Empty Promises Lead Youth Vote Away From Obama

If there’s one thing that was certain in the 2008 elections, it was that Barack Obama was an amazing campaigner. His election promises captivated audiences and swung the youth vote heavily in his favor, ultimately leading to his election that November.

Unfortunately for him, the youth aren’t buying it any more.

A new study released today shows that the President’s support among those between the ages of 18 and 29 has eroded, from 68% in 2008, to only 50% today. And the answer is simple:

Political Scientist Jason Johnson, who heads the college's year-long "Listening to Young Voters" project, says young voters are disappointed that Obama hasn't solved nation's problems over the past four years, but aren't convinced that Romney will do any better…

Sherrod Brown joins the Obama War on Coal

We've previously told you about the war that Barack Obama is waging on the coal industry. His declaration that he wanted to bankrupt coal plants apparently didn't phase Ted Strickland, who is out there making a fool of himself by claiming that Obama is actually a friend to coal.

Now fellow Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown has joined Obama in the trenches to destroy coal jobs and cheap energy for Ohioans, who get 86% of their electricity from coal. One of Obama's new regulations abuses executive power and is called Utility Maximum Achievable Control Technology, or Utility MACT. It would make the building of new coal plants an impossibility and cost existing plants tens of billions of dollars to retrofit their systems. Many will choose to just close down like six of FirstEnergy's plants. And, just like Obama predicted, and desires, MACT will cause electricity rates to necessarily skyrocket.

How the environmentalists lie about fracking

With all of the recent talk about shale gas in Ohio, I've seen a few signs popping up in people's yards that say "Stop fracking". Since they were all in one neighborhood, it was obvious that someone canvassed the neighborhood scaring people about the practice, and then asked for permission to put the signs in their yards. The problem is that most of the things that anti-fracking liberals use to scare people are lies.

I have embedded a video showing the fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, process at the bottom of this post for your review. A fellow named Josh Fox made a 2010 documentary that highlights the supposed "evils of fracking", and this movie really started the anti-fracking movement. One of Fox's main claims is that fracking contaminates ground water with gas, and he shows two homes where you can light a fire out of the faucet when the water is turned on. It's quite dramatic footage.

The problem is, that Fox doesn't tell the whole story. In that part of the country, people have known there was naturally occurring methane in the water for decades. In fact, Fox admitted to knowing this and having reports of it happening long before fracking came along, but he completely omitted that information from the movie. Watch his answer when he is asked why he omitted the information.

Liberal AstroTurf Hecklers

For over 3 years now, the Obama administration and its allies have attempted to boast about the number of "saved or created" jobs they are responsible for.  Today, some evidence of a Team Obama program that actually stimulates job growth came to light courtesy of BuzzFeed.  In this story, McKay Coppins highlights how Obama's campaign and their union boss allies are paying people to protest at Romney events.

Obama moving the goalposts

Earlier this week, the Columbus Dispatch criticized Barack Obama for his pathetic speech and the recent shift in his rhetoric. According to the newspaper, the standards by which he evaluates the economic recovery have evolved since even the beginning of his presidency:

In the earlier days of the administration, Obama and other Democratic leaders said more than once that Americans could expect to see an economic turnaround before the 2012 election; if they didn’t, they could justifiably vote for someone else. Now that the day of reckoning is less than five months away, Obama is moving the goalposts again: In Thursday’s speech, he said the United States is still digging out after a decade of “falling behind,” and that it’s widely recognized that it takes 10 years for economies to recover “from a recession like this.”

Indeed, the change of tune in his rhetoric is quite jarring. His words speak for themselves. In October 2011, President Obama admitted that he didn’t think Americans were “better off than they were four years ago.” But just a few weeks ago, he said that the private sector was “doing fine.” Those two statements, it’s worth noting, are a mere eight months apart.

Dems Attack Kasich, Fail Miserably

Not a huge shock, but Democrats have recently been trying to attack Governor Kasich on a number of fronts.

First they claim that Mitt Romney is trying to distance himself from Kasich. The proof?  Governor Kasich didn’t attend Romney’s event in Ohio this past Sunday, on Father’s Day. 

This barely even warrants a response, because how dare a father choose to spend time with his family on Fathers Day.  I know it’s crazy, but maybe the Governor wanted to spend time with his daughters privately instead of taking them to a full day of campaign events. 

Also, if Mitt is trying to distance himself from the Governor I doubt he would he have said this:

... Instead, it’s governors like Gov. (John) Kasich, who have put in place pro-                growth polices and balanced the state budget, that are doing the job that’s creating economic good news in places like Ohio, and the entire nation deserves the same kind of agenda.”

Romney gave this quote to the Dispatch last weekend which shows a new narrative coming from his campaign.  They realized that highlighting Kasich’s ability to outpace the nation is a good way to highlight the President’s failures.  

Ted Strickland disses northeast Ohio again.

In case you haven't heard, the Kent State baseball team is in the College World Series. It's a pretty big deal. When you think of big baseball programs, Kent State is never one that comes to mind.

Last night, they won a game and staved off elimination. Ted Strickland sent out a tweet to congratulate them.

"Great win for the Zips tonight against FL in the College World Series"

Ummm...Ted? Kent State is the Golden Flashes. Akron University is the Zips.

Yes, folks, this was the Governor of Ohio.

UPDATE: The buzz about this on Twitter had "Ted Strickland" trending, meaning that a LOT of people were talking about it. And then there's this.

While congratulation Tweets were rapidly being sent, the one that came from former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland's account used the wrong Ohio team name.

Instead of congratulating the Golden Flashes, it mentioned the Zips (University of Akron) which are one of Kent State's rivals in the Mid American Conference.

The Tweet was deleted and reposted with correct information, but not after many users pointed out the mistake.

One person Tweeted that it was like "calling Ohio State 'Michigan.'"

Ouch.

Ohio Succeeds Despite Washington’s Efforts

All Ohioans received great news on Friday when the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that Ohio, unlike the rest of the nation, gained jobs in May and had a slight drop in the unemployment rate. 

For those keeping track, the entire country added 69,000 jobs in the month of May.  19,600 of those came from Ohio.  This puts Ohio’s unemployment rate almost a full percent below the national average.  The last time our rate was this low compared to the national rate was in 1995.

Great news of course, but there is still work to be done and obstacles in the way.

Businesses in Ohio continue to struggle under the weight of the Obama Administration’s overbearing regulations.  The problem with our unemployment numbers is while they continue to move in the right direction, the headwinds created by the Obama’s over-regulation could easily stall our growth. 

