A Day At the Zoo : Raking In New Tax Dollars

Pretend you’re the manager of a major Ohio city. Your city’s population and industrial tax base are shrinking, as are its tax revenues. But your city’s expenses aren’t dropping, and you can’t cut the payroll without getting major grief from union officials and politicians. So what do you do – besides telling the firefighters and police to cut back on the overtime? For one thing, you express great interest in any “creative” idea that comes along which will bring in revenues from another political entity. That’s what’s happening these days in Cincinnati.

Slaves in Indiana

The International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) filed a lawsuit claiming that Indiana’s right-to-work law violates the 13th Amendment, which states that “neither slavery nor involuntary servitude…shall exist within the United States.” The union claims that:

The Defendants have exacted compulsory service and/or involuntary servitude from the Union through the combination of the passage of the Right to Work law and the existing federal requirement of the duty of fair representation. Through these laws the Union is compelled to furnish services to all persons in bargaining units that it represents, but it may not require payment for those services because of the Right to Work law.

Congratulations Sherrod Brown: THREE years without passing a budget

Senator Sherrod Brown

It has been 3 years to the day since Sherrod Brown and his Democrat colleagues in the Senate have passed a budget.

What has happened in that time? The national debt went from $11.2 trillion from $15.6 TRILLION. That's an increase of $4.4 trillion, or 39%, in just 3 short years.

Of course, if Sherrod had his way, he would spend even more. Just last year, he signed a letter to President Obama which opposed a cap on federal spending.

Cordray = Isolated

The hits keep coming for Richard Cordray.

As I wrote a couple weeks ago, the attempt to dethrone Chris Redfern as Chairman of the ODP was nothing more than a fight between the Cordray and Strickland camps of the party.  

For those not paying attention, Team Cordray really embarrassed themselves once the votes were counted and Redfern/Strickland easily won in a landslide.  To make matters worse, Democrat county chairman across the state were speaking on the record about Cordray’s blundered attempt to take over the state party.

Today, Brent Larkin wrote an article that describes Team Cordray’s failure and the isolation that Cordray is likely to feel from Democrats throughout Ohio as a result.

Although his people claim he wasn’t involved, anyone that thinks Richard Cordray didn’t have a hand in this effort isn’t living in reality.  These were his people, led by his closest aide, actively trying to knock off Redfern and clear a path for Cordray to run in 2014.

It certainly doesn’t help his cause when reporters from the Plain Dealer are calling him “a lousy politician.’  Those who might have previously disagreed with that statement might be singing a different tune after the debacle that was Cordray’s coup attempt.

Sherrod Brown's Record

A quick response to Bytor's entry about the first Sherrod Brown campaign ad of the cycle, if you'll indulge me. The recent plunge in my posting rate here at 3BP is likely to continue, as I'm now the communications director for Media Trackers Ohio. With that in mind, I won't be eliciting votes or donations for or against any candidates in the future.

For one of my last big free-time projects, I translated past ACU scorecards into a timeline view of Sherrod Brown's votes since he entered Congress in 1993. Check out facebook.com/SherrodVotes, and share the page with your friends! I would suggest that you "Like" any of the votes that you, well, like... but that's probably a lost cause.

Then again, maybe I've misread the readership of 3BP and the citizens of Ohio. Sherrod shares your priorities if you:

• support Obamacare ...and...
• think robbing Peter to pay Paul "stimulates" the economy ...and...
• want to raise taxes rather than reform entitlement programs ...and...

Sherrod Brown starts off negative

Sherrod and his liberals pals are scared.

If you haven't heard, Sherrod Brown released his first TV commercial today. An incumbent Senator with statewide name recognition shouldn't need to go on the air this early. Of course, we've been telling you for awhile that Sherrod has reason to be nervous. When an incumbent is polling below 50%, he is considered to be vulnerable. When he is below 45%, he's in trouble. That's where Sherrod is.

So, to no surprise to us, Sherrod Brown came out with a negative attack ad. Of course, this is to be expected, because there is nothing positive to say about Sherrod Brown's record in the Senate. In Sherrod Brown's last 10 years in Congress, the national debt has increased by TEN TRILLION dollars. His answer to every problem is more government and more spending.

Another Issue 2 "We told you so"

A week and a half ago, Northeast Ohioans were treated to a barrage of videos of crying and angry teachers on all of the local news programs. Facing large deficits, the Cleveland School Board was forced to lay off 500 teachers. Remember this exclusive video of union members disrupting a Cleveland school board meeting last October?



