to January 5th - Now that's a move that seems certain to shove Iowa and New Hampshire's presidential nominating contests into December.

Craig Craters

2007-08-30T08:06:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID), who is NOT GAY and NEVER HAS BEEN GAY, is disappearing into political quicksand. Facing a difficult reelection battle, and possibly offended at the misuse of a Minnesota public bathroom, Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) has followed up his call for Craig's resignation with an announcement that he will return a contribution from Craig's political action committee, Alliance for the West PAC. Will fellow recipients Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Pete Domenici (R-NM) and John Sununu (R-NH) follow suit?

Meanwhile, Craig has been stripped of his committee assignments, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and a variety of GOP House members have joined the call for his resignation, the White House says it is "disappointed," and the matter has been referred to the Senate ethics panel.

Dan Abrams pointed out on MSNBC last night that ten out of fifteen recent major political sexual scandals have involved Republicans rather than Democrats. Why the disparity? The most interesting suggestion made by his guests was that persons with information about sexual improprieties are more likely to come forward when the subject is a perceived as a hypocrite, for example by demagoguing about family values while having an extramarital affair or denouncing gays while secretly engaging in gay sex.

Incidentally, have you been wondering why the GOP is being so noisy about the Craig incident while it has been so silent about the D.C. Madam scandal involving Sen. David Vitter (R-LA)? It could be because one incident involved straight sex while the other involves gay sex. However, Kevin Drum points out that Craig's replacement would be nominated by a Republican governor, while Vitter's successor would be nominated by a Democrat.

Very Moving Video - Edwards Responds to Health Care Question

2007-08-29T13:03:00.001-05:00

Not cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog, because my #%&!@ server is down right now:

I have to post this short video clip, placed on YouTube by the campaign of former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC), because I found it so incredibly moving:

The right wing noise machine, more afraid of Edwards than of Clinton or Obama, has been very carefully planting the impression in the public mind that Edwards, who is wealthy, is hypocritical and out of touch with the problems of lower-income Americans. It is in unrehearsed moments like this, however, when you can see for yourself that he unmistakably gets it. He not only empathizess with and understands the plight of the impoverished and of the struggling middle class, he is appropriately outraged by this fiasco of a health system that we have.

And, not an insignificant point, Elizabeth Edwards is terrific.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-08-29T11:39:00.000-05:00

Caught my eye:

Jean Schmidt Gets Testy With War Protesters - A shouting match broke out between and Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland) and "Take a Stand Day" war protestors outside her office. Schmidt was backed by pro-war counter-protestors. The groups reportedly shouted at each other while passersby honked their horns and yelled.

Franklin County GOP Endorsements - The Columbus Dispatch blog Daily Briefing reports on endorsements by the county GOP in Ohio House races: Cheryl Grossman over Brett Sciotto in the suburban 23rd, county coroner Bradley Lewis over Nathan Burd in the 19th, Tim Rankin in the 24th, and Bill Schuck in the 22nd.

LaTourette Moves Closer to Challenger - This is ... odd. Rep. Steve LaTourette (R) has relocated from rental property in Concord Township (Lake County) to a $218,900 home in Bainbridge Township (Geauga County). That move puts him very close to challenger William O'Neill (D), who lives in adjoining South Russell. Keeping an eye on the competition?

Strickland to Unveil Energy Plan Today - Gov. Ted Strickland (D-Lisbon) is about to announce his new energy plan, formulated after months of consultations on replacing Ohio's disappointing deregulation policy. He is expected to call for investor-owned utilities and a statewide strategy for using more renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and biofuel.

News and Notes: The National Scene

2007-08-29T10:43:00.000-05:00

Items of interest from outside Ohio:

Bush To Add New $50 Billion Request For Iraq - From the Washington Post:

President Bush plans to ask Congress next month for up to $50 billion in additional funding for the war in Iraq, a White House official said yesterday, a move that appears to reflect increasing administration confidence that it can fend off congressional calls for a rapid drawdown of U.S. forces.

This is on top of an already pending $147 billion supplemental. Bush figures that Democrats will fold after Gen. Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker deliver their pep talk in Congress on September 11. Is he right - to the tune of another $50 billion wasted on this insanity?

Americans Doubt New Orleans Recovery - A new CNN-Opinion Research Poll indicates that a majority of Americans (55%) don't think New Orleans will ever completely recover from Hurricane Katrina. A slimmer majority (52%) think the federal government is not doing enough to assist with the recovery; only 10% think it is doing too much.

Elizabeth Edwards Says Democrats Don't Try Hard Enough to Win in the South - Speaking to supporters a fund-raiser in a Nashville restaurant, the spouse of candidate John Edwards (D-NC) said she doubts that rivals Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Barack Obama (D-IL) will spend much time in the South, and she blasted the Democratic party for ignoring southern states in past campaigns:

Edwards said Democratic values parallel more closely with Southern values than those of the Republican Party, because of emphasis on family and small community issues, such as child care credits and universal health insurance.

But the Democratic Party isn't bothering to spend the money needed to connect to Southern voters, Edwards said, which she said showed it had written off the region.

Edwards said a Democrat is electable in the region where there are five states with Democratic governors — Arkansas, Louisiana, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

Obviously Something on His Mind? - The first words out of the mouth of Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) at his news conference yesterday, held to deny that he is gay and to proclaim his innocence despite pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of ~~creating a public nuisance~~ disorderly conduct at an airport bathroom in Minneapolis by engaging in suggestive behavior toward an undercover police officer, were:

"Thank you all for coming out today."

By the way, 55% of Idahoans think he should resign.

Helmsley Left Millions to Dog, Nothing to Two Grandchildren - Yikes. The will of deceased hotel billionairess Leona Helmsley creates a $12 million trust fund for beloved white Maltese, named Trouble, but leaves nothing for two out of four grandchildren "for reasons known to them."

It's a Banner Day for Depressing Statistics!

