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June 2008
Strickland, Glenn won’t be with Obama in Zanesville
Ohio Democrats’ two favorite sons of Appalachia - Gov. Ted Strickland and former U.S. Sen. John Glenn - won’t be with Barack Obama when Obama brings his presidential campaign to that region of the state on Tuesday, July 1.
Obama is scheduled to be at the Eastside Community Ministry in Zanesville in Muskingum County.
Strickland, from Duck Run in Scioto County, is in Florida raising money for his own governor’s campaign and the Ohio Democratic Party from Monday, June 30, through Wednesday, July 2, returning to the state on Thursday, July 3, said Alex Goepfert, spokesman for the Ohio Democratic Party.
The Obama campaign hopes to have a separate event later with Glenn, who grew up in New Concord, just down the road from Zanesville, Obama campaign spokesman Isaac Baker said.
Glenn, like Strickland, endorsed Hilllary Clinton in the Democratic presidential primary.
Keith Dailey, Strickland’s spokesman, said Strickland will be running the state from Florida during the fundraising trip.
“The governor is always the governor….just like the president is always the president,” said Dailey.
TweetObama to visit Zanesville
Democrat Barack Obama is headed back to Ohio on Tuesday, July 1, this time to visit Zanesville in Ohio’s Appalachian region.
Obama will stop by the Eastside Community Ministry which provides food, clothing, emergency relief and other services to needy families, his campaign said.
The event is not open to the general public due to space constraints at the ministry, the campaign said.
The trip appears to be part of Obama’s effort to shore up support in a part of the state that was unfriendly to him in the Democratic presidential primary. Sen. Hillary Clinton got about two-thirds of the vote in Muskingum County, which includes Zanesville, while Obama got about 31 percent. Zanesville is located about 50 miles east of Columbus.
Obama last was in the state on June 13 for a meeting with seniors in Columbus. Republican John McCain campaigned in Ohio last week, holding town hall meetings in Cincinnati and Lordstown and fundraisers in Cincinnati and Hunting Valley, a Cleveland suburb.
TweetEye on Ohio: “Purpose” ad for John McCain
McCain ad talks about energy security.
THE AD: “Purpose,” 30 seconds.
WHERE TO SEE IT: It began airing on Ohio television stations on Friday, June 27.
SCRIPT: (Announcer): “American technology protected the world.
We went to the moon, not because it was easy, but because it was hard.
“John McCain will call America to our next national purpose: Energy security.
“A comprehensive bipartisan plan to:
“Lower prices at the pump.
“Reduce dependence on foreign oil through domestic drilling.
“And champion energy alternatives for better choices and lower costs.
“Putting country first.
“McCain.”
I’m John McCain, and I approve this message.”
VIDEO: The commercial begins with a collection of familiar photos highlighting this country’s dominance in space exploration. It fades to an animated McCain giving a speech with three American flags in the background. Next up are shots of gas pumps, oil wells, solar panels and wind farms. The spot ends with a flattering portrait of the 71-year-old McCain framed in bronze tones.
ANALYSIS: McCain deftly throws everything but the kitchen sink in this snappy 30-second clip. He invokes American innovation and technological prowess, appealing to Americans’ pride and patriotism. He highlights a problem that’s on everyone’s minds — gas prices — and promises that a McCain administration — in concert with Democrats — will bring prices down.
The commercial splashes “Energy Security” on the screen, but, of course, energy independence is inextricably tied to economic security and even national security.
The tone is hopeful and futuristic, aiming to reassure uneasy Americans.
McCain, who supports a mandatory limit on greenhouse gas emissions for the country, has proposed establishing a $300 million prize for the innovator who invents a long-lasting car battery.
Sen. Barack Obama belittled the idea, saying, “When John F. Kennedy decided that we were going to put a man on the moon, he didn’t put a bounty out for some rocket scientist to win. He put the full resources of the United States government behind the project.”
Obama, who has called for a $150 billion investment in alternative energy, attacked McCain this week for advocating to lift the ban on offshore drilling. McCain, who opposes drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, admitted that capturing offshore oil is years away, but said the decision would have a “psychological benefit.”
A reference to nuclear power is absent from the commercial, though McCain supports expanding that industry; Obama is not opposed to it, though he’s less enthusiastic than McCain, raising concerns about cost and safety.
The commercial wraps up with “Country First,” a theme that the McCain campaign thinks it can’t overdo in light of their candidate’s heroic military service in Vietnam as a naval aviator and then as a prisoner of war for five years.
Ellen Belcher is the editorial page editor of the Dayton Daily News. E-mail: ebelcher@daytondailynews.com.
TweetNew on Dayton Daily News: Quickie Q and A
Now that we’ve gotten a taste of technology, there’s no stopping us.
We’ve launched a podcast!
To do it, go to our new home at www.daytondailynews.com/politics. We’re under the “audio” section.
You can hear Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher opine on DHL, Ohio Treasurer Richard Cordray wax poetic about his time on “Jeopardy,” and Sen. George Voinovich riff on McCain versus Obama.
We’ll still be blogging here, but you can check out our other political coverage there. Consider it our second home.
Next thing you know, we’ll ask you to be our friend on Facebook.
TweetSteelworkers back Mitakides
Democrat Jane Mitakides, who is challenging U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville for Congress this year, received the endorsement of the United Steelworkers on Friday, June 27, according to a statement released by Mitakides’ campaign.
“Our local and international chapters of United Steelworkers have given our total endorsement and support for Jane,” said Earl Sheppard, Political Director of the local Dayton United Steelworkers chapter. “We are ready to mobilize all across Jane’s four counties. People are fired up, because we need a change.”
Sheppard called Mitakides “a businesswoman who understands the needs of middle class families.”
Mitakides welcomed the endorsement, saying it’ll bring votes as well as dozens of volunteers, block walkers and phone bankers.
The United Steelworkers represent over one million people internationally.
TweetObama to kick off Ohio organizing efforts
Now that Barack Obama has met with Hillary Clinton in Unity, N.H, Obama’s campaign is set to kick off his Ohio organizing efforts with “Unite for Change” house parties across the state.
More than 200 of the parties are set for Saturday, June 28. They’re for Democrats who voted in the presidential primary as well as Republicans and independents, a press release said.
Click here to RSVP or get more information.
TweetMcCain touts Portman, but not for VP
If Rob Portman (pictured), the former Cincinnati-area U.S. House member and U.S. budget director, is on Republican John McCain’s short list for vice presidential candidates, McCain’s not saying.
Portman was on McCain’s “Straight Talk Express” on Thursday, June 26, with McCain and a group of Ohio reporters when the talk turned to VP prospects.
McCain said he probably wouldn’t have names until August but gave Portman a nice pat on the political back. He said Portman has “earned a significant place in the future of the Republican Party.”
TweetMcCain courts social conservatives
Republican John McCain never has been the favorite of social conservatives. McCain gets along too well with Democrats and from time to time has taken positions that irked this important part of the Republican party’s base.
McCain’s trying to do something about that as he gears up his presidential campaign in Ohio.
While in Cincinnati on Thursday, June 26, McCain had two meetings with “undecided” voters - a town hall session at Xavier University and later a one-hour sit down with six conservative leaders.