This time, in that very same room, they were lamenting. Some of the teachers were berating the board members for having made such a "horrible decision" with a "how dare you!" and "have you no shame" type of attitude. Their arguments wouldn't have been more ridiculous if they had added "Just go pick some more cash off of the money tree you have!"

The House's Hiccup

Although I fervently believe that their intentions are good and they are doing a great job, I can’t help but wonder what the deal is with some House Republicans lately.

First they decide not to back Governor Kasich’s income tax cut proposal despite the fact that it will put an additional $500 million back into taxpayers and small businesses hands.  I understand their concern with keeping Ohio competitive, but even with Kasich’s proposal in place our severance taxes would maintain Ohio’s advantage over other states.

Bytor goes into more detail here but it’s important to recognize that this is a reasonable request by the Governor that should be enacted by the legislature.  If you need more convincing just check with the Columbus Chamber and Columbus Partnership, both have encouraged the legislature to support this plan.

Next they insert very vague language into the MBR designed to de-fund Planned Parenthood.  Again, good intentions for the pro-life crowd but this language was so poorly worded that it could have potentially restricted a massive amount of funding to hospitals and welfare centers that provide services to the poor.

Vast Right Wing Reign Of Terror (VRWROT)

Because the Dems no longer maintain their super-majority in both chambers of Congress, the President isn't getting everything rubber stamped and rammed through. This means, according to David Axelrod, that the conservative Republicans are imposing a "reign of terror" on all those Republicans that want to go back to rubber stamping Obama's agenda.

See the video here at Foxnews.com.

Cross-posted: TobyToons.com (Editorial cartoons that are 'Right')

Peggy Joseph for President

Well, it's actually Barack Obama, but they're the same. They want someone else to pay for their goodies.

Generations of cradle-to-grave liberal policies and programs dispensing freebies - housing, healthcare, cash assistance, food, and new even cell phones - have succeeded only at creating huge disincentives to work.

Ted Strickland still hates Cuyahoga County

Every politico knows that Northeast Ohio, specifically Cuyahoga and its adjacent counties, are the anchor to the Democrat vote in Ohio. During all of 2010, Third Base Politics highlighted how Ted Strickland and Chris Redfern were turning their back on Northeast Ohio and taking it for granted.

In February,

In 2006, Cuyahoga County and it's directly adjacent counties accounted for 28% of the votes Ted Strickland needed to win the Ohio Governor's race.

In other words, it's the Democratic base of Ohio.

Now take this into account:

When political hopefuls declare their candidacies this week for November's statewide elections, it will mark the first time in at least 70 years that a Democrat from Northeast Ohio will not be seeking an executive office. 

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern quickly dismisses the observation by saying, "the reliance on having a Northeast Ohio candidate in a statewide race, from a regional standpoint, has become less important. That's not to suggest Northeast Ohio isn't important. Obviously it is, but it is as important now as central Ohio or other parts of the state."

Wrong.

We need a Kennedy on the Ohio Supreme Court

We have some unfinished business, Ohio. Remember how Ted Strickland got the endorsement of the NRA and Buckeye Firearms Association? After he lost, he thanked them by giving them the finger (they won't forget). While we booted Ted from office a year and a half ago, his parting stab in the back to Ohio gun owners, Yvette McGee Brown, still sits on the Ohio Supreme Court.

The job of the Supreme Court is to interpret the law. Not to create it. Creating law is the job of the legislature. We need to keep justices on the OSC who will uphold the Constitution and interpret the law by strictly adhering to what the law says, without regard to emotion and politics.

Unfortunately, when Strickland made the appointment, he announced that Brown would be "a wise and compassionate voice for the most vulnerable." At the time, former 3BPer Jon had this to say:

"No Fear" - Sherrod Brown can't do simple arithmetic

Now we know why Sherrod Brown doesn't think passing a budget isn't "all that meaningful" and along with his Democrat colleagues who control the Senate, have refused to pass one in almost 3 years.

Budgets involve math. And Sherrod is horrible at math.

How do we know this? Well, the first clue came when it was revealed that he is a habitual tax cheat.

And now, even basic subtraction appears to be a challenge for Sherrod. Check out the graphic from the email he sent out today. He's started a fundraising drive called the..."No Fear" Fund?