Needless and unnecessary regulations increase costs to business owners who want to operate and hire Ohioans.  What’s the end result?  Businesses stop hiring because they are losing money faster than they can bring it in. 

Business owners like Kelley Moore and her husband Greg who own and operate four NAPA Auto Parts stores in Ohio have seen firsthand the effects of Obama’s over-regulation.  Her story was highlighted by Speaker Boehner on his website, where she discussed how they cannot afford to replace staff members when they leave due to the rising costs of the products that they sell. 

Kelley highlights, in two sentences, the problem with needless government regulations. “…And customers, they can't afford the products.  It's hard to stay profitable, keep your doors open and keep local people employed if customers aren't coming in.  Eventually, there only are so many costs you can absorb.”

RightOnline underway in Las Vegas

Checking in here from Blogger's row at RightOnline. We're actually in a separate room from the main session, with a live stream of the speakers piped into the room. Unfortunately, the stream frequently pauses to buffer. Hopefully in the future they can run the feed in directly, instead of via internet.

Last night we were treated to terrific speeches from Sarah Palin and Michelle Malkin. The entire theme last night was a tribute to Andrew Breitbart. He is sorely missed here, of course. Many of the people here knew him personally. We were treated to a sneak preview of the film "Hating Breitbart" and the first ever full screening of Citizen's United new movie "Occupy Unmasked", which exposes the supposedly "spontaneous" Occupy movement as a completely organized effort by big labor entities, specifically the SEIU.

Here is the video of Michelle Malkin's address.

Obama comes to Ohio, delivers same sad song

If you missed President Downgrade's speech in Cleveland yesterday, don't worry. You didn't miss anything new. Literally. It was nearly an hour long, and was a complete snoozer. The administration had touted this speech as a "major address". The press was anticipating something new from the president.

He didn't deliver. It was more of the same class warfare, more of the same finger pointing, and more of the same blaming of his predecessor, even though he has now been president for 3 and a half years.

It was so bad, that even his cheerleaders in the most left-wing of media agreed that it was a huge disappointment. Yes, even his fans at MSNBC.

Check out this video that the RNC put out. It shows how identical the speech was to ones he has made before. This is the President of the United States. For promoting this as a major address, and then trotting out the same tired, recycled tripe he has been peddling for years, he and his campaign should absolutely be hanging their heads in shame.

Amidst National Economic Downturn, Ohio's Fighting The Tide

President Obama visited Ohio yesterday and continued to tout the same policies he’s been preaching since he first ran for the Oval Office:

Contrary to predictions that Mr. Obama would reset the campaign, for nearly an hour he pitched the same philosophy and policy prescriptions he has been making since 2008 -- emphasis on government investments in research, education at all levels, highways and other kinds of infrastructure, and "responsible" deficit reduction -- paid for in part, by raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans, who he said have gained wealth while the middle class has stagnated. 

Of course, as anyone can see, Obama’s stale policies just are not working. In May, the nation created an abysmal 69,000 jobs as the national unemployment rate ticked up to 8.2%, causing the Obama campaign to go on the defensive:

“The private sector is doing fine.” – President Obama, June 8, 2012. 

Wait, what? Some come back.

Of course, for months, Obama has been trying to take credit for the incredibly slow recovery throughout the nation. And yes, the economy is sluggishly moving forward, but on increasingly shaky ground and only thanks to the work done by Republican governors in job creating states like Ohio and Texas.

Sherrod Brown caption contest!

This may be my new favorite picture of Sherrod Brown. It's from the recent Nutroots Nation conference, where he snapped at CNN's Dana Loesch for asking a question about Obamacare.

Looks like Sherrod was getting drunk on free beer, unbridled liberalism and adulation from his many socialist fans.

Please submit your caption suggestions in the comments below.



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Bill Clinton's advice in Ohio: Vote us out

Today, Barack Obama will speak at Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland, in yet another attempt to "pivot to jobs". How fitting is it then, that the Media Research Center has released a video of Bill Clinton speaking in the very same place in 2010.

Listen to what Clinton had to say to Ohioans two years ago:

Sherrod Brown: "Everybody knows that government creates jobs"

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who last year tied Socialist Bernie Sanders for the title of the Senate's most liberal, has always voted in a manner that suggests that more government is the answer to every problem. He recently spoke with Greg Sargent from the Washington Post's The Plum Line and had some advice for President Obama on how to turn around the economy.

“Everybody knows that government creates jobs,” Brown said, citing the highway bill that has passed the Senate but is bottled up in the GOP-controlled House, which Dems say would create hundreds of thousands of jobs.

“Government creates jobs in highways,” Brown said. “We hire private contractors. That creates other jobs. It builds an economic foundation for job creation.”

“During the fifties, the sixties, the seventies, the eighties, the United States had great infrastructure programs,” Brown continued. “We were the envy of the world. Those are clear formulaic job creating strategies that we know.”

Sherrod Brown: Jobs Guru

Framer-in-Chief returns to Ohio Thursday

In 2010, shortly before the midterm elections, Barack Obama came to Cuyahoga Community College and tried to frame the problems of the economy as a result of previous failures, not his own policies:

Millions of jobs were lost before our policies even had a chance to take effect. We lost 4 million in the sixmonths before I took office. It was a hole so deep that even though we’ve added jobs again, millions of Americans remain unemployed. Hundreds of thousands of families have lost their homes. Millions more can barely pay the bills or make the mortgage. The middle class is still treading water,and those aspiring to reach the middle class are doing everything they can to keep from drowning.

Now, two years later, the President is returning to Tri-C to deliver what the Washington Post calls “a major campaign speech.” Apparently, they're even calling it a "reframing" speech, and Obama is going to do another one of his "hard pivots" to jobs. He will try, according to the newspaper, “to frame the election as a choice between two economic visions —one that protects the middle class and another that takes the country back to the failed policies of the past.”

Unfortunately for President Downgrade, there are only so many ways you can “frame” the facts.

Cleveland Plan Passes; Plunder-Pals In Denial

After weeks of ironing out the details and incorporating ideas from both Republicans and Democrats, Mayor Frank Jackson's “Cleveland Plan” passed in the legislature yesterday, and in bipartisan fashion.

The House voted 77-16 Tuesday to approve the measure. The Ohio Senate voted 27-4 Tuesday on an identical measure, and is expected to adopt the House version Wednesday before it is sent to the governor.

And adopt the House version they did, as today the Senate once again voted 27-4 in favor of sending the Cleveland Plan to the Governor's desk.