2007-08-28T14:35:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Quick - what do housing prices, SAT scores, earnings, and the percentage of Americans with health insurance all have in common?

Aaaaaugh - they are all dropping! In a perfect storm of really depressing statistical measures, we learn today that:

* United States home prices fell 3.2% in the second quarter, the steepest decline since Standard & Poor's began keeping track in 1987. "The decline in home prices around the nation shows no evidence of a market recovery anytime soon," states the report at CNN.

* Combined math and reading SAT scores for the high school class of 2007 were the lowest in eight years.

* Median earnings for individuals are down, according to the U.S. Census Bureau report issued today. "For men, earnings slipped 1.1 percent to a median of $42,300, while for women, earnings sank 1.2 percent to a median of $32,500." Now, this statistic is tricky, because median income of households actually went up slightly (0.7 percent to $48,200, adjusted for inflation). But that's because more people are working within each household.

* The U.S. Census Bureau also reports that the number of Americans not covered by health insurance rose to 47 million (15.8% of the population) in 2006 from 44.8 million (15.3%) the year before. The percentage of people covered through their employers fell from 60.2% to 59.7%, and the percentage covered by government health programs fell from 27.3% to 27%.

OH-10: "Cleveland in Poverty, Dennis in Disney World"

2007-08-28T10:46:00.001-05:00

Seizing on today's news that the U.S. Census Bureau has again ranked Cleveland as one of the poorest cities in the nation, and the fact that Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Cleveland) has scheduled a presidential campaign appearance at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, the campaign of challenger Rosemary Palmer (D-Cleveland) has released this deadly bit of video:

Chertoff Credibility Issues

2007-08-28T10:29:00.001-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

It now appears that the positioning of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff as a nominee to replace Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was a mere feint or ploy, but if Chertoff does become the nominee he will face stiff challenges to his credility. Mark Benjamin writes in Salon today that Chertoff mischaracterized Pentagon interrogation methods in testimony before Congress:

Just as Gonzales, under oath before Congress, failed to recall whether there was dissension within the Bush administration over a controversial war-on-terror-related policy, so Michael Chertoff seems to have suffered a similar lapse of memory while under oath before Congress when pressed on a different terror-related policy. Gonzales pleaded ignorance of a rift within the administration over warrantless wiretapping; Chertoff has denied knowledge of interrogation techniques that are tantamount to torture, despite regular attendance by his top aides at meetings on the subject.

"If Mr. Chertoff is nominated, the Senate needs to ask him some very tough questions about what he knew about the abuses at Guantánamo," said Hina Shamsi from Human Rights First.

In a similar vein, David Fiderer on Huffington Post details false statements by Chertoff in Congressional testimony about Katrina, including referring four times to non-existent newspaper headlines that said 'New Orleans Dodged the Bullet.'

Although Gonzales has been roundly criticized for a variety of failings, the flaw that weighed most heavily in eventually sinking him was his inability to speak plainly and truthfully to Congress. With that backdrop, these credibility issues would almost certainly doom a Chertoff nomination.

Spitzer Threatens S-CHIP Lawsuit; Can Dann Be Far Behind?

2007-08-28T10:27:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

During his campaign for attorney general, Marc Dann (D-Liberty Township) sometimes mentioned crusading state attorney general (and now governor) Eliot Spitzer (D-NY) as a personal inspiration. Yesterday, Spitzer threatened to sue the federal government over new regulatory restrictions on the S-CHIP program, which provides Medicaid coverage to children of lower-income working families). The lawsuit would contend that the regulatory changes are void as fatally inconsistent with the controlling statute.

I have written about the new S-CHIP regulations here. The regulatory changes, issued by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on August 17th, impose virtually impossible preconditions on states that wish to raise the income limitation on families eligible for S-CHIP above 250% of the federal poverty level. The recently passed Ohio budget contains a plan to raise the eligibility to 300%. Other states are considering plans to raise the limit to 350% or even 400%.

Reaction to the changes has been swift and harsh. Gene Sperling wrote in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

What is most inexcusable about the White House stance is what they don't say. They offer nothing -- no better idea, no alternative, no plan -- that has been shown to keep even a chunk of these 5 million to 6 million children from going to sleep every night without health insurance.

They are content to keep the status quo even with heartbreaking reports that uninsured infants with congenital heart problems are 10 times more likely to die because of delayed treatment than those with coverage.

Before, "compassionate conservatism" may have seemed like a political bumper sticker. Now it seems like the punch line of a sad joke, at the expense of millions of impoverished children.

Amy Swanson, Executive Director of Voices for Ohio's Children, wrote to me in an e-mail message last week:

[The CMS letter is] yet another example in the SCHIP debate that the White House is out of touch with America. Ohio passed a bipartisan child health expansion, and these decisions should be left to states and not to the whims of partisan politics in Washington. ...

The requirements create nearly impossible hurdles for states to overcome. ...

With passage of recent legislation [i.e., the SCHIP extension bills passed by both chambers of Congress], it is clear that Congress does not agree with the administration’s policies for SCHIP. ...

This policy restricts state flexibility – a cornerstone of the program – sets a bad precedent – what else with the administration due to undermine the current program for our children—many of these children we are talking about have lost access to employer coverage because of chronic care needs or worse, they never had access to the employer coverage. Middle-income families are being priced out of the private market due to escalating health care costs.

Last week, Gov. Ted Strickland (D) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) joined in a strong protest letter to the Bush Administration, which includes the assertion that the changes "contravene the fundamental objectives underlying SCHIP and may overstep your Department's authority." That wording suggests that Ohio's new leadership concurs with Spitzer's assessment about the validity of the changes. Something tells me that Marc Dann might be working on draft pleadings for Ohio's SCHIP lawsuit at this very moment.

DeWine (R) a Potential Nominee for Attorney General?

2007-08-28T08:36:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Okay, this is the second time I've heard the name of the recently defeated Ohio senator, Mike DeWine (R-Cedarville), mentioned as a possible nominee to replace Alberto Gonzales as U.S. Attorney General. I can't remember where I saw it the first time (and Googling didn't turn it up).