Important Issues for November

Cross-Post: TobyToons.com (Right of Center Editorial Cartoons)

Help us help Josh Mandel

You may have noticed we have been running some ads on the blog for a couple months now. If you're wondering, if wouldn't even pay your monthly cable bill, so I'm keeping my day job. Anyway, I've decided that I'm going to use most of that revenue to donate to Josh Mandel's campaign. So I'd like to take a rare moment to encourage you to visit our sponsors webpages and see what they have to offer.

Now, Google's Adsense ads, like the one below our lost of contributors, don't bring in a lot of money, unless they are clicked on. So, please, check them out. If you are like me, many of these ads that get displayed are for Democrat and liberal candidates and causes. If you see those, you definitely want to click and educate yourself on what the opposition is doing. When you do that from our site, it will literally be like taking a dollar out of a Democrat's campaign chest and putting it in Josh Mandel's. Do it often.

You should also donate your own funds to Josh's campaign, of course, so we can fund the airing of good ads like this:



Follow @Bytor3BP

Romney blasts Obama in Lorain

Mitt Romney visited Lorain today, a day after Barack Obama also came to Lorain County. For some strange reason, I wasn't invited to Obama's event. Romney's event was open to the public, and I was able to get there early for a good seat. About 350 people attended, on very short notice, and it was a standing room only crowd.

Romney spoke for about 20 minutes without the need for a teleprompter. His level of preparedness is obvious, having been honed from the experience of the 2008 race and the long primary battle of this campaign. Henry Gomez from the Plain Dealer reports on some of his more memorable remarks:

Dog and Pony Shows

It’s always depressing to see political processes devolving in an infantile direction. A case in point came up in today’s news when the Columbus Dispatch reported that another dozen or so groups wish to be added to the current list of over 30 groups and companies that hope to weigh in on the regulatory reworking of the rates for American Electric Power (AEP).

George Constanza and Obama

I am a huge fan of the TV Series "Seinfeld," and sometimes when I read about what Obama has to say, I think he could be a great character in a Seinfeld-like sitcom. While on Spring Break with my family, I read an editorial that made me think of this episode of Seinfeld:



Senator John Barrasso from Wyoming made some observations that made me think "Do the opposite." Here are some excerpts from the editorial:

Obama should be coming to Ohio to get advice from Governor Kasich

So Barack Obama came to Ohio today. Again. In fact, he came to my part of the state here in Lorain County. (My dogs are OK, don't worry.) But instead of coming to promote his ridiculous "Buffet Tax", which will not create a single job or make even a fraction of a dent in the deficit, he should be coming to learn about how Ohio is leading the nation in job creation since John Kasich became governor.

You see, John Kasich inherited a budget disaster from his predecessor. But instead of whining and complaining, he assembled a team and they got to work addressing the $8 billion hole that Ted Strickland and a Democrat-controlled House left him. He did it without gimmicks and patches and one-time "stimulus" funds that were supposed to create jobs, not prop up irresponsible government spending.

What about Obama's budget? It was such a joke that it couldn't even get a single DEMOCRAT vote in the House. Not. ONE. And his Democrat pals like Sherrod Brown who control the Senate refuse to even produce a budget. In fact, it has been over 3 years since they did so, even though they are required by federal law to do so.

Hypocritical Ohio Democrat of the week: David Betras

David Betras is the Mahoning County Democrat Chairman. Check out part of his rant today on Twitter against Josh Mandel.

Hey treasurer Mandel I've got a suggestion: how about doing the job ohioians just gave u the honor to do. Shameful stepping stones

I'm pretty sure that David supports Barack Obama. The same Barack Obama who ate a dog and then ran for President right after being elected to the Senate. Which is exactly what he is criticizing Josh Mandel for. (The running for a higher office part, not the dog thing. Only Obama eats dogs.)

Democrat Plan For Budget Disaster

Why do something now when you can put it off until later?

In addition to this being my preferred way of studying in college it's also the style of governing that House Democrats proposed yesterday.

Jim Siegel outlined their plan in an article in yesterday’s Dispatch.  Basically, the plan is to spend $400 million on schools and local communities through surplus tax revenue, rainy day funds and via the Governor’s income tax proposal.

Sound familiar?

This governing style is exactly what Ted Strickland did it for 4 years and was a total disaster.  Kicking the can down the road is exactly what got us into the $8 billion deficit mess that Governor Kasich was dealt when he took office.

How can someone, with a straight face, actually say that this type of funding works?  Obviously it addresses issues in the short term, but it is devastating in the long-term. 