Mike Gonidakis, executive director of Ohio Right to Life, called it a “great first step.” Lori Viars of Lebanon,executive director of the Family First PAC, also said she’s warming up to McCain. Others at the meeting were: Phil Burress of Cincinnati-based Citizens for Community Values; Burress’ wife Vickie; Chris Long of the Ohio Christian Alliance and Dr. Jack Wilke, long-time right to life leader.
TweetOhio Democrats “welcome” McCain to Mahoning Valley
Ohio Democrats want Republican presidential candidate John McCain to know they’re keeping an eye on him.
As McCain headed to the Mahoning Valley and the Lordstown GM plant on Friday, June 27 for a town meeting, the Ohio Democratic Party released a web video blasting McCain’s economic policies and linking McCain to President Bush:
TweetMcCain recipe for victory: “Economy, economy, economy”
John McCain has a simple formula for winning Ohio and being elected president.
Asked for the three key ingredients for winning the state, he said:
“The economy and the economy and the economy.”
McCain was interviewed by five reporters aboard his campaign bus, the “Straight Talk Express”, on Thursday, June 26 as it rumbled from Xavier University, where he held a town hall meeting with undecided voters, to downtown Cincinnati for a fundraiser.
“Ohio leads the nation tragically in the loss of home ownership….the flight of manufacturing jobs, the list goes on and on and so I’d say those are the three top issues..There are subsets of it, housing, health care, jobs.
“But it’s the economy, not so stupid.”
McCain greeted reporters as they boarded the bus as “jerks,” a term of endearment from a candidate who has courted the press for nearly a decade. Dressed in a grey, pin-striped suit, he sipped a Coke as he answered questions for nearly 20 minutes aboard the bus.
TweetTurner touts earmarks
It’s markup season on Capitol Hill, which means we can expect a flood of press releases out in the weeks to come touting earmarks for the Dayton region.
Here are the earmarks requested by Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville, for three bills: Military Construction and Veterans Affairs; Commerce, Justice, Science and related agencies, and Energy and Water Development. All three passed the House Appropriations Committee late Wednesday, June 25.
$14 million for construction of a new security forces building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Right now, security forces are located in a building built in 1934 that was originally a garage. The new building will consolidate operations for the 88th Security Forces Squadron near a primary base entry gate.
$97,000 for the Turning Point Applied Learning Center in Hillsboro for employment training for offenders who are reentering society. The program combines classroom instruction with manufacturing work experience.
$30,000 for equipment replacement for the Lynchburg Police Department. It’ll be used for new computers.
$5 million in funding to help complete the cleanup of the Miamisburg Mound.
$1 million for wastewater infrastructure improvements for the city of Hillsboro in Highland County.
$2.6 million for flood protection for about 600 homes in West Carrollton, Moraine and Miami Township.
$300,000 for water and sewer infrastructure improvements to help revitalize low-income neighborhoods in Northwest Dayton near Good Samaritan Hospital.
$500,000 for Tech Town Water and Sewer Infrastructure. The money will support revitalization of a former brownfield site in downtown Dayton.
The bills now go to the House for a full vote.
TweetBrown launches website for DHL families
Sen. Sherrod Brown on Thursday, June 26, launched a new page on his Senate web-site that he hopes will serve as a clearinghouse for families affected by the possible DHL deal with UPS.
In May, German-based Deustch-Post, the parent of DHL, announced plans to end its contract with Wilmington-based ABX and ASTAR, potentially eliminating more than 8,000 area jobs.
The page, on Brown’s Senate web site www.brown.senate.gov, will allow visitors to read stories and news about the issue and to submit their own stories. Brown said he’ll use those stories to raise awareness about the plight of DHL workers.
“This is more than just numbers and bottom lines,” Brown, D-Ohio, said. “This is about families and a community that have been very good to DHL.”
TweetNot everybody undecided at McCain event
More than 150 people packed into a meeting room in Schmidt Hall at Xavier University in Cincinnati for a town hall meeting with Republican presidential candidate John McCain. The meeting was set to start at noon on Thursday, June 26.
The crowd mainly undecided voters, picked by a marketing firm, but there also were college students and McCain backers.
Rich Volkerding tagged along with a friend, with of the undecided voters, and Volkerding sounded like a likely McCain backer.
“I’m not thrilled with anybody but there’s no way I’ll vote for Obama,” he said, referring to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Why not?
“I think he’s a Marxist,” said Volkerding, 53, a machine tool salesman from Batavia.
TweetJordan blasts Supreme Court decision on child rape
Here’s Rep. Jim Jordan on the 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court Kennedy v. Louisiana decision effectively banning states from imposing the death penalty for those convicted of child rape:
“It is outrageous that five liberal Supreme Court justices can strike down a state law because they believe the law is too tough on child rapists,” he said. “If there is ever an issue that has no business being decided by the federal courts, it is the laws a community passes to protect itself from violent criminals.”
The decision effectively overturns state laws in Louisiana, George, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas that allow capital sentences for those convicted of raping children.
Jordan, R-Urbana, is a member of the House Judiciary Committee.
TweetIn his final year in Congress, Hobson gets a few last earmarks for the state
Rep. David Hobson’s office Wednesday, June 25, announced that Hobson has secured more than $30 million in funding for local energy and water development, military construction and other projects. The money was approved by the House Appropriations Committee. It will next go to the full House of Representatives for a vote.
Hobson is the ranking member of the House Appropriation Committee’s Subcomittee on Energy and Water Development.
Among the Hobson earmarks in the bill, which funds the 2009 fiscal year:
$2 million for water and sewer infrastructure for Springfield’s current and planned sites for the Community-Mercy Health Partners Hospital being built in downtown Springfield.
$1 million for water and sewer infrastructure improvements near State Route 41 and the NextEdge Applied Research and Technology Park and the Prime Ohio Corporate Industrial Park. Both parks are near Springfield.
$1 million for water and sewer infrastructure for Clark State Community College’s campus in Greene County.
$500,000 for water and sewer infrastructure improvements for the Willowcrest Tributary Storm Sewer in Beavercreek.
$4 million for a supercomputing platform for LexisNexis and the NextEdge Applied Research and Technology Park.
$1.5 million to develop a system to analyze energy resource development, protection and transportation at the NextEdge Applied Research and Technology Park.
$1 million for the Fairborn-based Intellitech to collaborate with one of the Department of Energy’s national laboratories to implement data engineering management software. The program will help researchers file systems faster and provide products of scientific value to the nation, according to Hobson’s office.
$3.5 million for Avatec to provide a testing and development environment for the evaluation of emerging technologies. The program also includes a student internship program, where participants will have hands-on learning opportunities in the field of high performance computing.
$4 million for the City of Springfield to design and construct an energy efficient, environmentally-friendly building as part of the new Community-Mercy Hospital being built in downtown Springfield.
$1.5 million each for Wilberforce University and Central State University for scientific and technical programs to deepen the recruiting pool of diverse scientific and technical staff available to the National Nuclear Security Administration and national labs.