My instinct is to want to call DeWine for a reaction, but I'm having some trouble coming up with a number to call. Working on it. Will update.

Presumably, the minimum qualifications (at least for a consensus-type candidate) are someone with notable public stature, great skills as an administrator, independence from the White House, and a proven commitment to putting the interests of nation ahead of party politics.

UPDATE: Mike DeWine replied by email that he has no comment.

2nd UPDATE - I am told, by a person very familiar with the nomination process for federal judges, that when a putative nominee says "No comment" -- rather than, for example, "Are you out of your mind? No way!" -- it usually means that the person is in fact under consideration.

3rd UPDATE: See? What did I tell you! U.S. News & World Report also mentions DeWine as a possible nominee, citing a Fox News report.

Compare How Ohio's Senators React to Gonzales Resignation

2007-08-27T12:46:00.000-05:00

Very instructive. From senior Senator George Voinovich (R), who sometimes deviates from the White House in word but rarely in deed:

“While the senator believes Congress has a duty to conduct oversight, he also understands the president has the right and responsibility to fill his own cabinet. He is looking forward to reviewing the future nominee and will work with his colleagues to help ensure a thorough but speedy process.”

From newcomer Sherrod Brown (D), who won his campaign largely by tying incumbent Mike DeWine (R) to Bush:

“Senator Brown believes the attorney general's resignation is long overdue. His tenure has been marred by incompetence at best and outright deceit at worst. Senator Brown hopes President Bush will put politics aside and nominate someone we can all be proud of for this important position. The American people deserve an attorney general whose first allegiance is to them, not the President.”

Both statements were issued through spokespersons.

By conspicuously not praising Gonzales in the statement, Voinovich hints at some level of disapproval of Gonzales' incompetence and partisanship. So much for preserving some minimal appearance of being a moderate. However, the substance of what he does say is that he is already an automatic "yes" vote for whoever Bush puts forward.

More on Bush's Iraq-Vietnam Comparison

2007-08-27T12:27:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

I commented before on Bush's analogy of Iraq to Vietnam in a speech before the VFW last week, asserting that:

[O]ne unmistakable legacy of Vietnam is that the price of America’s withdrawal was paid by millions of innocent citizens whose agonies would add to our vocabulary new terms like ‘boat people,’ ‘re-education camps,’ and ‘killing fields.’

The best reactions I think I've seen came not from professional pundits but from seven pithy letters to the editors of the New York Times, published on Saturday, which essentially noted that:

1. Iraq has added painful vocabulary terms of its own, like "Abu Ghraib" and "I.E.D."

2. It's hypocritical to evoke Vietnam now, after warnings of a Vietnam-like quagmire were ignored before going to war in Iraq.

3. Bush's declaration that a free Iraq "is within reach" is "not that much removed from Secretary of State Henry Kissinger’s 'Peace is at hand' remark, and we know how many more lives were lost needlessly after that statement."

4. The appropriate comparison is not to the aftermath of Vietnam but "the flawed policies that led us to these battles in the first place."

5. Bush's "deeply flawed thinking invites the question: Why didn’t [Bush] step up and go?"

6. Bush's "contorted and inaccurate" analogy invites the critical question of "how long we Americans will accept this level of dishonesty from our president."

7. Perhaps Bush will recall that "after we left Vietnam, none of the predicted dominoes fell and Vietnam became a tourist destination welcoming Americans."

Of course, implicit in Bush's analogy to Vietnam is the notion that the United States could have "won" that conflict if only it had stayed the course. This is a blatant revision of history that originated during the Reagan era and is perpetuated by some right wing pundits, despite the consensus of expert opinion to the contrary. For an authoritative example, read a paper written by Dr. Jeffrey Record, a professor in the Department of Strategy and International Security at the U.S. Air Force’s Air War College in Montgomery, Alabama, entitled "Vietnam in Retrospect: Could We Have Won?" His conclusion:

The United States could not have prevented the forcible reunification of Vietnam under communist auspices at a morally, materially, and strategically acceptable price.

OH-15: Neither Petro Nor Lashutka Will Run

2007-08-27T12:15:00.001-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

It's a nightmare scenario playing out for the Ohio GOP as the top two remaining prospects to run for the seat of retiring Rep. Deborah Pryce (R-Upper Arlington) -- former Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro (R-Columbus) and former Columbus Mayor Greg Lashutka (R-Columbus) -- have now both rejected the idea of jumping into the race. Two other possibilities, State Sen. Steve Stivers (R-Columbus) and State Rep. Jim Hughes (R-Clintonville), previously turned it down.

Former Franklin County Commissioner Dewey Stokes (R-Columbus) has also been mentioned. He was defeated in his re-election bid by Marilyn Brown (D-Columbus) in 2006. However, Stokes has said that he is more likely to run for county commissioner again than for Congress.

AG Gonzales Resigns; Chertoff Likely Replacement

2007-08-27T07:25:00.000-05:00

This story is breaking; details to follow.

UPDATE: Still nothing much to add. The New York Times broke the story, but reports only that ~~Gonzales~~ a senior administration official will make a statement later today.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Edwards has issued a statement pointing out that he called for Gonzales' resignation on March 13, 2007, and saying "Better late than never."

2nd UPDATE: CNN is reporting that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff likely will be nominated to replace Gonzales. Chertoff has background as Assistant U.S. Attorney, Assistant Attorney General, and U.S.Court of Appeals judge. He also clerked for Supreme Court Justice sWilliam Brennan.

3rd UPDATE: The new conference is set for 10:30 a.m. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who led the charge against Gonzales, seemed sort of noncommittal about Chertoff on CNN just now, neither praising nor condemning him outright.

4th UPDATE: Solicitor General Paul Clement is being named as a likely temporary replacement. Other names I've heard for a permanent replacement are former Sen. John Danforth (R-MO), former Solicitor General Ted Olsen, and corporate attorney and former Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson.