This is beyond amazing news for every child in the Cleveland area, as the legislation is the first of its kind to truly put children first. And its reforms are badly needed in a district that's mired in a financial crisis, while seeing its graduation rates hover just above 50%.

But the best part was that it was all done with a true spirit of bipartisanship. The plan was written by Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, a Democrat, promoted vigorously by Governor John Kasich, a Republican and the Senate bill was co-sponsored by Big Labor darling, Senator Nina Turner, also a Democrat.

Obama Proves He Does Not Understand the Economy

Guest Post By Congressman Jim Renacci

Last week, President Obama proved he is out-of-touch with the economic difficulties facing America. At a Friday conference he insisted, “The private sector is doing fine.” He must be the only person in America who thinks that.

Over 23 million Americans are struggling to find work. Last month, unemployment in the United States actually increased. Prices at the store are on the rise, but paychecks are shrinking. Many small businesses across the country are struggling just to keep their doors open. But President Obama thinks they are “doing fine.”

Obviously, the opposite is true. President Obama's big government agenda—his health care law, burdensome regulations, reckless spending, and demands for tax increases—have all made it harder for job creators to hire new workers due to added expenses, uncertainty, and red tape.

The private sector is doing fine, Mr. President? Really?

"The private sector's doing fine."
Last Friday, Barack Obama confirmed yet again just how out of touch he is with what’s happening in America when he remarked that the private sector is doing “fine.” Considering the country’s 8.2% unemployment rate and the fact that 23 million Americans are unemployed, underemployed, or have stopped looking for work, it is hard to imagine that anyone, let alone the President, could actually believe that.

Even arch-liberal economist Paul Krugman slammed President Obama’s remark about the private sector on CBS’s “This Morning” on Monday. Krugman admitted that it “was an unfortunate line.”

“The president bungled the line. The truth is, the private sector is doing better than the public sector, which is not well enough.”

Uhh, yeah. Sure, Paul. He bungled the line. More like he let slip how he really thinks. Obama's remarks only highlight his philosophy about the economy, which reflects a belief that true economic growth is driven by the government, not the private sector.

Van Treuren offers hope for Lorain County Republicans

Regular readers of the blog probably know that I am a resident of Lorain County. Situated on Lake Erie to the west of Cleveland's Cuyahoga County, this can be a tough place for Republicans. The northern part of the county is urban, industrial and heavily influenced by unions. No matter what happens statewide, Barack Obama will win Lorain County. He beat John McCain here 60-40 in 2008. Under Democratic control for decades, Lorain County has been in decline.

However, things are starting to turn around a bit for Republicans here. There has been a small population shift away from the urban centers like Lorain towards the suburban cities and rural townships in the southern half of the county. Two years ago, all three county commissioners were Democrats. In the 2010 wave election, Republican Tom Williams was elected. While any Republican running for commissioner here is an underdog, there is excitement that we have a real opportunity to place a Republican majority on the commission for the first time in over 60 years.

Meet Phil Van Treuren of Amherst. Phil is an Army National Guard veteran, where he says he learned a lot about leadership and leading by example. His officer candidate class started with nearly 50 people, and when it was done, only Phil and 5 others remained standing.

Lorain County Commissioner candidate Phil Van Treuren

That hard work ethic is evident when you see how hard he works to connect with voters. Since we both serve on the Lorain County GOP Central Committee, I have seen first hand how often Phil is planning a fundraiser or knocking on doors or coordinating volunteers. He reminds me a lot of Josh Mandel's story, and even has the combat boots he wore when he walked over 400 miles knocking on doors in his race for Amherst City Council. Phil says his goal is to introduce himself to every voter in the county before election day.

"I absolutely love being an underdog. I love fighting for what's right, no matter what the odds are." -Phil Van Treuren

Phil will face off against incumbent Ted Kalo in November. Kalo, in typical Lorain County Democrat fashion, has hardly even campaigned. Phil has been campaigning and introducing himself to voters for months. As of the latest financial report, Phil has twice as much money in the bank as Kalo, and raised more in the primary season than any other Lorain County Republican candidate in history. In the primary, Phil received about the same number of votes as Kalo did in his primary. That has never happened before.

Media Trackers Recap: June 11, 2012

Here's a review of some stories you may have missed at Media Trackers Ohio recently!

• May 24: Another Solyndra? Ohio Finally Plans to Investigate Deadbeat Taxpayer-Funded “Green Jobs” Company
• May 25: Ohio Voice Under the Magnifying Glass
• May 29: Ohio Media Let ProgressOhio Deception Slide
• May 29: Unions Seek Control of Ohio’s Redistricting Process
• May 30: Public Documents Show City Council Split Over Prayer Ban
• May 30: Pro-Life Splinter Group Hopes to Jumpstart Heartbeat Bill With Attack Ads
• May 31: Mount Vernon Prayer Dispute Ends With Compromise
• May 31: Ohio Auditor Says “Going Green” Is Costing Taxpayers Millions
• May 31: We Are Ohio Fights to Recall Wisconsin Governor
• June 1: Ohio Unions Dump Member Dues into Failing Wisconsin Recall Election
• June 4: ProgressOhio, Brought to You by Big Labor
• June 4: Months Later, Controversial “Death to Israel” Professor Still Hasn’t Been Disciplined By University
• June 5: Ohio Organizing Collaborative Wants Higher Taxes
• June 6: Toledo Blade Editorial Parrots Voters First Lie
• June 6: Attorney General Overpaid for Luxury SUV, Investigation Shows
• June 7: Why the Ohio Education Association Needs “We Are Ohio”
• June 7: National Taxpayers Union Joins Opposition to Kasich’s Energy Tax Hike
• June 8: Embattled Democrat Fundraiser Tied to Pay-to-Play, Blackmail Plots
• June 8: Kasich Grants Temporary Death Penalty Reprieve to Lakeside Courtroom Shooter

To keep up with everything we cover at Media Trackers Ohio, bookmark http://ohio.mediatrackers.org, "Like" us on Facebook, and follow @MediaTrackersOH on Twitter!

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Ohio picking up slack in energy policy

by Governor John Kasich

Ohio’s agriculture and manufacturing sectors are highly productive and among our state’s largest employers. They’re also big energy users and part of the reason why Ohio ranks seventh nationally in energy generation.

With energy being so important to major Ohio job creators, it’s critical that we do everything possible to make it inexpensive, plentiful and reliable.

Unfortunately, Ohio faces major headwinds on energy from Washington. The U.S. lacks the kind of comprehensive energy policy it takes to achieve energy independence and help job creators secure low prices and reliable supplies. Furthermore, coal — which supplies 86 percent of our electricity — irritates the current president, and his administration’s EPA repeatedly threatens more red tape on Ohio’s growing shale-oil-and-gas industry.