Governor Christie visits Cleveland to support Josh Mandel

Last night, a packed ballroom full of supporters listened to speeches from Josh Mandel and Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey. Attendees arrived early and enthusiasm was high. Mandel is a terrific speaker, and he certainly motivated an already excited room full of NE Ohio Republicans to help him unseat Sherrod Brown in November.

Sherrod Brown denies making that Hitler reference that he made on tape

Last Friday we showed you how Ted Strickland thinks you must be an idiot by actually suggesting to gun owners that Barack Obama is a stalwart defender of the 2nd Amendment. This week, it appears to be Sherrod Brown's turn to run with the "I think you're stupid" baton.

Remember last year when Sherrod Brown compared Republican governors who were pursuing reasonable public employee union reform to Hitler and Stalin? In case you don't, here is the video from the Senate floor.

Strickland 1, Cordray 0

The hits keep coming for Team Cordray.

If there was an award for worst week in Ohio politics it would have to go to Team Cordray for the debacle that was Wednesday night’s attempt to remove Chris Redfern as state party chair.

As I discussed Thursday, the real story behind the attempted ousting of Redfern is the battle between the Cordray and Strickland camps of the party.  Both want to run for Governor in 2014 and having a supporter as state party chairman gives them a real advantage entering a primary.  It was no surprise that Redfern easily kept his position but, just as I predicted Thursday, the real problems are just starting.

A Buzzfeed article from Friday titled “Ohio Democrats Blame Top Obama Official For Party Battle,” is probably not a headline that Team Cordray wanted coming out of their attempt to oust Redfern.

The article highlights Democrats deep dissatisfaction with Cordray’s tactics and their irritation that he’s putting himself above the interests of the party.  Despite protests to the contrary from his top political aide, it’s hard to believe that Cordray wasn’t somehow in the know on what was happening on Wednesday night. 

THE War On Women

 

The White House is now trying to backpedal from the incessantly repeated talking point of a 'Republican War On Women.' It is easy to see why. It backfired on them. Towards the end of the week, we found out that female staffers in the White House earn almost 20% less than the male staffers. Who, again, is looking out for women?

Cross-posted: TobyToons.com

Kevin DeWine admits what we told you all along

Remember when we told you this?

Folks, we first told you about the Ohio Republican Party's proposed new rule last week. Today, they met and narrowly approved the rule.

The rule itself is an outrage, because of the timing of it. To change the rules of the game after candidates have already filed, and voting has already begun, was bad enough.

What makes it even worse than that? They violated their own bylaws to do it. I believe that GOHP Blog was the first to report on this, and they did an excellent job explaining it.

Given that DeWine gave notice of the meeting, that means that a majority of the 66-member body must have voted in the affirmative. That’s 34 votes.

DeWine only got 29.

DeWine declared the amendment passed, even though he didn't get the majority of members. We told you it was bogus.

Ted Strickland thinks you're an idiot...

...especially if you happen to be a gun owner.

Former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland came out today to tell gun owners that to protect their 2nd Amendment rights, they need to vote for Barack Obama. Yes, he actually said that. Take a look:

But when Romney started running for president six years ago, he decided it was time to join the NRA. He even admitted that he did so merely to get the group’s blessing. I earned an “A” rating from the NRA by being an actual defender of the Second Amendment; Romney tried to sneak in the back door. …

I’d put President Barack Obama’s record up against Romney’s any day. The president has made clear that he supports and respects the Second Amendment, and through three years in office he’s done exactly that. The NRA may not always agree with the president, but the American people know where he stands.

A president needs a steady hand – like a marksman. Romney’s certainly not the latter, and his record of pandering and misleading us on the subject is one of the many reasons he’s unqualified to be the former.

First off, it's pretty hilarious that the Obama campaign sent Ted out to attack Mitt Romney, and that everyone KNEW that he couldn't criticize him on what the election will really be about: JOBS. Having presided over the loss of 400,000 jobs in just 4 years in Ohio, it didn't take a rocket scientist to know that that wouldn't fly.

Further, Ted's self appointed title as a defender of the 2nd amendment is a joke. He claims that Mitt Romney talks gun rights just to get votes? This is the guy who got himself an endorsement from gun groups in 2010, but then as soon as he lost his reelection to John Kasich, abandoned them and then slapped them in the face. First, he promised to sign a pro-gun that had passed the Ohio Senate, but then did NOTHING while then Ohio House Speaker Armond Budish, a fellow Democrat, kept the bill stalled in committee. Recall our post back then on what he did next:

WMD Found In Chicago!