Chertoff has competency issues because of the bungling of Hurricane Katrina during his watch (FEMA is part of Homeland Security). I don't think that would be enough to prevent his confirmation outright, but if the Bush administration wants a really quick and smooth confirmation process and Democratic senators object to Chertoff on this basis, it might prompt the White House to name someone else.

5th UPDATE: Although the traditional media has jumped on Chertoff as the virtually certain nominee, I'm not so sure just yet. One thing I will say is that this is an interesting test as to how Bush will handle the last part of his presidency. If he nominates Chertoff or anyone else closely associated with his administration, it's a sign that he will continue his combative style even as a lame duck. If he goes beyond his inner circle and nominates someone who was prominent before Bush took office, like Ted Olsen, that's a sign that he will be more cooperative with moderate elements within his own party and with Congress in general.

The GOP presidential candidates presumably don't want the White House to pick fights and create controversies, and generally draw attention to the unpopular current GOP president, during the next year while they are trying to sell themselves to the public as representing a new direction for the country. However, stubbornness and devotion to ideology have been the hallmarks of this administration, so it would represent a huge change of tone for the White House to seek a consensus nomination for AG. We'll just have to wait and see.

6th UPDATE: Cleverest reaction to Gonzale's resignation yet, from Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emmanuel (D-IL):

Alberto Gonzales is the first Attorney General who thought the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth were three different things.

Add Skindell, Celeste and Hagan to List of Potential Dem House Leaders?

2007-08-24T17:05:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

If the Democratic Party wins four seats and therefore control of the Ohio House of Representatives, their caucus leader will be House Speaker rather than just Minority Leader. Their current leader, State Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Columbus), is term limited in 2008. So, the hunt for a new leader is on.

I reported previously that the Toledo Blade had suggested State Reps. Todd Book (D-Portsmouth), Jennifer Garrison (D-Marietta), and Matt Szollosi (D-Toledo) as possible choices. Today, Cleveland Plain Dealer reporter Mark Naymik identifies three more possibilities: State Reps. Mike Skindell (D-Lakewood), Ted Celeste (D-Grandview Heights), and Bob Hagan (D-Youngstown).

Skindell is an interesting prospect. He is in his third term and is the ranking minority member on the powerful Finance and Appropriations Committee. I heard him speak at a forum on the state budget and his grasp of substantive issues is impressive. However, the other two newly mentioned contenders have powerful political credentials. Celeste, in his first term after whipping incumbent Geoff Smith (R-Upper Arlington) last fall, is the brother of the former governor and ambassador Richard Celeste. He was a campaign manager for his brother and ran for U.S. Senate himself in 2000. Celeste has bolstered his position with solid fund-raising since taking office. And Hagan was a state senator (and minority whip) before running for his current seat in the House due to term limits. Hagan's father was a county commissioner and primary candidate for Lieutenant Governor, and his brother is a commissioner for Cuyahoga County.

New and Notes: The National Scene

2007-08-23T12:28:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Try them on crostini with arrugula and truffle confit (sorry, Top Chef moment):

Edwards Clings to Iowa Lead - A new Strategic Vision poll has former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) holding on in Iowa at 23%, virtually tied with Sen Barack Obama at 22% and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) at 21%. Gov. Bill Richardson is at 14%. Like Romney, who has a bigger lead in Iowa on the GOP side (31%, compared to Thompson at 15% and Giuliani at 13%), Edward's big hope is to pivot upward from an Iowa victory in terms of fund-raising and momentum going into later races. Thus, it is very bad news for the Edwards camp that Michigan Republicans are trying to advance that state's primary to January 15th. That move would cause New Hampshire to move up its primary to the first week of January, and Iowa's state law requires that its caucuses be held both before any other state and within the same calendar year as the election. If the Iowa caucuses are held on or around the New Year's Day holiday, they are likely to be of diminished significance.

Time Magazine Pokes Some Holes in Giuliani's "Tough on Terror" Image - The latest issues looks closely at the question of how well Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) prepared for a terrorist attack before 9/11:

Giuliani spent eight years presiding over a city that was a known terrorist target. ... On 9/11, he earned the trust of most Americans; one year later, 78% of those surveyed by the Marist Institute had a favorable impression of Giuliani. ... The evidence also shows great, gaping weaknesses. Giuliani's penchant for secrecy, his tendency to value loyalty over merit and his hyperbolic rhetoric are exactly the kinds of instincts that counterterrorism experts say the U.S. can least afford right now.

NIE Report Says Iraqi Leaders "Unable to Govern Effectively" - Edwards and Richardson are sparring with Clinton over her comment in a speech to the VFW that new tactics have produced some limited success in parts of Iraq, but the political situation in Iraq seems to be washing out from under our military forces like so much beach sand at high tide. The latest National Intelligence Estimate released today says that civilian casualties remain high, sectarian groups are fighting, al Qaeda in Iraq is still committing high-profile attacks, and "to date, Iraqi leaders remain unable to govern effectively." What is the significance of a little military progress when the political reconciliation that this "surge" was supposed to produce remains as unlikely as ever?

Dumping al-Maliki to Stay the Course? - Uh oh. A scary piece by Craig Crawford at CQPolitics suggests that Bush's mixed signals about Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki could presage a shuffling of political leadership in Iraq, as a predicate to arguing that the new leadership needs more time to achieve success, much as "rearranging the military uniforms on the ground" last winter became the basis for buying more time for the military campaign.

Mapping Clinton vs. Giuliani - Wow. Chris Bowers at OpenLeft has taken state-by-state polling information on the head-to-head matchup of Clinton and Giuliani and created a map showing the results if the election were held today, and it looks like this:

Clinton wins the election, 335 electoral votes to 203. And this is the "least electable" of the Democratic front runners.