Romney HQ Opens in Columbus

Today, the first Ohio headquarters for Mitt Romney's campaign held its grand opening in Columbus.  The event was a part of today's "Buckeye Blitz", with volunteers in all 88 counties going door-to-door to speak with voters.  

Even before the official opening time of Noon, the building was packed with supporters as others waited to get inside.  Around 250 people sent an RSVP to attend, and the overflow crowd that filled the offices was even larger than anticipated.

People congregate outside of Romney HQ in Columbus, waiting to enter.

Obama's war on coal: Ted Strickland thinks Ohioans are morons, part 2.

In his zeal to support Barack Obama, former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland continues to embarrass himself, and insult Ohioans' intelligence. Previously, we told you about how Ted Strickland actually told gun owners and NRA members that Barack Obama is a champion of gun rights and the 2nd Amendment. This time, Ted actually is trying to tell Ohioans who work in coal that Obama is not trying to kill their industry.

Ohio's former governor insists the Obama administration is not conducting a war on the coal industry.

Although the former governor claims the administration is pursuing all forms of energy production, supporters of the coal industry claim the president is doing everything he can to push them out of business.

Strickland argued that's not true.

In addition, Ted Strickland actually said he's never heard Barack Obama talk negatively about coal.

Toledo Blade Attempts To Rewrite History On Issue 2

In recent years, the Toledo Blade has had its issues with balanced journalism, but yesterday's editorial regarding Scott Walker's victory in Wisconsin is something else entirely. At one point, the Blade attempts to draw comparisons between Walker's victory this past Tuesday and Ohio's loss on Issue 2:

The Walker-backed measure to limit collective bargaining by public unions in Wisconsin arguably went farther than Senate Bill 5, Gov. John Kasich's effort to do the same thing here. It may be that Ohio's governor failed where Wisconsin's governor succeeded because Mr. Kasich was afraid to stand up to the historic might of organized labor. 

Kasich was afraid of organized labor? That's just one of those statements that leave you wondering...

In truth, Governor Kasich was the leading proponent of Issue 2, even when its champions in the Senate failed to fervently and publicly support it. For the Blade to insinuate otherwise is nothing less than rewriting history.

Yes, Ohio lost that fight. But not for lack of dedication by our state’s Governor.

Cross-posted at GOHP Blog.

Walker Proves Unions Can't Win On The Facts

If you were watching the Wisconsin election results last night, you’ve no doubt heard that taxpayer rights won against union scare tactics. Governor Scott Walker beat back a union-funded attempt at a recall with 53% of the vote.

Of course, that brought liberals to wonder how this could happen, with one brainwashed union member proclaiming democracy was dead:

But even if you buy the argument that individuals supported Barrett and only the rich voted for Walker, census data shows you’re out of your mind. If the top 53% of Wisconsin residents were the only ones who voted for Walker, then those making a median family income of roughly $40,000 or more cast their ballots for the incumbent.

Not exactly a “rich” salary. Then again, with Walker defending taxpayer rights, that 53% looks like another number we’ve seen.

Barack Obama’s Magical Arithmetic

“Federal spending since I took office has risen at the slowest pace of any president in almost 60 years.”

The words are those of President Downgrade Obama, speaking at a campaign rally in Iowa in late May. False, deceptive, untrue, evasive, dishonest, misleading, or just plain wrong. Those are only some of the terms that the president’s statement brings to mind. The fact that his spending record has been destructive to our fiscal health doesn’t give him license to invent a new record.

The Columbus Dispatch has an editorial today calling the president’s claims “magical arithmetic.” That is more generous than we are inclined to be.

Another Unfortunate Similarity Between President Obama and Jimmy Carter

As the days go by, it's really hard to tell apart the presidencies of President Barack Obama and his liberal predecessor Jimmy Carter.

• Both saw gas prices double within their first term in office. 
• Both failed to address America's energy problems. 
• Both mismanaged the economy, overseeing high national unemployment rates. 

And now Obama is garnering the support of one of Jimmy Carter's admirers: the Castro family. That's right, the ruthless dictator of Cuba and his family are endorsing Barack Obama for a second term. 

“If I were a U.S. citizen I’d vote for Obama for president,” boasted Mariela Castro during her San Francisco conference last week. “I think he is sincere, I think he speaks from the heart.” To cheers and applause from the San Franciscan crowd Raul Castro’s daughter also proclaimed that “what we want is the power of emancipation through socialism.” 

John Kasich: RINO

At least, somebody seems to thinks so. There is a rumor going around that a few well known Ohio conservatives or organizations are grumbling about the governor, and saying that, get this, he isn't conservative enough.

I have reached out to a lot of sources, and have not been able to nail down who it is, although there is some indications that the people pushing for a Right-to-Work amendment on this years ballot are part of it. Nevertheless, what we're hearing is that there is a press release or interview coming out in the media soon.

Of course, the very idea that Governor Kasich is not conservative is preposterous. So, we thought we would review some facts to consider when judging Kasich's conservatism.

Biden Proves Transparency Means Nothing To The Obama Administration

President Barack Obama has long touted that he would have the most transparent administration in history, swearing on his website (and it’s still there) that he is “committed to making his administration the most open and transparent in history.”

Apparently that transparency doesn’t extend to the media.

Obama’s record on transparency certainly leaves a lot to be desired. In fact, one public records lawyer in Washington, D.C. rates his administration as the worst since the Freedom of Information Act became law.

But Obama’s lack of transparency hit a new low earlier this month when Vice President Joe Biden cut off reporters from asking questions, or as many would define it, doing their jobs.

While Joe Biden addressed supporters at a campaign stop in Ohio, his staff shooed away Columbus Dispatch reporter Joe Vardon who attempted to ask the vice-president about coal. 

Vardon took to Twitter to describe the ordeal: 

Ted Strickland is lying about John Reardon, and broke the law when he appointed him

A few days ago, we told you about the evolving scandal with a Democratic fundraiser, and how it has uncovered an allegation made against former Governor Ted Strickland. John B. Reardon was the Mahoning County Treasurer in 2006 and decided to run for Auditor of State. He eventually dropped out of the race.

But as part of an FBI investigation, he claims that he only dropped out of the race because Ted Strickland promised him a job in his administration. From the Columbus dispatch:

Reardon said Strickland, who at the time was a candidate for governor, called him and said, according to the FBI report, “John, I’ve to be very careful in how I say this to you, when I’m elected, the administration is going to need good people in a lot of top jobs. Good people with abilities such as yourself and we are going to have a lot of jobs to fill and we are going to fill them with people with qualifications and abilities like yours.”