Background Information for this cartoon can be read by clicking this link to the Mediaite.com article. In a nutshell, the "esteemed" Reverend Wright starts his Easter sermon by stating that it is the media that is divisive, not him. Then, he goes on one his most divisive rants to date.

Cross-Posted: TobyToons.com (Conservative Political Cartoons)

Kasich's oil tax plan would modernize our outdated system and stimulate the economy

We've seen a lot of good news for Ohio's economy since Governor Kasich took office, but there's still a long way to go to get us out of the ditch we were left in. Our state still has high taxes compared to the rest of the nation. Our combined state and local tax burden is near the top third. Kasich has a plan to reduce that burden.

That plan is to raise the taxes charged to out of state energy companies who extract oil, natural gas and other valuable liquids from the earth, and to take those revenues and give them directly back to Ohio taxpayers and small businesses.



Now, I know what you're thinking. "Raising taxes? What's going on here? Why would you support that?"

For one thing, almost all states that have a significant oil industry have these taxes, called "severance taxes." They are revenues to compensate the state for resources that will never be replaced. Ohio has never really been an oil producing state, so not a lot of attention has ever been paid to our severance tax rates. Now that we are about to enter a drilling boom, it's necessary to revisit our extremely outdated system.

Chris Redfern crushes union supported challenger

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern will remain in his current job, reports Joe Vardon from the Dispatch.

Chris Redfern easily won reelection as chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party, crushing Lorain County attorney Anthony Giardini by a large majority vote of the state’s 66-member central committee.

The newly elected central committee cast 53 votes in favor of Redfern and 10 for Giardini, during a meeting in a packed room at party headquarters in Columbus.

Redfern retains the position he’s held since December of 2005, surviving an attempt by organized labor and people close to former Attorney General Richard Cordray to push him out.

SamAdams previously pointed out here on 3BP that this internal spat in the ODP exposes a struggle between supporters of Ted Strickland and Richard Cordray, both of whom are rumored to be likely to seek the nomination to challenge Governor Kasich in 2014.

Trouble in Union Paradise for Ohio Democrats?

Joe Vardon from the Dispatch had a good article yesterday morning detailing the infighting between two competing wings of the ODP.

Clearly I am not an expert on the inner workings of the ODP.  However, it doesn’t take an expert to see potential problems down the road for Ohio Democrats.

Make no mistake; this is a fight between the Cordray and Strickland camps for the future direction of the party.  It’s no secret that Redfern is a supporter of Ted Strickland and the former governor clearly prefers to have a loyalist in such an important position.   Keeping him as chairman puts Ted in a nice spot for a potential rematch with Governor Kasich. 

To be honest, I think Strickland’s plan is a very good one.  The problem is that some folks don’t appreciate their state chairman picking a candidate long before the process even starts. 

Team Cordray falls into this category and although it seems as if Cordray himself has steered clear, the anti-Redfern effort is being led by one of his closest former aides.  Cordray is also interested in a race against Governor Kasich but having a Strickland loyalist pulling the strings at the state party puts him at a disadvantage right out of the gate.

The real question is what happens if Team Cordray loses and takes the union money with them?

EPA Finds That Hydraulic Fracturing Does Not Cause Pollution

If you read some of Ohio’s political blogs you’ve noticed the left constantly preaching that fracking is going to contaminate the water.

Except now we know one very important fact.

They are wrong.

According to an article from yesterday’s International Business Times, hydraulic fracturing was proven to not pollute drinking water in nearby wells.

The tests focused on a number of wells in Dimrock, Pennsylvania.  The residents of this town have been complaining that hydraulic fracturing happening nearby tainted their drinking wells.  After the EPA tests, the water was deemed to “not show levels of contaminants that would give EPA reason to take immediate action.”    

Tipping the Scales

Congressman Eric Cantor (R) recently came into criticism when it came to light he had donated to the Campaign for Primary Accountability, a super PAC which, among its activities, had spent $132,000 running ads against Rep. Jean Schmidt during the lead up to her March 6 primary loss. The situation brings up the problem of intraparty political activity: when is it alright for Republican officeholders to contribute to the defeat of other Republicans?

Libraries Used to be About Books.

I recently walked into my township’s new library for the first time. And as a conservative, I naturally looked around to see how my local taxes were being spent. Now let me say up front, I’ve always been in love with public libraries. They’ve exposed me to countless wonderful things that I’ll always treasure. But in recent years, I’ve grown increasingly concerned with certain library trends.