Ted Strickland on VP Short List of Clinton Backers

2007-08-23T12:18:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

I can't get at the underlying source yet, but Taegen Goddard says that according to the latest Evans-Novak Political Report:

"[I]mportant supporters" of Sen. Hillary Clinton "are laying the groundwork for a campaign against Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) for Vice President on grounds that he adds nothing to the ticket. Prominent names offered as alternatives: Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland.

This is far from the first time that I have heard Strickland's name bandied about as a VP prospect. I have a few off-the-cuff thoughts about this:

1. Since Clinton is a Senator, it helps to have a Governor on the ticket. That is a plus for Warner as well as Strickland. (Why isn't Richardson on this list?)

2. Ohio figures to be one of the two or three most important swing states again in 2008. Location is in fact Strickland's most desirable feature.

3. Strickland provides "personality balance" to the ticket. He is genial and sincere and has inspired trust in rural voters (i.e., southeastern Ohio). Clinton has provided support for Strickland in the past and the two of them seem to have a genuine high regard for each other.

4. Although liberal on many issues, Strickland is more conservative on some social issues like guns and gambling. Another balancing factor? (Clinton has already staked out a few conservative social positions of her own, like that flag-burning nonsense.)

5. Strickland strikes me as a good -- but not stellar -- campaigner. He ran an excellent campaign for Governor, but he always seemed to come off more as solid and dependable than inspiring and visionary. If I had to guess, I'd say that the campaign was a very gruelling experience for both him and his spouse. Which leads to my last thought ...

6. I really, really don't think Strickland would want to run for Vice President. He has said that he wants to serve and retire as Governor and I believe him. He hasn't said or done anything during this run-up to the presidential nomination to indicate that he is paying any attention to it at all.

OH Hse 19, 22, 23, 24: GOP Candidates Reported

2007-08-23T11:30:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

The Columbus Dispatch blog Daily Briefing has a post up about potential GOP candidates for Ohio House seats in the Columbus area.

In the northwest suburban 19th District, where Rep. Larry Flowers (R-Canal Winchester) is term-limited, the screening committee of the Franklin County GOP is endorsing two candidates, former legislative aide Nathan Burd and county coroner Bradley Lewis. Burd is a pro-life zealot and rabid supporter of Mitt Romney; his opponent had ties to a group called "Ohio Republicans for Choice" so he may be pro-choice unless he has had a Romney-esque miraculous conversion. The challenger in 2006, Marian Harris (D-Columbus), plans to run again.

In the 22nd, which goes from Dublin to Clintonville, Rep. Jim Hughes (R-Columbus) is term-limited and former State Rep. Bill Shuck (R-Columbus) figures to get the nod. (Former State Rep. David Robinson was interested in this race but dropped out.) Health care attorney John P. Carney (D-Columbus) deserves and should get another shot at this district, a real pickup opportunity for the Democrats.

In the west-to-southwest suburban 23rd District, where Rep. Larry Wolpert (R-Hilliard) is term limited, the GOP candidate will be either Mayor Cheryl Grossman (R-Grove City), who has been endorsed by the screening committee, or Councilman Brett Sciotto (R-Hilliard). Grossman appears to be up for re-election as mayor in 2007, opposed by Bill Ferguson.

State Rep. Ted Celeste (D-Grandview), brother of the former Ohio governor, ousted Geoff Smith (R-Upper Arlington) handily in the westside 24nd District in 2006, and he has been very busy with fund-raising for 2008. The GOP candidate will be city councilman Tim Rankin (R-Upper Arlington), who spoke out against displaying Outlook Weekly and Gay People's Chronicle in the Upper Arlington Public Library as "offensive and inappropriate." (h/t Dave Harding at ProgressOhio.org)

Bush Jumps the Shark on Iraq?

2007-08-23T10:49:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

I have to say, George Bush's invocation of Vietnam in his speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars strikes me as a sign of desperation. If he felt that he had any chance of persuading anyone outside of his ultra-conservative base to support a continuation of the war, why would he draw parallels to a conflict that anyone but a right wing hardliner regards as a blunder and tragedy? The painful memory of Vietnam isn't going to help him turn around moderates and independents.

In addition, it irks me when Bush resorts to the notion that the slaughter of innocent civilians is a justification for continuing the war. He says that we must stay in Iraq to avoid the kind of suffering that plagued the Vietnamese after we left that country. But the suffering of foreigners wasn't given as a reason for us to go to Iraq in the first place. WMDs and the supposed support of Al Qaeda by Saddam were about protecting the U.S.A., not civilians in Iraq. Also, the tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis killed so far in this war have never provoked remorse from Bush to date. If humanitarian catastrophes called for military engagement, why aren't we sending soldiers into Sudan to stop the genocide there?

In any event, I agree with what Democratic candidate Gov Bill Richardson (D-NM) said in Nevada yesterday:

"The correct conclusion to draw from our experience in Vietnam," said Governor Richardson, "is that dragging out the process of withdrawal will be tragically worse in terms of U.S. lives lost and worse for the Iraqis themselves in terms of the ultimate instability we will create by staying longer."

The lesson of Vietnam is that it took us too long to get out. The suffering might well have been less if we got out sooner, and the suffering in Iraq might well be greater if we prolong our occupation.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-08-22T09:58:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Tasty tidbits in spicy commentary sauce:

Massive Flooding Across North Central Ohio - Record-breaking rainfall and flooding across north central and northwest Ohio closes part of I-75, causes many evacuations, as reported here, here, and here.

Foreclosure Statistics Grim - Ohio is a national leader as the number of foreclosures continues to spike upward. And the number of ways that the subprime mortgage lending crash and housing slump are hurting the economy keeps growing too - add real estate agents to home builders, hedge funds, and mortgage bankers as professionals who are feeling the pain.

Wagoner and Coley Defer to Dolan on House Speaker Position - The Columbus Dispatch blog Daily Briefing reports that Rep. Mark Wagoner (R-Toledo) and Rep. Bill Coley (R-West Chester) have decided to yield to Rep. Matt Dolan (R-Novelty) in the contest for House Speaker to replace Rep. Jon Husted (R-Dayton), based largely on Dolan's fund-raising clout. Rep. Bill Batchelder (R-Medina) is still contending for the job.