Of course, as we told you before, Strickland completely denies that he implied any job offer in return for dropping out. Ted went on to claim that such a deal was "against his values", and then he claims that Reardon got the job because he was qualified.

Strickland said he didn’t want his administration to be “Columbus-centric,” and said Reardon was from Youngstown and qualified for the job he ultimately landed.

Here's the problem for Ted. Reardon wasn't qualified to be the Superintendent of the Division of Financial Institutions. Who says he wasn't qualified? Ohio state law, that's who.

Obama Continues To Show Politics Trumps All

The values and principles of our nation's president are for sale. And their surprisingly cheap.

After going on the attack against GOP nominee Mitt Romney for his record of success at Bain Capital, President Obama has refused to return the $7,500 in campaign contributions from two Bain employees.  

Though the Obama campaign has repeatedly attacked Mitt Romney for his career at Bain Capital, President Obama still accepted $7,500 in campaign contributions from two Bain executives. His campaign press secretary, Ben LaBolt told The Politicker the president has no intention of giving the money back. 

So that's the price of hypocrisy? $7,500? While that may seem like a lot, in a campaign that is likely to see the President raise and spend close to a billion dollars, $7,500 is a drop in the bucket.

One promise Obama is keeping: hurting the coal industry

As Mitt Romney continues to talk about President Obama’s hostility toward job creators and the negative impact his policies have had on the economy, the New York Times wrote a front page piece on the travails of America’s coal industry. Even with control of the House of Representatives and a supermajority in the Senate, Obama couldn't get his extreme economy-killing "Cap and Trade" bill through Congress, so he is going through the back door, abusing executive authority and using the EPA to create new regulations aimed at crushing coal. The article details how the new regulations are hurting entire communities that depend on the coal industry for their jobs and livelihoods.

The decline of the coal industry, reports the Times, stems largely from:

“new pollution rules [that] have made coal plants more costly, while a surge in production of natural gas through the process of hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, has sent gas prices plummeting.”

As we have discussed regarding Governor Kasich's proposals, we welcome the new technologies and opportunities from the coming shale gas boom. But what’s significant here is that the Obama Administration’s war on coal is having a devastating effect on the industry and on the lives of thousands upon thousands of people who work in the industry.

Today, Mitt Romney Becomes The Official GOP Nominee

Since Gingerich’s collapse and Santorum’s exit, we all knew this moment was coming, so it’s unlikely that we’ll see fanfare, balloons or parades.

But after today, Mitt Romney will be the official GOP presidential nominee.

With today’s Texas primary, he is poised to secure the 1,144 delegates required to clinch the Republican presidential nomination.

…it becomes official today, when Texas voters are expected to push Romney over the finish line in the delegate race…

After a year of criticism that he didn’t have the strength or shrewdness to take on President Barack Obama, Romney has emerged from the bruising primary as a formidable adversary. He is a more disciplined campaigner than he was a few months ago, and he has pulled even with Obama in many national and swing-state polls.

However reluctantly they might have settled with him, most Republicans are now rallying behind him. Yesterday, 5,000 people turned out to see him pay tribute to veterans in San Diego, one of the largest crowds of his campaign.

Media Trackers Month-in-Review

Regular Third Base Politics readers may know I recently left a web development position at The Ohio State University to take on the role of Communications Director in the new Columbus office of Media Trackers. Media Trackers is a conservative nonprofit dedicated to covering stories legacy media outlets botch or simply ignore. In what I'm planning to make a more regular feature here at 3BP, here's what we've been working on at my day job!

The first Media Trackers Ohio analysis focused on We Are Ohio's funding -- which will remain important going forward, as the union bosses have clearly decided the "We Are Ohio" brand helps their cause. Looking at final numbers as only GOHP Blog bothered to do after last fall's election, we found that We Are Ohio took more than $20 million from unions outside the state.

In a follow-up piece, we dug even deeper into We Are Ohio contribution data. All said and done, the union front group got more than 95% of its funding from unions in 2011. Donations from individual Ohioans were outweighed by money from unions at a ratio of 91:1.

How's that for a grassroots, citizen-driven movement? Makes you wish you listened more closely to the union shills who troll 3BP comments, I bet!

We remember

Today we honor all of the men and women who gave their lives on the battlefield, so that we could continue to live in freedom. So enjoy the beautiful day off here in Ohio, but please make sure that you remember what this day is about.

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Strickland gave millions of Ohioans tax dollars to a solar firm he knew was failing

A failing solar energy company. Millions of dollars of taxpayer dollars loaned out to promote "green jobs". Campaign contributions to the warchest of the politician in charge of said tax dollars. Huge payments made to the executives of said company while workers are being laid off.

We're talking about Barack Obama and Solyndra, right?

Wrong. We're talking about Former Governor Ted Strickland and Ohio's own version of Solyndra, WK Solar near Toledo.

Media Trackers Ohio details the findings of a Toledo Blade investigation of possible misuse of millions of dollars loaned to WK Solar by the Strickland administration. Among the most alarming of the revelations that MTO's Jesse Hathaway finds is that the Strickland administration knew as early as 2009 that WK Solar was in financial trouble even after receiving $5 million in state loans. Yet, Strickland continued to give the company another $10 million in state funds.

Bad to Worse for Richard Cordray (and Ted Strickland)

Could it get much worse for Richard Cordray right now?

Yes.  Apparently it can.

First he gets pummeled in his attempt to install a loyalist as Chairman of the ODP, then the press calls him out for being a lousy politician and now his top staffer in Ohio is being investigated for campaign finance misconduct. 

The article talks about a significant amount of money that Richard Cordray’s fundraiser says is owed to her by the Franklin County Democrat Party.  Apparently the debts that she claims are owed didn’t show up in campaign finance reports that the county party has to file.  The worst part is that the folks that are supposed to be backing her claims are keeping their distance.

The article also mentions a previous client of Cordray’s fundraiser, John Reardon, who ran for state Auditor in 2006 when he was Mahoning County Treasurer.  Apparently Reardon listed false loans to his campaign as a way to beef up his fundraising report, which is obviously not allowed under campaign finance law. 

Reardon claims that Cordray’s fundraiser suggested that he ask for a contribution from the state party in exchange for getting out the race.  Soon after Reardon dropped out he received $50,000 from the state party.  He subsequently made a $10,000 contribution to Richard Cordray’s campaign for Ohio Treasurer.