Hobson also secured $12.8 million for a new Ohio National Guard Combat Communications Training Complex at the Springfield Air National Guard Base. That money was approved as part of the Military Quality of Life-Veterans Affairs Appropriations. The new building will replace an overcrowded, outdated building, Hobson said and be used for operations, equipment maintenance, and training in support of 150-personnel from the Ohio National Guard’s 269th Combat Communications Squadron and the 251st Combat Communications Group. Hobson’s a senior member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.
Finally, Hobson secured $400,000 for an at-risk youth program in the City of Springfield. It will be used by Wittenberg University to develop a collaborative program with Springfield City Schools and area after-school providers to coordinate efforts to provide services for at-risk youth - namely, for curriculum development, training of staff and volunteers and for marketing and outreach.
TweetMcCain releases new Web-only ads
U.S. Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign released two new web-only advertisements this week focusing on Barack Obama’s “flip-flopping.”
TweetBush legacy takes a drubbing
DAYTON - Democrats brought the Bush Legacy Bus to Dayton on Wednesday, June 25, the first stop on a five-month, 150-city tour designed to bash President George Bush’s record and to paint presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain with the same broad brush.
“It’s very powerful to see the timetable and cause and effect of so many of the administration’s failed policies,” said Marlene Ostrow, 49, who traveled from Cincinnati to see the bio-diesel-powered rolling anti-Bush museum at Courthouse Square in downtown Dayton.
Displays in the bus include timelines, videos, and photographs outlining what advocacy group, Americans United for Change, believes are the Bush Administration’s disastrous policies and actions.
Displays covered Iraq, the economy, Hurricane Katrina, health care, workers rights and education. A large old-fashioned style gas pump sat at the back of the bus, with an electronic display that could determine the annual cost of gas to a consumer. Atop the pump was a round sign with a large “W” in the middle and the words “Bush Cheney Oil” and at the bottom, one that said “GOP, Grand Oil Party.”
Asked to react to the group’s message, Republican National Committee spokeswoman Blair Latoff said, “The last thing Ohioans want or need is a bus full of professional partisans rolling into town and tearing people down. Ohio needs leadership and they are looking for someone like John McCain who has demonstrated the capability and willingness to work on both sides of the aisle to get things done.”
McCain was targeted along with Bush in speeches by local government officials and union and civil rights leaders. They asked the sparse lunchtime crowd to support Democratic Sen. Barack Obama for president and they took particular aim at gas prices.
McCain is on the side of “big oil and corporate greed,” said Wesley Wells, executive director of the Dayton-Miami Valley AFL-CIO Regional Labor Council.
“I agree with Senator Barack Obama. It’s time for change. Don’t you agree?” Wells said.
Keith Lander, 45, of Dayton came downtown to see the tour bus and hear the speakers. Given the state of the economy, high gas prices and the war in Iraq, Lander said he doesn’t see how anyone could vote for Republicans in the fall. Those that do are “setting themselves up for their own demise,” Lander said.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7455 or lhulsey@DaytonDailyNews.com.
TweetBrown to talk DHL with White House Chief of Staff this afternoon
Sen. Sherrod Brown said he is scheduled to talk to White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten about possible job losses at DHL in Wilmington Wednesday, June 25.
“I’m hoping the president will appoint one person to be literally in charge of all the response efforts,” Brown, D-Ohio, said in a conference call today. He said multiple agencies, including Transportation and the Department of Homeland Security, will be involved with responding to DHL’s proposal to hire UPS to fly packages within the United States. Such a proposal would eliminate an estimated 6,000 jobs at DHL’s Wilmington freight hub.
He also said that the congressional delegation is pressuring DHL’s German owners to reconsider the proposal as well as continuing to pursue questions of whether the proposal violates antitrust laws.
UPDATE:
They talked: Brown, according to his release, “asked the White House to appoint a senior administration official to marshal assistance on the issue. He also asked for the White House to help expedite a bipartisan, bicameral request for a Department of Justice anti-trust review. In addition, Brown discussed possible federal use of the Wilmington facility in the event that the DHL-UPS deal goes through.”
TweetJohn McCain coming to Xavier University on Thursday
Something tells me the presidential candidates are going to be in Ohio a lot in the coming months. Barack Obama was in Columbus last week and John McCain will return to Ohio on Thursday, June 26, to participate in his third town hall meeting at Xavier University in Cincinnati.
The noon event is a pre-ticketed event with undecided voters.
Later on Thursday, McCain will take part in a fundraiser dinner also in Cincinnati.
The dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. and the main reception begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets start at $2,300. Tickets and more information on the event can be found at JohnMcCain.com
Tweet(Anti) Bush legacy bus tour heads for Dayton
Dayton is scheduled to be the first stop on the national “Bush Legacy Tour”, a bus tour produced by Americans United for Change, a progressive advocacy group that doesn’t exactly embrace President Bush’s policies.
The 45-foot, 28-ton “Bush Museum on Wheels” is supposed to stop downtown at Courthouse Square at noon on Wednesday, June 25. At this stop, “local Ohioans” will hold U.S. Rep. John Boehner (pictured) , the House minority leader from West Chester, accountable for supporting Bush’s “failed policies” 96 percent of the time, a press release said.
At Courthouse Square, the bus tour also will join forces with the Dayton Miami Valley Regional Labor Council, the Dayton Chapter Southern Christian Leadership Conference and others to protest high gas prices and other issues.
Jessica Towhey, Boehner’s spokeswoman, responded:
“While Americans United for Change is spinning its wheels, Congressman Boehner is working hard to help lower gas prices and make us energy independent.
“You’d think that after filling up their bus at $4.50 per gallon for diesel in Ohio, the group would be interested in helping persuade the federal government to unlock our natural resources so we can stop depending on foreign nations for our energy needs and lower gas prices for working families.”
Here’s a video on the tour from Americans United for Change:
TweetClinton spokesman now speaking for Obama
Isaac Baker didn’t always find much good to say about Barack Obama when Obama and Hillary Clinton clashed in Ohio’s heated Democratic presidential primary.
Times change.
Baker was Clinton’s spokesman during the primary but now has signed on to be Obama’s Ohio spokesman in the general election campaign against Republican John McCain.
Democrats are unified now, Baker said on Monday, June 23.
Baker becomes the second political aide to Gov. Ted Strickland to hook up with Obama’s Ohio campaign. Aaron Pickrell, who managed Strickland’s 2006 campaign for governor, is managing Obama’s Ohio campaign. Baker was a press spokesman for Strickland in the 2006 governor’s race.
TweetMcCain to visit Lordstown GM plant
Republican John McCain is headed back to the Mahoning Valley to woo the so-called “Reagan Democrats” who have helped the GOP carry Ohio in presidential races.
The Arizona senator is expected to campaign at the GM plant in Lordstown on Friday, June 27, his campaign said. He spoke in nearby Youngstown on April 22.
McCain also is scheduled to attend a Cincinnati fundraiser on Thursday, June 26, and a Cleveland-area fundraiser on Friday after his Lordstown visit.
The Ohio trip comes during a week in which McCain is emphasizing his energy plans, as highlighted in a campaign web video,”Energy Security” :
TweetAs expected, Ohio Democrats endorse Cordray for AG
Attorney general candidate Ohio Treasurer Richard Cordray was officially endorsed by Ohio Democrats on Saturday in Columbus.