Stokes New Political Director for OHDC - Toledo native A. J. Stokes, who has a 2001 political science degree from OSU and experience working with unions and on the gubernatorial campaigns of Ted Strickland (D-OH) and Time Kaine (D-VA), is replacing Adam Hewit as political director for the Ohio House Democratic Caucus. Hewitt is leaving to work for lobbyist Darryl Deaver.

Ohio Unemployment Higher Than One Year Ago - There were 14,000 more unemployed Ohioans in July 2007 than in July 2006. Ohio's unemployment rate is at 5.8%, compared to the national rate of 4.6%.

Ashford Replaces Ludeman as President of Toledo City Council - After weeks of posturing and discord, Democrats united behind Robert Ashford (D) to replace Michael Ludeman (R). Mayor Carty Finkbeiner criticized the move.

Mine Owner Angrily Dismisses Safety Criticisms - Robert Murray of the Ohio-based Murray Energy Corporation angrily denies criticism by the United Mine Workers that he knowingly operated an unsafe operation at the Crandall Canyon mine in Utah, where six miners are missing (and probably lost) and three would-be rescuers were killed.

News and Notes: The National Scene

2007-08-21T16:22:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

What's up?

Levin Calls for Maliki's Ouster - Fresh back from Iraq, Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) describes the Iraqi government as "non-functional" and says the Iraqi parliament should remove Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his cabinet if they can't arrive at a political accommodation with their political rivals immediately.

Obama Claims He Would Win Southern States By Increasing Black Turnout - Responding in New Hampshire to questions about his electability and a comment that it would require a "leap of faith" to vote for him, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) made some startling electoral predictions if he is the eventual Democratic nominee:

* Black voter turnout will increase by at least 30 percent across the country.

* Young people's percentage of the vote will go up 25-30 percent.

* He will carry southern states like Mississippi and Georgia, and put South Carolina in play.

Obama says that he is the only candidate who can actually "redraw the electoral map." He pointed out that he fares best among independent voters, that he has lower negative ratings than his Democratic rivals, and is leading Giuliani, Romney and Thompson in head-to-head matchups.

Congressional Approval at All-Time Low - A new Gallup Poll shows approval of Congress at 18%, tied for lowest ever for this poll. The nine point drop since the last poll is due to a decrease in approval among Democrats and Independents. Bush's approval is still dismal at 32%, up three points from the last poll.

CIA Director Failed to Prepare for Al-Qaeda Attack - A long-classified report by the CIA Inspector General, released today, concludes that former CIA Director George Tenet did not marshal CIA resources to deal with the recognized threat posed by al-Qaeda before the 9/11 attacks. The report says it cannot identify a "single point of failure nor a silver bullet" that would have prevented the attacks, but "[t]he agency and its officers did not discharge their responsibilities in a satisfactory manner," thus failing to come up with a comprehensive approach to battling the threat.

Voinovich Under Fire Over Iraq Vote UPDATED W/ VIDEO

2007-08-21T10:28:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Senator George Voinovich (R) is being hit hard for reversing course on Iraq, i.e., voting against troop withdrawal after expressing skepticism about the prospects for the war. Yesterday Americans United for Change (an umbrella group with major union backing) unleashed TV ads against four lawmakers on the issue, including Voinovich. (The others are Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM), Rep. Jon Porter (R-NV) and Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN).) Today, Americans Against Escalation in Iraq and ProgressOhio.org launch Voinvovich Doubletalk Express, a mobile 10' by 20' billboard that will visit 11 Ohio cities in a three-day tour. Here is the sign:

If you'd like to experience the tour in person, here is the schedule:

TUESDAY, AUGUST 21

10a: Elyria- Ely Park Corner of Middle Ave and Broad Street
12:15p: Cleveland- Voinovich Park, 800 E 9th Street
3p: Painesville- In front of LaTourette’s district office, 1 Victoria Place
5:30p: Youngstown- Youngstown Federal Plaza

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22

8a: Akron- Federal Courthouse Plaza, 2 South Main Street
10a: Mansfield- Hamilton Park, off Route 30 and Fern Road
1p: Columbus- ProgressOhio office, 251 S. 3rd Street
4p: Cincinnati- City Hall (Plum Street side), 801 Plum Street

THURSDAY, AUGUST 23

10a: Dayton- Cooper Park, E. 2nd Street and St. Clair Street
1p: Lima- Town Square in front of City Hall, 50 Town Square
3p: Toledo- In front of the Toledo Blade, 541 N. Superior Street

UPDATE: Here is the TV ad:

Fed Rules Threaten Proposed Expansion of Ohio SCHIP Program

2007-08-21T10:27:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Late last week the Bush administration announced new policies that will make it impossible, or at least extremely difficult, for states to expand Medicaid eligibility to children in families with incomes above 250% of the federal poverty line. (The poverty line is about $20,650 for a family of four, so 250% is about $51,625.). The rule changes are explained in articles in the New York Times and the Washington Post today.

SCHIP is a program with broad bipartisan support that provides health insurance for about 6.6 million children with parents who work but do not earn enough to afford private health insurance. Families under the poverty line qualify for Medicaid without resort to SCHIP, but this $5 billion-per-year program extends that eligibility for children in families up to 200% of the poverty line. Some states have already extended the eligibility to 250% or 300% using certain administrative waivers available to the states, and some propose to raise it even higher. Ohio has incorporated a plan to raise the limit from 200% to 300% in the recently passed 2007-2009 biennial budget.

However, SCHIP is scheduled to expire on September 30th unless renewed by Congress, and Bush and the legislature have been fighting about how much additional funding to include with the renewal. Bush has threatened to veto any renewal legislation that exceeds his proposal to renew with $30 billion in funding over the next five years, a total increase of $5 billion. The Senate has passed a bill to renew the program with $35 billion in funding (a $10 billion increase), and the House has passed a more complicated extension that would renew the program with $75 billion in funding (a $50 billion increase).