Honestly, it doesn’t even matter whether these allegations against Cordray’s fundraiser are true.  The story here is that Cordray, and his people, are diminishing his chances of winning a primary for Governor by the second.  The only people stepping up to their defense are former elected officials like Jennifer Brunner who are not well liked by the ODP and Chairman Redfern.

3BP is going to RightOnline 2012

Hello 3BP readers,

Jason and I will be attending the RightOnline 2012 conference in Las Vegas in 3 weeks. RightOnline started in 2008 as a project of Americans for Prosperity with the goal of advancing liberty and prosperity for all Americans through grassroots activism and online participation.

The conference is June 15th and 16th at the Venetian. We would love to see you there, so send us an email if you plan on going. Here is a short video showing some highlights from last year.

There they go again...silly Plunderpals

Our friends over at Plunderbund are known to have problems with the truth, especially when it comes to Governor Kasich. Today, "dirtgirl" posted this about the governor:

Clearly, faced with the prospect of increased tax revenue from fracking, even a top Republican legislator placed assistance to local governments ahead of a tax cut, the only use of the revenue Governor Kasich says he will consider. Kasich is so adamant about not helping local governments, suffering from severe cuts in his two-year budget, [he] actually threatened to veto any measure providing extra cash to communities in the mid-biennium budget review.

In other words, at least one leading House Republican appears to agree with liberal think tanks, the editors of the Toledo Blade, Cleveland Plain Dealer and Akron Beacon Journal and House Democrats that any proceeds from increased fracking taxes should be shared with local governments before we consider cutting the income tax.

In other words, Plunderbund is saying that Kasich has refused to consider and help the local communities affected directly by drilling activities. The problem is that they are flat out wrong.

From the very beginning of this entire debate, Governor Kasich has talked about assisting local governments in communities that are directly affected. Take this article from way back in January in the Columbus Dispatch.

Ohio’s oil and gas industry would pay an “impact fee” for deep-shale wells to cover the cost of infrastructure damage caused by oil and gas extraction, part of a package of taxes and fees for the industry that Gov. John Kasich soon will propose.

Meet another one of Sherrod Brown's violence-prone Occupy friends

For months now, we have been informing you of Senator Sherrod Brown's love affair with the Occupy movement. In our original post, we highlighted an appearance he made on Hardball where he praised the energy coming out of the socialist movement as "always a good thing." He and Chris Matthews went on to conclude that Washington needs to look to these people for solutions.

Months later, fellow contributor Jason Hart reminded us of how Sherrod Brown denounced the non-violent Tea Party movement, who have yet to rack up even a single arrest at their peaceful protests. Yet, to this day, he still echoes on his own website the rhetoric of the filthy, violent and criminal crowd that makes up the Occupy movement and that has resulted in thousands of arrests nationwide, including rapes and homicides.

Then, of course, came the big news three weeks ago when Occupy Cleveland members planted what they believed was C4 explosives on a Northeast Ohio bridge and attempted to blow it up. When the Occupy movement right in Sherrod's backyard started with rape and finally graduated to terrorism, I expected him to come out and say "Enough" and denounce these people. Nope. Nothing but silence from Sherrod Brown (not to mention former governor and Obama lackey Ted Strickland). After praising the movement so heavily, their silence after the bomb plot could be interpreted as a tacit approval of their tactics.

Now, meet another Occupier in Ohio whose violent past and recent manifestos should raise eyebrows, this time in Columbus. From Media Trackers Ohio, we learn that Occupy Columbus leader Jesse C. Kloth, aka "Vegas Verbz", posted on their Facebook page that what they needed to boost their pathetic participation was to ratchet things up by employing violent black bloc tactics.

Kentucky, Arkansas Dems won't commit to Obama

A couple weeks ago, we told you about President Obama's problems convincing West Virginia Democrats to vote for him over federal inmate Keith Judd.  Last night the states of Kentucky and Arkansas held Presidential primaries for both parties, and Pres. Obama faced similarly formidable competition.  While Governor Romney was winning more than 2/3rds of the GOP vote with Paul, Santorum, and Gingrich's names still on the ballot as options, over 40% of Democrats in both states rejected President Obama.

SC Union Boss Celebrates Retirement by Whacking Nikki Haley Pinata

With the Obama campaign focused on their phony "war on women" narrative, the image of a female governor being hit in effigy by one of the GOP's key bases of support would be a tremendous boon to their efforts.  As luck would have it, just such an event took place recently in South Carolina.  Unfortunately for the Democrats, it was Republican Governor Nikki Haley turned into a pinata for AFL-CIO boss Donna Dewitt's retirement ceremony. 

UPDATED: Even Obama's allies find his attacks on capitalism "nauseating"

To conservatives, it has been clear for a long time that Barack Obama has not a single clue how an economy functions. We've seen a trillion-dollar stimulus come and go. And fail miserably. We've seen how his answer to every single problem is more and bigger government, instead of removing the roadblocks that government has put in the way of businesses.

His economic incompetence comes as no surprise to many of us. After all, he hates capitalism in the first place. His hatred of America runs deep and far back into his youth. He launched his political career in the living room of a pro-Communism terrorist, and attended the church of an America-hating preacher for decades. Even his wife admitted that she had never before been proud of her country, until 2008 when Obama began to lead the polls for the Democratic nomination. We on the right have been disgusted by this man from Day 1.

But now, his latest attacks are beginning to turn off members of his own party. The man whose private sector experience is dwarfed by a 10-year old selling Girl Scout cookies wants to attack Mitt Romney's experience in private business.

Obama's Healthcare Solution For All Leaves Students Without Healthcare, Or Paying Double

President Obama sold his hallmark legislation, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare, as being a healthcare solution for everyone. It was supposed to solve the problem of the uninsured, especially younger adults.

Well, so much for that thought. News this week from the eastern edge of our state shows just how detrimental Obama's policies have been:

Faced with being forced to abandon its conscience while emptying its bank account, a Catholic university finds its students can't keep the health insurance they like as it becomes prohibitively expensive.

Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, finding itself at the nexus of cost and conscience regarding the demands and expenses imposed on it and other Catholic institutions by the onslaught of ObamaCare, has announced it will neither comply nor participate in the nationalization of health care and drop the health coverage it offers to its students.