Cordray’s Republican challenger in the shortened race is still unknown. The state Republican Party canceled a meeting scheduled for Saturday to choose a candidate for the November election.
Nancy Hardin Rogers, dean of Ohio State University’s law school, is serving as attorney general until the November election.
Gov. Strickland endorses Richard Cordray for attorney general
TweetMcCain campaign seeking Ohio volunteers
Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s regional office in Columbus is in need of volunteers willing to work at least 25 hours per week until the November election. Anyone interested should send a resume to: Volunteer2@JohnMcCain.com
TweetVoinovich speaks out on gas prices
U.S. Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, spoke on Thursday, June 19, about high gas prices and energy independence. Click to hear his comments.
“From the time I came to the Senate, I’ve been saying this country doesn’t have an energy policy,” Voinovich said. “If we’re really going to solve this problem…we’re going to increase our domestic production, we’re going to have to encourage efficiency and conservation, we’re going to have to promote technology and innovation.”
TweetObama “Country I Love” ad
The ad: “Country I Love,” 60 seconds.
Producer: Barack Obama campaign.
Where to see it: It begins airing Friday, June 20, in 18 states, including Ohio. View it at DaytonDailyNews.com/eyeonohio.
Script: “I’m Barack Obama. America is a country of strong families and strong values. My life’s been blessed by both.
“I was raised by a single mom and my grandparents. We didn’t have much money, but they taught me values straight from the Kansas heartland where they grew up. Accountability and self-reliance. Love of country. Working hard without making excuses. Treating your neighbor as you’d like to be treated.
“It’s what guided me as I worked my way up — taking jobs and loans to make it through college. It’s what led me to pass up Wall Street jobs and go to Chicago instead, helping neighborhoods devastated when steel plants closed. “That’s why I passed laws moving people from welfare to work, cut taxes for working families and extended health care for wounded troops who’d been neglected.
“I approved this message because I’ll never forget those values, and, if I have the honor of taking the oath of office as president, it will be with a deep and abiding faith in the country I love.”
Video: The ad opens with video of Obama sitting in a living room wearing a sport coat and soft guitar music playing. It cuts to childhood photos of Obama and then footage of him hugging a supporter, meeting with workers around a kitchen table and shaking hands with a soldier.
Analysis: The ad is a biographical piece that introduces the candidate to voters, emphasizing hard work, personal responsibility and humble roots. Obama all but puts on work boots and goes to a construction site to show what a regular guy he is. The ad leaves out some of the exotic and elite biographical details: a father from Kenya, part of his childhood spent in Indonesia and a law degree from Harvard University.
Aside from being a personal introduction, Obama tells viewers that he loves his country. This is response to the fact that Sen. John McCain’s campaign ads have focused on his time as a POW and his status as a Vietnam War hero. In addition, Obama’s wife, Michelle, has been hammered for making a statement that this year was the first time she has been proud of the United States.
Michelle Obama this week appeared on The View, a talk show popular with women, to say, among other things, that she is proud of this country. —- By Laura Bischoff
TweetMcCain ‘Global’ ad
The ad: “Global,” 30 seconds.
Producer: John McCain campaign.
Where to see it: It began airing Saturday, June 14, on Ohio television stations. View it at DaytonDailyNews.com/eyeonohio.
Script: (Female announcer) “John McCain stood up to the president and sounded the alarm on global warming five years ago. Today, he has a realistic plan that will curb greenhouse gas emissions. A plan that will help grow our economy and protect our environment. Reform. Prosperity. Peace. John McCain.
Video: Opens with a bang. The viewer hears car horns while seeing rapid black-and-white video of autos jammed on freeways, factories belching smoke and ice packs melting. Then the commercial dissolves into a color photo of McCain speaking; a newspaper headline underneath him declares: “McCain climate views clash with GOP.”
The viewer then sees wind turbines, power dams, solar panels and auto workers building new cars. The final shot shows McCain standing outside, with mountain peaks in the background.
Analysis: This commercial practically screams out the words: John McCain is not George W. Bush. It comes close to suggesting he’s not even a Republican. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has charged that a McCain presidency would amount to a third term for Bush. So McCain is picking issues on which he differs most with Bush and Republicans — the environment and global warming.
By doing so, McCain hopes voters will not focus on the many issues on which he agrees with Bush, including opposition to abortion rights, extending the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, and refusing to adopt a deadline to remove U.S. forces from Iraq.
The commercial is reasonably accurate. In 2002, McCain joined with Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in an unsuccessful effort to force automakers to build cars that use less gasoline. In 2003, McCain and then-Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman, now an independent from Connecticut, backed a major bill aimed at reducing emissions of greenhouse gases, a measure that died on the Senate floor.
But the commercial does not mention that McCain this week backed oil exploration off the coast of the United States, a move opposed by environmentalists. Nor did the commercial say that McCain this month expressed opposition to a global warming package backed by Lieberman, even though the measure was similar to the bill McCain and Lieberman supported in 2003.
McCain contends that the bill did not include enough incentives to promote the use of nuclear power. Neither McCain nor Obama showed up to vote June 6 when the Senate killed the Lieberman bill.
Jack Torry is a reporter at The Columbus Dispatch. E-mail: jtorry@dispatch.com
TweetMoveOn.org/AFSCME ‘Not Alex’ ad
The ad: “Not Alex,” 30-seconds.
Producer: MoveOn.org and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
Where to see it: It began airing on Ohio television stations on Tuesday, June 17. View it at DaytonDailyNews.com/eyeonohio.
Script: (Mother speaks as she holds her baby boy, Alex). “Hi, John McCain. This is Alex. And he’s my first. So far his talents include trying any new food and chasing after our dog. That, and making my heart pound every time I look at him. And so, John McCain, when you say you would stay in Iraq for 100 years, were you counting on Alex? Because if you were, you can’t have him.”
Video: The mother sits quietly in what appears to be a living room, cradling Alex. She is smiling at the beginning as she describes Alex, but the smile fades as she delivers the punch line.
Analysis: This commercial is a reminder to politicians: Be careful how you explain things.
At a January town hall meeting in New Hampshire, McCain was asked whether U.S. troops would have to remain in Iraq for as long as 50 years. McCain replied, “Maybe 100.”
But he quickly added, “As long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or wounded or killed, it’s fine with me, and I hope it would be fine with you if we maintain a presence in a very volatile part of the world where al-Qaida is training, recruiting, equipping and motivating people every single day.”
Democrats, including presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, quickly seized on the 100-year comment, but neglected to add McCain’s qualifier. In a sense, McCain was reminding voters that U.S. forces remain in Germany more than 60 years after the end of World War II, and in South Korea more than a half-century since the conclusion of the Korean War.
McCain has said he would withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq only on the advice of his military commanders rather than impose a deadline from Washington.
The commercial is being aired by two liberal organizations, MoveOn.Org and AFSCME, both of which will support Obama in the fall.
As for Alex, he could be the first major child star in a political commercial since 1964, when President Lyndon Johnson ran a TV ad featuring a little girl removing petals from a daisy. The commercial then dissolved into an atomic bomb explosion, a none-too-subtle suggestion that Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater wanted to blow up the world. Ironically, Tony Schwartz, the producer of that Daisy ad, died Saturday, June 14, at the age of 84.