The Bush administration says that it is trying to re-focus the program on uninsured children in low-income families, and to avoid the possibility that middle-income families will choose free public insurance instead of paying for private insurance. Advocates for children argue that families above 200% frequently cannot afford the health insurance that they need, so the fear of expanded SCHIP coverage as crowding out potential purchasers of health insurance is a myth.

The rule changes impose three basic restrictions on states who wish to extend eligibility above 250%, as Ohio does. First, the state must have achieved an Medicaid and SCHIP participation rate of 95% for families under the 200% level. Second, SCHIP enrollment should require copayments or premiums that approximate private insurance, and should impose a one-year waiting period (i.e., the state must determine that the each child is uninsured for that long before enrollment). Third, states must first show that the number of children in the target population covered by private insurance has not decreased by more than 2% in the preceding five years.

This morning I called Amy Nicholls Swanson, Executive Director of Voices for Ohio's Children, and Ericka Thoms, Policy and Planning Associate at the Center for Community Solutions, for their initial reaction to the changes. They both said it is too soon to provide a detailed response (the changes were announced late Friday and public policy advocates are just now meeting to assess the situation). However, when I asked Swanson if the new procedures seem drastic and punitive she freely agreed. She was driving from a meeting with a state official involved in the administration of Medicaid funds and promised to deliver a more detailed appraisal of the changes later.

Thoms pointed out that no state has achieved 95% participation, and that the level of SCHIP funding increase supported by the Bush Administration appears to be insufficient for states to afford that level of participation. She also pointed out that the one year waiting period strikes her as "dangerous." Right now there is a thirty-day turn around period. Asking families to go without health insurance for children for a year means that you could have children who are sick not getting the care that they need.

In the Post article, Rep. Rahm Emmanuel (D-IL), an architect of the SCHIP program, comments that he thinks "states will see the letter [announcing the rule changes] for what it is, and that's a political ploy by the president. This is a political attempt by the administration to try to intimidate states." Thoms agreed that it may be a ploy, but worries that it may be a very effective one. What puzzles her is that the changes seem to be "kind of thumbing their nose at bipartisanship." There is broad bi-partisan support for the goal of covering children whose families can't otherwise obtain insurance, but these changes seem to be much more about protecting the profits of private insurers than achieving that goal. There is "much more support in Congress for covering kids than there is for this kind of really punitive regulatory procedure."

During the recess, Thoms said, members of Congress have been hearing about how important SCHIP is to their constituents. The concern among advocates for children has always been to come up with a compromise SCHIP extension bill that would garner enough bipartisan support to withstand a veto, and that is more likely to be at the Senate level of funding than the more expansive House bill, but both bills endorse expanding coverage for kids. "I don't see how Bush has support in Congress for blocking the expansion of coverage," she said.

It will be very interesting to see what happens in the next few weeks as policy experts react to the rule changes and members of Congress return from the August recess. I hope to post much more on this issue soon. What is clear already, however, is that the goal of approaching universal health care coverage for Ohio children is hanging in the balance.

Can We Finally Put "Al-Qaeda Would Follow Us Home" To Rest?

2007-08-20T16:31:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

One of the most widely repeated -- and most disingenuous -- arguments for maintaining the U.S. presence in Iraq is this familiar false choice: "If we don't fight them in Baghdad we will have to fight them on the streets of America." Today Foreign Policy has released the third installment of its periodic "Terrorism Index," a survey of over 100 of the most respected experts on foreign policy (including both Republicans and Democrats), and among other things the experts aren't kind to this "follow us home" argument:

It’s a scenario that the index’s experts say is unlikely. Only 12 percent believe that terrorist attacks would occur in the United States as a direct result of a U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq. Eighty-eight percent of the experts said that either such a scenario was unlikely or that they see no connection between a troop withdrawal from Iraq and terrorist attacks inside the United States. This line of thinking was consistent across party lines, with 58 percent of conservatives saying they did not believe terrorist attacks would occur at home as a result of a military drawdown in Iraq.

That could explain why a bipartisan majority, 68 percent, of the experts favor redeploying U.S. forces from Iraq during the next 18 months. Although most oppose an immediate pullout, the situation in Iraq has deteriorated to the point that 1 in 5 experts, including 25 percent of conservatives, now favor an immediate withdrawal. If opinion continues to move in this direction, it will become much harder to explain why the troops aren’t homeward bound.

It's long past time to for the media to stop aiding the GOP in perpetuating the "follow us home" canard. It's a logical fallacy, the experts disagree with it, and when conservative pundits and candidates trot it out reporters should challenge them on it.

The other parts of the report are just as damning to White House policy. A majority do not think the "Surge" is helping matters:

[53%] say the surge is having a negative impact on U.S. national security, up 22 percentage points from just six months ago. This sentiment was shared across party lines, with 64 percent of conservative experts saying the surge is having either a negative impact or no impact at all. When the experts were asked to grade the government’s handling of the Iraq war, the news was even worse. They gave the overall effort in Iraq an average point score of just 2.9 on a 10-point scale.

In addition, the experts are extremely alarmed about Pakistan. Asked which country is most likely to transfer nuclear weapons to terrorists, they picked Pakistan by a huge margin (74%, compared to North Korea as the next choice at 42%), and a plurality (35%) picked Pakistan as the most likely country to become the next safe haven for Al Qaeda (Iraq was next at 22%). A majority feel that current U.S. policy toward Pakistan is having a negative effect on U.S. national security.

RETRACTED - Reagan Dissed 40-Year-Old George W. Bush as "Ne'er Do Well"

2007-08-20T14:09:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

Ah, I must apologize - apparently this turns out to be a farce. It has been removed from my source (Taegen Goddard's Political Wire).