While Franciscan University is grappling with how to deal with the Obama mandates that amount to nothing more than an assault on religious freedom (and are blatantly in violation of the U.S. Constitution), the bigger issues here is affordability. In Steubenville, student coverage under Obamacare was simply too expensive for the university to maintain:

Liberal Calls For Bipartisanship Prove To Be Nothing But Whining

We all remember the fight over Senate Bill 5 last year. And while Republicans proved that the reforms were needed, Democrats condemned it at every turn with every accusation imaginable. Among them were cries that the process was not open and it was simply partisan politics.

So, naturally, all the liberals really wanted was to have a seat at the table and have their voices heard during the legislative process, right?

Apparently not.

With Senate Bill 335 moving through the legislature, co-sponsored by Democrat and strong union supporter Sen. Nina Turner, the legislation to reform the failing Cleveland Public School system is garnering incredible bi-partisan support. The bill is the brain child of Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson—a Democrat—and is being considered before the Senate Education Committee, of which Turner is a member.

Another Romney Classmate Turns Up

Evidence Of President Obama’s Base Problems

A shaky economy. High unemployment. Skyrocketing deficits. Sinking poll numbers. And now a significant problem with his base.

Things certainly aren’t looking up for President Obama’s reelection efforts.

Following an abysmal showing in North Carolina where 20% of Democrat voters cast their ballots in favor of “no preference” and an utterly disastrous performance in West Virginia, losing over 40% of the vote to a convicted felon, Obama’s had a bit of trouble showing his base—the liberals that dominate the Democrat party—that he’s worth keeping around another four years.

And for further proof, you only need to look at his new position on same-sex marriage:

"At a certain point, I've just concluded, that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married," Obama told ABC News.

Of course, this is a switch from his long-held belief that marriage is between one man and one woman. So why the about-face?

Obama ad appears to lie about Ohio man's supposed layoff

Who is Brian Slagle? He is a Toledo man featured in Barack Obama's new commercial touting the auto bailouts.

A new ad by Obama tells the story of Brian Slagle, an autoworker in Ohio who says he was laid off and “scared to death” until the president swooped in to save the industry.
“Obama stuck his neck out for us, the auto industry,” Slagle says in the ad. “He wasn’t going to let it just die, and I’m driving in this morning because of that, because of him.”

Ted Strickland Redux: Governor Kasich’s Guarantee For Reelection

You’ve heard us tell you before that Governor Strickland and his band of misfit toys are definitely considering another run for governor in 2014. Of course, we couldn’t be more ecstatic to see the man who lost Ohio 400,000 jobs match up against the man currently turning this state around.

He’s added jobs, made Ohio more attractive to business, surrounded himself with the best talent and all while tackling Ohio’s largest budget deficit in history.

Of course, if you’re to believe Strickland, that $8 billion deficit he handed off to Kasich wasn’t really all that much:

Ohioans overwhelmingly approve of Kasich's shale plan

A month ago, we told you about Governor Kasich's plan to modernize Ohio's energy policy. Raising the tax on large oil and gas companies would bring us in line with most oil-producing states, yet still be competitive. At the same time, it would inject hundreds of millions into the economy every year by providing tax relief to every Ohioan who pays income tax.

House Speaker Bill Batchelder and Senate President Tom Niehaus

It's pretty much a win-win situation for the state. Yet, the plan is still stalled in the legislature, which is controlled by our fellow Republicans. Guys, what on earth are you waiting for? A sign?

Sherrod Brown 5 years ago: Budgets are "moral documents"

Last Thursday marked another sad milestone in the saga of our do-nothing Senate. It marked 1,100 days since the Senate had passed a budget. Surely, since Sherrod Brown touts his "fiscal responsibility" on his website, he has been on the Senate floor demanding that his Senate colleagues introduce a budget, right?



Er...OK that was a silly question.

But, the fact is, Sherrod actually used to think budgets were not only important, they were morally required.

Rob Portman: Badass

Much has been made of the possibility that Mitt Romney may choose our own Senator Rob Portman to be his running mate. Some have scratched their heads and said that Rob isn't "exciting enough". I don't get this criticism. Do we want leaders who slow-jam on TV and sing love songs to screaming female fans? Or do we want experienced and competent leaders?

Thing is, maybe folks have got Rob Portman all wrong. Check out some facts about him that you may not know in this article from Buzzfeed.

• He learned Spanish from Mexican cowboys while working on a border ranch. He worked on three cattle ranches in high school and college.

How much debt has Sherrod Brown put on you?

When he isn't extolling the virtue of union bosses or comparing people to Hitler, Sherrod Brown, along with his buddy Barack Obama, have been making a lot of noise about the expiration of a super low interest rate for student loans. According to Sherrod, letting the rate go back to normal would cost the average borrower an extra $1000 over the life of the loan. Sherrod calls this extra $1000, spread over several years, "oppressive debt."

"We need students to have access to higher education and to do it without oppressive debt" -- SB

So if Sherrod calls an extra $1000 on a loan that someone voluntarily borrows "oppressive debt", what does he call the mountain of debt he and President Downgrade are piling on everyone's shoulders, without our consent?

The Presumptive Nominee's Problem With the Base

After months of hotly-contested primary contests for the Republican nomination, it is now clear that the election in the fall will be between President Obama and Governor Romney.  But one of the lingering questions that remains from the primaries is how satisfied party members are with their nominee.  There are countless stories being written daily over how one candidate must find a way to unite his party.

Tonight's Presidential primaries in West Virginia and North Carolina have confirmed this.  Faced with discredited opposition in WV, and no human opposition in NC, the dissatisfaction of the base is evident.  Only, it's not Mitt Romney who is losing huge segments of his party under those conditions: it's Barack Obama.

Progress Ohio caught lying about relationship to Occupy movement

Progress Ohio is an extreme far-left organization of liberals in Ohio. Headed by Brian Rothenberg, these people have zero shame and will do anything to impose their statist views of the world onto Ohio and America. In March, we told you about their disgusting scam where they set up a false website for people to send prayers and condolences to the victims of the Chardon school shooting. In reality, they used the submissions to sign the well wishers up for anti-gun propaganda.

So, it should come as no surprise that Progress Ohio is involved with the nakedly communist Occupy movement. Occupy has been involved in thousands of arrests, millions in property damage, and they crossed over into terrorism last week when Occupy Cleveland members tried to kill innocent commuters by blowing up a bridge in Northeast Ohio.

That prompted Rothenberg to back away from the movement, and claim that Progress Ohio has nothing to do with them.

Sherrod's Big Labor Fable

Here's my latest Sherrod Brown video for Big Government - it's a montage!



Check out Sunday's post at Breitbart.com for my delightful color commentary.

Hey remember when Sherrod Brown attacked Mike DeWine for voting with the president 96% of the time?