Jack Torry is a reporter at The Columbus Dispatch. E-mail: jtorry@dispatch.com.
TweetVoinovich: ABX, ASTAR should merge to save Moraine jobs
Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, who, like many other lawmakers in the state has been working the phones over the proposed consolidation between DHL and UPS, said Wednesday, June 18, that ASTAR Air Cargo and ABX should reconsider a merger to save the jobs.
“If we have a shot at this thing, I think that this merger is a condition precedent to it,” he said. “I think it’s time for them together and talk about that issue.”
He said lawmakers have heard from company leaders that had a proposed merger between the two companies gone through last year, “that would’ve made a big difference in terms of their evaluation of that situation.”
DHL announced last month that it plans shift its U.S. air lift operations from those two companies to UPS.
TweetMcCain campaign to open Ohio HQ
The John McCain presidential campaign will open its Ohio headquarters on Thursday, June 19, at 6 p.m. The headquarters are in downtown Columbus at 240 N. 5th Street, Suite 340.
TweetPoll: Obama leads in Ohio
Democrat Sen. Barack Obama leads Republican Sen. John McCain in the swing states Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to a poll released Wednesday, June 18, by Quinnipiac University.
The results indicate the first time Obama has led in all three states in a Quinnipiac Poll. No one has been elected president since 1960 without taking two of these three states.
In Ohio, Obama leads McCain 48 to 42 percent. In Florida, it’s 47 to 43 percent. And in Pennsylvania, Obama leads McCain 52 to 40 percent.
Obama trails among white voters in Florida and Ohio, but gets more than 90 percent of black voters in both states. He also leads among young voters in all three states.
Ohio voters also said they want former Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to be vice-president: 58 percent of Democrats said they were hoping for a dream ticket, while Republicans and independents in the state both said they preferred not seeing Clinton run for vice-president.
TweetSchmidt gets hit for China drilling claims
Democrats are blasting Rep. Jean Schmidt for a floor speech she made earlier this month claiming that China was drilling for oil off the coast of Florida.
“This very day there is indeed drilling activity off of our country’s coast. Not by our U.S. companies,” she said on June 5. “That would be illegal. Instead, the Chinese are drilling off the coast of Florida with their new energy partner, Cuba . This Congress has failed to act time and time again.”
But that’s not true, according to McClatchy News Service and Republican Sen. Mel Martinez, who called such claims “akin to urban legends.”
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as well as Democrat Victoria Wells Wulsin are challenging her for her comments, saying they do nothing but detract attention from the problem of high gas prices.
Schmidt spokesman Bruce Pfaff said the hullaballoo ignores the underlying question: “Why don’t the Democrats have a policy on energy?” he asked. He said Schmidt was repeating news reports, and that Cuba has, in fact sold drilling rights to other countries.
TweetBoehner on Obama/Ohio kerfluffle
Here’s House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-West Chester, reacting to the AP report, in a rather detailed statement. Boehner, as will become evident in this statement, is a McCain supporter:
“Just days after Barack Obama visited the Buckeye State - where many families and small businesses are paying $4 or more per gallon of gas - Obama has a message for Ohio voters: I don’t need you.”
“News reports suggest that his campaign thinks it can win the presidency without winning Ohio. Perhaps Obama knows that his calls for higher taxes on natural gas and coal - and massive tax hikes on seniors, small businesses, and married couples - don’t bode well for the state’s economy. His proposals would increase gas and home heating prices, stifle job creation, close off new markets for our manufacturers, and leave Ohio families less secure. With a platform like that, it’s no surprise that Obama would try to find a way to win without Ohio. ”
“By comparison, the McCain campaign will soon open up a series of offices to give them a presence in every corner of the state. No candidate in recent history has won the presidency without carrying Ohio, and John McCain will aggressively compete for every vote with a positive reform agenda aimed at keeping America safe and getting our economy back on track.”
TweetObama campaign to Ohio: We might not need you, after all
Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign manager reportedly told a crowd at a Washington, D.C. brewery that the campaign envisions a path to the presidency that would not include swing states Ohio or Florida.
According to the Associated Press, David Plouffe that the two battlegrounds are not required for victory. Plouffe later clarified to say he wants the campaign not to rely on any one state for victory.
Only two presidents in the last century won the presidency without winning Ohio: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in his third term, and John F. Kennedy, Jr.
Republicans, as predicted, are having a heyday with Plouffe’s comments.
“On the same day that Barack Obama visited Columbus, his campaign manager was meeting with Washington insiders about how they will write off Ohio. With a strategy of telling voters one thing while your campaign does another, it’s no wonder so many Ohioans remain skeptical of Barack Obama,” said Bob Bennett of the Ohio Republican Party.
What do you think?
TweetPhotos of Obama in Ohio
Barack Obama made his first campaign stop in Ohio since becoming the presumptive Democratic nominee for president. Here’s some photos from his visit to a senior center in Columbus. Photos are by Associated Press photographers Kiichiro Sato and Alex Brandon.
Barack and Michelle Obama with Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland.
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., second from left, with wife Michelle Obama, left, listen to Ron and Jane Payne, from Milford Center, Ohio, backstage before he speaks at the Oakleaf Village retirement community in Columbus, Ohio Friday, June 13, 2008.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
TweetObama promises to strengthen Social Security
Democrat Barack Obama will emphasize his commitment to protecting and strengthening Social Security when he speaks to seniors on Friday, June 13, in Columbus.
According to excerpts of the speech supplied by his campaign, Obama as president would adjust the cap on the payroll tax so that wealthy Americans pay “a little bit more and people in need are protected.”
“That way we can extend the promise of Social Security without shifting the burden on to seniors,” he said in the speech, set for noon. “And we should exempt anyone making under $250,000 from this increase so that the change doesn’t burden middle-class Americans.
“That means that 97 percent of Americans will see absolutely no change in their taxes under my plan - 97 percent.”
Obama also is to meet with a retired couple who would benefit from his proposal to eliminate the income tax for seniors making less than$50,000, the campaign announced.
TweetWait…what did he mean by that?
So why was Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville, one of 24 Republicans to vote with a majority of Democrats earlier this week on a resolution referring Rep. Dennis Kucinich’s motion to impeach President George W. Bush?
Is it bad blood? A thumb in the eye of the Bush administration?
Nope, says Turner. It’s a way to bury the issue in committee, rather than launch into a lengthy floor debate.
“It’s end of term,” he said. “We should be dealing with energy prices. This is just politics and the motion to send (Kucinich’s resolution) to the Judiciary Committee is a way to deal with it without taking up any more of Congress’ time.”
The House ultimately voted to send Kucinich’s resolution to the Judiciary Committee 251-166.
TweetRegistration numbers have Mitakides feeling bullish about November
The fact that Sen. Barack Obama - now the Democratic nominee for president - won the third congressional district in the March 4 primary had Democratic congressional candidate Jane Mitakides feeling pretty upbeat as of a few weeks back, hopeful that those same voters will be back in November.