Hat-tip to Taegan Goddard for this choice bit from the diaries of Ronald Reagan, written on May 17, 1986 (emphasis added):

"A moment I've been dreading. [Vice President] George [H.W. Bush] brought his ne'er-do-well son around this morning and asked me to find the kid a job. Not the political one who lives in Florida. The one who hangs around here all the time looking shiftless. This so-called kid is already almost 40 and has never had a real job. Maybe I'll call Kinsley over at The New Republic and see if they'll hire him as a contributing editor or something. That looks like easy work."

The Gipper was perceptive, you have to grant him that. Too bad George W. didn't get the easy job Reagan had in mind ... and stay there.

UPDATE: My readers don't think this is genuine, and I'm starting to wonder as well.

News and Notes: The National Scene

2007-08-20T14:07:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

A few items of interest from outside Ohio:

Giuliani Spent More Time at Baseball Games Than at Ground Zero - So reports Alex Koppelman in Salon, referring to the three-month period after 9/11 during which a New York Times study shows that Rudy spent only 29 hours there. The candidate has compared himself to rescue workers, asserting that he spent about as much time at the site of the destroyed World Trade Center as the workers now reporting health issues from their exposure to toxic dust.

Biden Runs First Iowa TV Ad - Sen. Joe Biden (D-IA) is running the first of two 30 second TV ads in Iowa that are designed to distinguish himself from the other candidates on foreign policy experience and how he would handle withdrawing from Iraq. Here are both ads, which are quite good:

Biden proposes to divide Iraq into three autonomous regions and keep a residual force of U.S. troops there to prevent chaos and fomenting of a regional war.

Reporter Disputes Rove's Characterization of Valerie Plame Episode - During his weekend media blitz, retiring White House political guru Kare Rove minimized his role in disclosing the identity of Valerie Plame (wife of former ambassador and White House nemesis Joseph Wilson) as an undercover CIA operative. However, former Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper said today that Rove's account is "dissembling, to put it charitably." Rove denied columnist Bob Novak's assertion that Rove confirmed Plame's CIA status to him, but Cooper responds that "[t]o imply that he didn't know about it or that this was all the leak by someone else, or he heard it as some rumor out in the hallway, is nonsense."

White House Blows Off Another Deadline for Turning Over Subpoenaed Material on Warrantless Surveillance - White Counsel Fred Fielding has indicated that the deadline of 2:30 p.m. today for the material to Congress (originally due on July 18th and pushed back at the White House's request) will not be met. Fielding wants until after Labor Day. Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, however, is in no mood to grant more time.

News and Notes: Ohio

2007-08-20T12:52:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted at my new location, Ohio Daily Blog:

What's happening out there?

Clancy Out; Seitz to Run - The Columbus Dispatch blog Daily Briefing reported Friday evening that State Sen. Patricia Clancy (R-Cincinnati) will step down from her 8th Ohio Senate District seat, and term-limited State Rep. Bill Seitz (R-Cincinnati) of the 30th Ohio House District will run for the open seat. Clancy will become assistant chief probation office for Hamilton County in October, a job apparently arranged for her in order to avoid a Clancy-Seitz primary next year.

Sykes Replaces Donaldson at OCRC - Former State Rep. Barbara Sykes (D-Akron) has been appointed by Gov. Ted Strickland (D-Lisbon) to replace Jeanine Donaldson, who served only four months, as chair of the Ohio Civil Rights Commission. Since her narrow loss to then-State Rep. Mary Taylor (R-Green) in the 2006 race for State Auditor, Sykes has been CEO of Ohio United Way. (I saw Sykes and her husband, State Rep. Vernon Sykes (D-Akron), at the 20th Annual Urban League of Greater Cleveland banquet on July 13th, where retiring chief Myron Robinson was honored. I told them then how much I admire and appreciate their leadership, and I'm thrilled to see her back in government service.)

Blackwell Out and About - Former Secretary of State Ken Blackwell (R-Cincinnati), looking for ways to revive his political career after his dismal showing in the 2006 gubernatorial race, is scheduled to be a featured speaker at the Midwest Republican Leadership Conference in Indianapolis on August 24-26. GOP presidential contenders will be showcased at the conference.

Brown Denounces SCHIP Veto - Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Avon) is making public appearances today in Cincinnati to oppose President Bush's threat to veto legislation to continue and expand the Children's Health Insurance Program. He was at the Children's Hospital Medical Center this morning and will attend a discussion on covering the uninsured at the Lincoln Heights Health Care Center at 2:30 this afternoon. The Cincinnati Enquirer has a good story today on what's at stake for Ohio, i.e., the expansion of Medicaid coverage for children proposed by the governor and adopted by the General Assembly in the state budget.

Party at New Wulsin Headquarters - Dr. Victoria Wulsin (D-Indian Hill), challenger to Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland) in the 2nd Ohio Congressional District, will hold a party at her new campaign headquarters in Anderson Township at 5:30 pm on August 29th to thank volunteers and supporters from her last campaign, and to lay out her vision for the country and her plan to take back the district from the GOP.

Space Secures Federal Funding for Southeast Ohio - One of the key items on the re-election "to do" list of freshman Rep. Zack Space (D-Dover) is securing federal funding for projects in his district, and it looks like he has done a good job of it. His office recently announced that he has secured more than $7 million for projects in Southeastern Ohio. Moreover, Space says, “These projects are good, they’re worthy of federal funding, and they make sense for our region." The biggest items listed in the press release are $1,000,000 each for "Biorefining for Energy Security" in Athens and training equipment for the Ohio National Guard, $800,000 for airport improvement for Ohio University, $750,000 for Country Road 29 upgrades in Harrison County, and $500,000 for West Pike Sanitary Sewer upgrades in Muskingum County. No "Bridges to Nowhere" in that lineup. UPDATE: After posting this item, I received a notice that Space announced today he will introduce legislation after the August recess to provide a federal tax break to rural commuters to help them defray the cost of gasoline used in connection with employment. Rural residents are especially hard hit by high fuel prices because they typically drive longer distances than urban dwellers.