We all know what a hypocrite Sherrod Brown really is. For example, he accuses his opponents with a bogus "war on women" while hiding his own alleged history of physical and emotional abuse against his wife.

Tonight, we have another example for you. Let's take a journey back in time 6 years ago when "No Fear" Sherrod was running for the Senate against incumbent Mike DeWine. Watch the video where Sherrod attacks DeWine for voting with President Bush 96% of the time, and tries to tell Ohio voters how "bipartisan" he is.

Sherrod Brown's ex-wife claimed he abused her

While Sherrod Brown has been playing politics with the Violence Against Women Act, it seems he has his own violence against women to answer for. Breitbart News has uncovered documents relating to Brown's 1986 divorce, and his then-wife Larke Ummel Brown made accusations that he assaulted her.

Divorce records from Brown’s first marriage, obtained by Breitbart News, show that during the contentious proceedings, his wife accused him of “extreme cruelty” and “harassment”; she said she was “in fear for the safety … of myself and our children,” and accused Sherrod of “physical violence.” In fact, she said, Brown had “struck and bullied me on several different occasions.”

Larke Brown was so afraid of Sherrod Brown, that she pleased the court for a restraining order against him to ensure her safety.

New Quinnipiac Poll Foreshadows Trouble For Obama In Ohio, Other Swing States

Quinnipiac is out again with its Swing State Poll.  And while today, the poll has Obama leading in the key states of Ohio, and Pennsylvania (Romney has the advantage in Florida), the numbers do not bode well for a President whose policies have the nation staring down the barrel of a massive debt crisis.

Currently, if the election were held today, Quinnipiac has the numbers as follows:

• Florida: 44% Romney, 43% Obama
• Pennsylvania: 39% Romney, 47% Obama
• Ohio: 42% Romney, 44% Obama

So, that puts Obama in the lead in two of these critical swing states for an electoral advantage of 38 to 29, as of today.  But oh, what a difference just a few short months can make.

In political polling, it’s generally accepted that if a sitting office holder isn’t over 50% early on, they’re going to have some struggles.  Reason being, they don’t have half of the electorate already backing them, and it’s going to be tough for an incumbent to move even a few percentage points.

When you’re an incumbent, the voters already know your record—and in Obama’s case, it’s not something to brag about.  Heck, he can’t even get America’s most liberal senator to back him.

Say Hello To Congressman Moonbeam UPDATED

It’s no secret that plenty of political figures use a book as a way to introduce themselves to voters before a campaign. 

However, I think we’d be hard pressed to find a politician selling a book that describes how one stares at a raisin to gain a greater appreciation of self.

Seriously.

Congressman Tim Ryan, about a week after making it known he was interested in running for Governor, has chosen this as his introduction to Ohio’s voters.  His book, A Mindful Nation, discusses his interest in the idea of “mindfulness” and it’s applications to daily life.

Occupy - Revisited

In late 2011, I talked about the Occupy Wall Street movement.

For a while, it seemed that the "Occupy" movment had taken a break, but they are back. What is different this time, is that we know more about the "Occupiers." Water Williams, who serves on the faculty of George Mason University exposed these "Downtrodden" folks.

Here are some interesting facts about the "Occupiers" who were arrested in NYC.

Ted Strickland also parroted the Occupy Wall Street nonsense

Sherrod Brown isn't the only Ohio Democrat who loves the terrorist movement known as Occupy Wall Street. Ted Strickland does too.

In the video below, slide ahead to 2:15 where Strickland echoes the same garbage that fueled Occupy Cleveland members to attempt to murder innocent people by blowing up a bridge with C4 explosives.

Occupy movement that Sherrod Brown praises tried to blow up NE Ohio bridge

It was only a matter of time. We've watched with disgust as our Senator Sherrod Brown heaps praise on the the nakedly communist movement known as Occupy Wall Street. He has even co-opted their language on his own website. Now, the Occupy vermin are actively engaging in terrorism.

Five people have been arrested for trying to blow up a bridge here in Northeast Ohio.

The final plan allegedly named the Route 82 Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge, which crosses from Brecksville to Sagamore Hills, as the designated target. The IED drop location was reportedly under the bridge on the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad Brecksville Station.

The suspects were identified Tuesday as Brandon Baxter, 20; Anthony Hayne, 35; Joshua Stafford, 23; Connor Stevens, 20; and Douglas Wright, 26, Fox affiliate WJW-TV reported.

So who are these guys?

Anarchists Who've Watched Too Many Movies

Five Weathermen-wannabes have been arrested for plotting to blow-up a Cleveland highway bridge.

Apparently, the plan was originally about toppling some financial institution signs off of some downtown Cleveland buildings, perhaps as part of the Occupy Wall Street nonsense scheduled for May Day. But the masterminds figured they needed to create a diversion to occupy the police elsewhere (maybe they recalled the notion from one of the Die Hard movies). Accordingly, an idea was floated about setting off smoke grenades by the one major bridges (man, that'd look great on television!). But, and we're guessing here, none of the guys knew where one could actually buy smoke grenades. So somebody, perhaps a FBI informant, suggested they use C-4 explosives instead, just like in the movies. And perhaps he happened to know somebody who just happened to have some. Now the five knuckleheads are under arrest, and wondering how it all went wrong.

Perhaps in jail, they'll find time to read up on Bill Ayers, and learn how to properly go about this anarchy business.

Do Your Part: Soak The Rich!

SoakTheRich.us started as a series of pie charts and turned into something much bigger.  Here's why!

Promising the moon and hoping no one will ask, "hey, what's a moon cost these days, anyway?" turns out to be the one business model Progressives endorse. If you're an Obama bundler, a union boss, or Ezra Klein, it's great news -- you can get rich selling snake oil, riding a limo to Occupy Wall Street rallies, or trying to make intensely stupid things sound smart. If you're a productive human being, the results are less sunny: national debt now exceeds GDP and has piled up to roughly $50,000 per American.

That's where Soak The Rich comes in. Corporations and CEOs have tons of money, and the U.S. has tons of debt, so the math should work out: Tons - Tons = No worries! Using Soak The Rich, you can track the impact of doubling corporate income taxes and taking CEO pay from S&P 500 companies simply by clicking industries in a list. There's even a "Soak All Industries" button for the benefit of MSNBC employees! When you're done, you can see detailed results and brag about your good deed on Twitter.

Hear a friend or relative parroting the "fair share" meme? Share Soak The Rich and then ask if they have any better ideas!

Follow Jason on Twitter: @jasonahart