Now, new registration numbers from Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner’s office have her feeling even more optimistic.
She’s touting an upswing in Democratic registrations in the district as a good sign. Before the March primary, 58,178 were registered as Democrats in the district versus 78,799 Republicans. Now, according to Brunner’s report, it’s 128,793 registered Democrats vs. 80,932 GOP as of the end of May.
She’s also encouraged by an increase in Democratic registrations in Republican-leaning Warren County, Highland County and Clinton County. And, in a release put out this week by her campaign, she’s confident these weren’t just Republicans trying to sway the Democratic contest. “It is new and independent voters, hungry for change,” her release read.
Mitakides will challenge Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville in the fall.
TweetDavidson, DeWine “welcome” Obama
Democrat Barack Obama’s headed to Ohio on Friday, June 13, and Republicans Jo Ann Davidson and Kevin DeWine want to make him feel unwelcome, not to mention out of place.
“The message he’s bring to Ohio is what I strongly believe is the entirely wrong message for the state of Ohio and for the citizens of Ohio,” Davidson, former Ohio House Speaker and now co-chairman of the Republican National Committee, said on Thursday, June 12.
She and DeWine, deputy chairman of the Ohio Republican Party, used a conference call to cast Obama as an out of touch advocate for higher taxes on energy, capital gains and most everything else they could think of. They also said nice stuff about John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate for president.
Obama, making his first trip to Ohio since becoming the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, will meet with seniors in Columbus and is expected to emphasize, among other things, his plan to eliminate income taxes for seniors making less than $50,000 a year. He’ll be with his wife Michelle and Gov. Ted Strickland. Michelle Obama also is to hold a fundraiser for the campaign in Cincinnati on Friday.
Obama backers didn’t let the GOP tax hike charges go unanswered. They pointed to a new study from the Tax Policy Center, that said tax cuts proposed by McCain would primarily benefit high-income Americans.
TweetVoinovich in New York Times
The New York Times did a story on Sen. Voinovich’s walking challenge. Pictures of “The Voin,” as his staff calls him, are on page two of the link.
TweetMichelle Obama in Cincinnati this Friday for fundraiser
Michelle Obama will be in Cincinnati on Friday, June 13, raising money for her husband’s presidential campaign. The event starts at 5 p.m. at the Westin Hotel, 21 E. 5th Street.
Tickets for the event are $500 and $2,300 for a VIP reception and must be reserved by Thursday, June 12. To register go to https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/OH613MO Earlier on Friday, Barack and Michelle Obama along with Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland will talk with senior citizens in Columbus.
TweetStrickland says no on VP - once more
Gov. Ted Strickland’s hot stuff these days for folks who want to know about the presidential race in Ohio.
Michele Norris of NPR’s “All Things Considered” is one of the latest to tap into the governor’ s knowledge with an interview broadcast on Tuesday, June 10.
Strickland - once again - ruled out VP aspirations.
“If drafted, I will not run; nominated, I will not accept and, if elected, I will not serve,” he said.
Strickland took a gentle swipe at John Kerry, suggesting fellow Democrat Kerry didn’t take a statewide approach when he lost Ohio in 2004.
“You can use the John Kerry approach or you can use the Ted Strickland approach ….recognizing that Ohio is big and diverse, that there are different economies in Ohio, and it is important to reach out to all Ohio,” Strickland said.
TweetObamas coming to Ohio on Friday
Democrat Barack Obama must not be superstitious, at least when it comes to Ohio. The Illinois senator, with his wife Michelle, will be in the Columbus area on Friday, June 13, to meet with seniors, his campaign said on Tuesday, June 10.
Gov. Ted Strickland, who recently announced his support for Obama for president after backing Sen. Hillary Clinton, will be with the Obamas, Obama’s campaign said.
The stop on Obama’s “Change that Works for You” tour will be his first visit to Ohio since he wrapped up the Democratic nomination for president last week. The meeting is by invitation only but is open to the press, the campaign said.
TweetHobson gets his seersucker on
In honor of Seersucker Day on Capitol Hill, we bring you Rep. Dave Hobson, R-Springfield.
For some reason, this picture makes us fondly remember Col. Sanders.
We cannot say we blame him, however - it’s 96 degrees on Capitol Hill.
TweetLA Times: McCain has Ohio GOP disconnect
From coast to coast, the big-time news media already is zeroing in on the general election presidential campaign in Ohio. The first verdict from the Los Angeles Times is that Republican John McCain is having trouble connecting with Ohio Republicans, particularly cultural conservatives such as Phil Burress of Citizens for Community Values in Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, The New York Times is reporting that McCain is trying to extend his outreach but that evangelicals, a key part of the Ohio Republican base, are “wary.” The story highlights Lori Viars, a conservative Republican from Lebanon in Warren County.
Former Ohio U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine, McCain’s Ohio campaign chairman, is wary of some of the reporting, especially from the LA Times.
“It’s just not correct,” said DeWine. McCain is “doing very well with Republicans and very well with conservatives in Ohio,” said DeWine.
TweetEye on Ohio: “Safe” ad for John McCain
McCain ad talks about war and keeping our country safe.
THE AD: “Safe,” 30-seconds.
WHERE TO SEE IT: It began airing on Ohio television stations on Friday, June 6.
SCRIPT: John McCain speaking: “Only a fool or a fraud talks tough or romantically about war. When I was 5 years old, my father left for war. My grandfather came home from war and died the next day. I was shot down over Vietnam and spent five years as a POW. Some of the friends I served with never came home. I hate war. And I know how terrible its costs are. I’m running for president to keep the country I love safe.
I’m John McCain, and I approve this message.”
VIDEO: Stark but more visually compelling than some earlier and more stylized McCain commercials, the spot features the candidate speaking directly to the camera against a black background, with the left side of his face in shadow, while somber string music plays. A series of black-and-white historical photos fade in around him, of his father, grandfather, the wreckage of a fighter plane and McCain as a prisoner of war.
Full-screen color footage follows of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial by night, with the floodlit Washington Monument in the background. Beneath it is the text, “Military images do not imply endorsement by DOD (Department of Defense) or service branch.”
It returns to McCain speaking and closes with a color still photo of him.
ANALYSIS: The first TV ad released since McCain knew with certainty who his Democratic opponent in November will be, it makes a personal pitch emphasizing his military and national security experience, an area in which he has claimed an advantage over Barack Obama. Focused on image and character, its stress on how much he knows about war and its costs works to counter hawkish impressions left by his support of the Iraq war.
Tom Feran is a reporter at The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. E-mail: tferan@plaind.com.
TweetMcCain plans two-day Ohio campaign swing in June
Republican John McCain will be in Ohio on June 26-27 to campaign and raise money, former U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine of Cedarville said.
There will be a fundraiser in Cincinnati on June 26 and two more fundraisers the next day, at noon in Youngstown and in the evening in Cleveland, DeWine said on Monday, June 9.
Public events also are expected to be held both days, DeWine, chairman of McCain’s Ohio campaign, said.
The fundraisers are among six planned so far for the summer as McCain, the Arizona senator, and Democrat Barack Obama carry the presidential campaign into Ohio. McCain fundraisers also are planned for: Canton on July 24; Dublin, a Columbus suburb, on Aug. 6 and at Four Bridges County Club in Butler County on Aug, 7, said DeWine.