DeWine Out as Ohio GOP Chairman

As Bytor just noted, Kevin DeWine has submitted his resignation as Chairman of the Ohio Republican Party:

DeWine, 44, has prepared a letter to the 66 members of the GOP state central committee, saying he will step down when the party’s governing body meets to reorganize on April 13.

Joe Hallett of The Columbus Dispatch remains fixated on Kasich's insistence that DeWine step down, painting DeWine as the victim in a nefarious Kasich power play. At Third Base Politics, GOHP Blog, and elsewhere, we've listed more than a few reasons Ohio conservatives wanted DeWine out, but oh well. We're not the first conservative bloggers to be ignored by the local paper!

To his credit, Hallett does mention Governor Kasich and Speaker Batchelder's complaints about DeWine... in the next-to-last paragraph:

Kasich and his allies, including House Speaker William G. Batchelder, a Medina Republican, complained that DeWine was a divisive leader who showed favoritism to certain Republican candidates and elected officials and hostility to others.

There are two ways of looking at this story, which seems to be approaching an overdue conclusion:

Ohio GOP Chairman Kevin DeWine to resign

The saga is coming to an end. Kevin DeWine is doing the right thing and stepping down. We heard rumors earlier tonight of this news but couldn't confirm. It wasn't long until the Dispatch confirmed it.

Under unrelenting pressure from Gov. John Kasich and his political aides, Kevin DeWine will announce his resignation tonight as chairman of the Ohio Republican Party.

DeWine, 44, has prepared a letter to the 66 members of the GOP state central committee, saying he will step down when the party’s governing body meets to reorganize on April 13.

As we have mentioned previously, it didn't have to be this ugly. Kevin DeWine is the one who brought this public, while Kasich kept it in the family. I also find it astonishing that his folks are still saying that he had the votes to hang on. I don't believe that he does, or he wouldn't be sending this email tonight.

In the end, though, he finally came to the correct realization. It's an opportunity for both him and the party to make a fresh start where one is badly needed. Just like when Reince Priebus took over a damaged RNC from Michael Steele, we need to put our party back together. Bob Bennett as a temporary chair would be a good choice, given his long years of previous experience at the job.

I'm ecstatic that we are putting this behind us and can focus on beating Barack Obama and electing Josh Mandel this fall.

Follow @Bytor3BP

Wow… Green Energy.

Every once in awhile you learn, well after the fact, that Republican governmental officeholders sold you out on some issue of which you weren’t even aware. In such cases, you’ll read how Republicans felt they made the best deal they could, and of the benefits they supposedly obtained. But in the end you’ll find they’ve committed your state or nation to some path that will substantially undermine your liberties or the economy - or both.

As an example (maybe you’ve heard of this one), it was a Republican governor, Mitt Romney, who ushered in a new peril to our nation, by incorporating an individual mandate into his health care “reforms” for Massachusetts. Romney proclaimed this would lead to lower health care costs for the citizens of his state (which it didn’t) by eliminating (which it likewise didn’t) all the emergency room free riders who weren’t buying health insurance. But while Romneycare didn’t solve those problems, it did establish the concept – later embraced by Obamacare – that government could compel citizens to purchase certain services. Right now, a lot of us are praying the Supreme Court will rescue us from that notion.

In a similar vein, I was recently troubled to learn that in 2007, under Governor Ted Strickland, Ohio committed itself to accelerating down the path of utilizing “renewable energies.”

The Rule Of Law, Does Obama Care?

Cross-Posted: TobyToons.com (Conservative Political Cartoons)

Follow @TobyToons

Ohio Leads, Rest Of Nation Follows

Great news Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Ohio lead the nation in job growth in February.

According to the preliminary numbers from BLS, Ohio added 28,300 jobs in February, closely beating out Texas and New York and blowing everyone else out of the water.

This was highlighted with the kind of front-page story in Saturday’s Dispatch that Ted Strickland never received in his four years.

This is fantastic news for all Ohioans and our improving economy.  It’s also further proof that Governor Kasich’s Jobs Budget and constant focus on job creation continues to make a difference.

This report follows great news from January and shows that Ohio’s economy is on the mend.  Our unemployment rate started coming down soon after Governor Kasich’s Jobs Budget was passed and continues to drop at a faster pace than the national average.

I’m not saying there isn’t quite a bit of work to be done, pulling Ohio out of the abyss won’t happen overnight.  However, numbers don’t lie and we are clearly on the right path to recovery.

With Friday’s news, and Kasich’s constant focus on job creation, Ohioans should be proud of the direction we are heading and optimistic about our future.