TweetSchuring and Canton: a Dangerous Combination?
One of the hot congressional races in Ohio right now is the race for the 16th congressional seat, now held by Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Navarre. That race will see state Sen. Kirk Schuring, a Republican, against state Sen. John Boccieri in a northeast Ohio district covering all or parts of six counties.
Schuring, alas, has spurred some criticism thanks to some comments he made about Canton:
The Ohio Democratic Party leapt on the comments, calling them them “ugly” and “divisive” to the people he hopes to represent.
“It is appalling to witness Kirk Schuring speaking with such venom and disdain toward the very individuals he is seeking to represent in Congress,” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Alex Goepfert.
We have a call in to Schuring, and we’ll get post his comments as soon as we get them.
TweetDeWine won’t run for AG
Former U.S. senator Mike DeWine said Monday June 9 that he will not run for Ohio attorney general and instead will focus on Republican John McCain’s presidential campaign in Ohio.
“You know, this was a tough decision for me. I think I would have enjoyed very much being attorney general and I would’ve been good at it and cleaned up the messes,” DeWine said.
He declined to endorse a fellow party member for the race, saying the GOP has a number of good prospects, including county prosecutors with strong law enforcement backgrounds. “It is a very winnable race for Republicans. People will see we need a watchdog in the attorney general’s office.”
Ohio voters will hold a special election in November to pick an attorney general to replace Democrat Marc Dann, who resigned May 14 amid a sexual harassment scandal. Gov. Ted Strickland appointed Nancy Hardin Rogers to serve as attorney general in the meantime.
The Ohio GOP and Ohio Democratic Party are expected to name their attorney general candidates later this month.
TweetStrickland guru to become Obama guru
Gov. Ted Strickland, once Sen. Hillary Clinton’s top Ohio backer, and Sen. Barack Obama may really be joining forces.
Aaron Pickrell, who managed Strickland’s successful 2006 race for governor, is going to manage Obama’s presidential campaign in Ohio. Pickrell is expected to leave his current job as chief operating officer in the governor’s office at the end of the week, Strickland’s office said on Monday, June 9.
Democrat Strickland used an 88-county approach to campaigning to clobber Republican Ken Blackwell in the governor’s race. With Pickrell helping call the shots, Obama’s Ohio campaign is likely to hunt for votes all across the state rather than concentrate solely on Democratic strongholds.
Strickland endorsed Obama for president after Clinton ended her campaign for the Democratic nomination.
TweetOhioans sour on Bush, economy
Ohioans don’t much care for the job President Bush is doing and they’re gloomy about the chances for Ohio’s economy to improve.
Those are two key findings in a new Ohio Poll, released on Monday, June 9.
The statewide poll, sponsored by the University of Cincinnati, put Republican Bush’s approval rating at 29 percent. Also, 79 percent say they think Ohio’s economic conditions are getting worse.
Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat, has an overall job approval rating of 61 percent in the poll but just 51 percent approve of his handling of the economy.
One trouble spot for Strickland: just 47 percent of blacks approve of how he’s handling his job, compared to 63 percent of whites.
The poll was conducted between May 16 and Wednesday, June 4, with the exception of Memorial Day, May 26, with 1,340 adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percent.
TweetRealClearPolitics: Poll shows tighter race in 7th District
The last time a Democrat was victorious in an election for Ohio’s seventh congressional district it was 1936.
Republican Congressman Dave Hobson, who is retiring after this term, has won the seat by large margins in recent elections. However, a poll conducted by the Democratic firm Cooper & Secrest for Democrat Sharen Neuhardt (left) shows her race against Republican State Sen. Steve Austria (right) may be closer than expected.
The poll gives Austria an edge over Neuhardt 41 percent to 35 percent. Of course, it is an internal poll.
According to RealClearPolitics.com, “In three special elections this year, Democrats have knocked off Republicans in districts that voted overwhelmingly for President Bush. Could those be just the tip of the ice berg? Democrats hope so, and a new poll conducted for a political neophyte shows the party might just have a chance at bagging a sprawling Ohio district left open by the retirement of nine-term Rep. David Hobson.”
The poll was taken May 27-June 2 among 504 likely voters and has a margin of error of +/- 4.2%.
TweetIndependent AG candidate ready to kick off campaign
While Democrats and Republicans continue to ponder who’ll they’ll run for attorney general in the Nov. 4 election, independent candidate Robert Owens is off and declaring.
Owens, a Delaware County attorney, will publicly declare his candidacy at a Statehouse press conference on Tuesday, June 10, at 3 p.m.
“I am running to restore integrity and independence to the important office of attorney general,” Owens said in a press release. “Unlike the old parties who are funded by powerful special interests, my grassroots campaign and term in office will be driven by the people of Ohio.”
TweetStrickland sponsors cornhole tournament tour
Gov. Ted Strickland is becoming a promoter. He’s sponsoring the “Ted Strickland for Governor 2008 Cornhole Tournament Tour.”
The tournament will be held at nine locations throughout the summer. In the Dayton area, competition will be on Aug. 3 at Thomas Cloud Park, 4707 Brandt Pike, in Huber Heights, according to the Ohio Democratic Party. Registration is at noon.
The state tournament will be on Sept. 20 in Lucasville at the Democratic governor’s annual birthday party.
Entry fees are $50 for a singles team and $100 for doubles. To join, call 614-221-3287 or email rsvp@tedstrickland.com.
TweetRyan backs Obama
Rep. Tim Ryan Friday joined the ranks of Democrats backing Barack.
“Barack Obama is a transformational leader, a man of conviction who speaks to power in a way that we rarely see in American politics,” said Ryan, D-Niles, previously a superdelegate for Clinton. “Throughout this long primary season, Sen. Obama has continued to inspire me with his message of hope, but much more importantly with the actions to back up his words. Today, I am proud to endorse Sen. Obama for President, and prouder than ever to work for a candidate who could potentially change everything we know about American politics.”
TweetOhio Auditor Taylor pumps up “Citizens for McCain”
Ohio Auditor Mary Taylor is pumping up new efforts to enlist Democrats and independents as backers of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Republican Taylor (pictured) wants them to join “Citizens for McCain,” the group headed by Sen. Joe Lieberman, the Democrat-turned-independent from Connecticut and McCain’s friend.
“Now that the 2008 general election has officially begun, I would like to welcome every Ohio voter, Republican, Democrat, Independent and Clinton supporters — particularly those in the 83 counties that did not support Senator Obama in the Ohio Democratic primary — to join John McCain’s campaign,” Taylor said in a press release.
“John McCain has a long record of reaching across the aisle and working with Democrats to achieve bipartisan results that benefit all Americans.”
TweetMcCain launches new TV ad: “Safe”
Republican presidential candidate John McCain has launched a new TV ad - “Safe.”
It highlights his and his family’s military service and his plans to keep the nation safe. It’s part of a new campaign targeted at battleground states, a group that usually includes Ohio.
Here’s the ad:
TweetGOP rains on Obama’s Ohio parade
Here’s a non-surprise - Republicans aren’t impressed with the rush of new Ohio endorsements for Democrat Barack Obama for president.
“It’s fairly dubious to receive the endorsement of a superdelegate who wouldn’t support you when it mattered,” Blair Latoff, Republican National Committee spokeswoman, said of U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown’s endorsement of Obama.
As for Gov. Ted Strickland’s Obama endorsement, Ohio Republican Party spokesman John McClelland hauled out an old Strickland quote in which the governor, who initially favored Sen. Hillary Clinton, suggested Obama was better suited for “American Idol” than the presidency.
“Did he (Strickland) text or phone-in his vote?” asked McClelland.
Actually, like McClelland, Strickland spoke through a press release.
TweetPayday loan law may go on ballot
Ohio voters may get the last word on a new law setting a 28 percent annual rate cap on short-term loans.
The Community Financial Services Association of America, which represents payday lending stores, announced on Thursday, June 5, that its launching a campaign to put a referendum on the law on the Nov. 4 ballot.
“We are confident that the citizens of Ohio will support consumer choice,” D. Lynn DeVault, CFSA president, said in a press release.
The law, signed Monday, June 2, by Gov. Ted Strickland, wipes out the current system in which the fees for payday loans usually are $15 for every $100 borrowed for two weeks, which calculates to a 391 percent annual percentage rate.
Tom Allio, chairman of the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending, called the payday loans a “toxic product” and said he was confident voters would back the new law.
Referendum backers first need 1,000 signatures for their proposal and then must gather an additional 241,366 signatures from registered voters to get it on the ballot.
TweetSen. Sherrod Brown endorses Obama
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, has endorsed Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois for president.
‘He is a visionary leader and fierce advocate for change,” Brown (pictured) said in a press release on Thursday, June 5. “Sen. Obama knows, like so many Ohio families, that Washington has for too long been held in a death-drip of greed by powerful lobbyists.”
Brown, a first-term senator, had been neutral in the race between Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination but threw his support to Obama after the Illinois senator locked up the nomination and Clinton announced that she would support Obama.
Brown is a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention. Brown joined Gov. Ted Strickland and Ohio Democratic Chairman Chris Redfern who earlier on Thursday endorsed Obama.
TweetRedfern jumps on Obama bandwagon
Ohio Democratic Chairman Chris Redfern has jumped on the Barack Obama bandwagon.
“I am honored and proud to endorse Barack Obama for President of the United States,” Redfern (pictured), a state representative from Catawba Island, said in a press release on Thursday, June 5.
“Barack Obama has the courage, the passion and the ideas to unite this country and bring about real change in Washington.
“For seven and a half long years, Ohioans have felt the sting of Washington’s failures under George Bush and we will not stomach another four under John McCain.
“Thanks to the steady leadership of Governor Strickland, the Ohio Democratic Party is organized, energized and strong. As we unify behind Barack Obama, there is no doubt in my mind that his message of change will carry the Buckeye State in November.”
Redfern had been neutral in the race between Obama and Hillary Clinton but his endorsement was expected after Obama locked up the nomination and Clinton announced that she would thrown her support to Obama on Saturday, June 7. Redfern will cast his vote as a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention for Obama, said Alex Goepfert, Ohio Democratic Party spokesman.
Redfern’s endorsement followed Strickland’s announcement that he now backs Obama. Strickland had been Clinton’s top Ohio supporter.
TweetStrickland backs Obama
Gov. Ted Strickland, who had been one of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s staunchest supporters, threw his support behind Sen. Barack Obama on Thursday, June 5.
Strickland said he spoke with Clinton on Thursday. In a prepared statement, Strickland said, “I pledged to work with her to unify the party and to make sure that Barack Obama wins the presidency. Ohioans have suffered as a result of the failed policies of the Bush Administration, including job loss as a result of rising fuel prices. Ohioans desperately want real, meaningful change. And I believe Barack Obama will bring that change.”
Clinton won the Ohio primary in March.
TweetMcCain, Obama mull “town meetings”, Lincoln-Douglas debates
Just a day after Barack Obama secured the Democratic presidential nomination, Obama and Republican John McCain are tossing around some big political names to get their one-on-one campaign going.
On Wednesday, June 4, McCain sent Obama a letter, calling for at least 10 face-to-face joint town hall meetings across the country starting June 11 or June 12 in New York City. The meetings would be like debates that President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Barry Goldwater planned in 1963 before Kennedy’s assassination ended those plans, McCain said. Goldwater, like McCain, was from Arizona.
Obama’s campaign manager David Plouffe said that Obama has said such an idea is appealing but Obama’s campaign would recommend a less structured format - “one that resembles the historic debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas” in 1858. Those debates were held in Illinois, Obama’s state.
Update on the proposal - the McCain campaign said the “respective campaign managers spoke; they both expressed a commitment to raising the level of dialogue, and they will be in close contact as we work together to make this idea a reality.”
TweetBrown introduces trade bill
Lest ye think Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is anti-trade, as his critics have accused him of being, take a peek at his new Trade Reform, Accountability, Development and Employment Act.
Not anti-trade, Brown says. Just in favor of better, more fair trade.
His bill, introduced Wednesday, June 4, at a packed Capitol Hill press conference, aims to review existing trade agreements to study their results, enforcement and compliance, would restore congressional oversight of trade agreements and spell out standards for labor and environmental protections, among other things.
Brown acknowledges his bill - cosponsored in a House version by Reps. Betty Sutton, D-Copley Twp., Tim Ryan, D-Niles, Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, Dennis Kucinich, D-Cleveland, and Charlie Wilson, D-Bridgeport - doesn’t have a chance of passing Congress this year, during a shortened presidential year, but he said he hopes his bill provides a blueprint for a better trade policy when the new president takes office next year.
TweetBrown on Democrats: No endorsement yet
Sen. Barack Obama may have wrapped up the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, June 3, but Sen. Sherrod Brown doesn’t plan on formally endorsing either Obama or Clinton until later this week.
Brown, interviewed Wednesday, said he plans on announcing who he’ll support later this week, either Thursday or Friday. Before that, he said, he wants to call representatives of both campaigns to formally signal his support.
Still, Brown, one of 21 Ohio superdelegates, couldn’t help but slip during a press conference Wednesday: At one point, he mistakenly referred to Obama as “President Obama.” An early heads up as to who Brown’s supporting? We’ll see later this week.
TweetNo exceptions to the smoking ban
The Ohio Supreme Court snuffed out hopes by private clubs to get special exemptions that would allow their members to light up.
In a 4-3 decision released Wednesday, June 4, the court decided against taking up a request to reverse a 10th District Court of Appeals decision that blocks the Ohio Department of Health from adopting rules that would exempt private clubs from the indoor smoking ban.
The Strickland administration sought the rules and the Ohio Licensed Beverage Association fought them.
Ohio voters approved a state law in November 2006 that bans smoking indoors in public places.
Chief Justice Tom Moyer and Justices Evelyn Lundberg Stratton and Judith Lanzinger dissented, saying they would have considered the case. The appeals court ruled at the end of December.
Should smoking be allowed at private clubs?
TweetRuvolo: “Chemistry” not right for Obama-Clinton ticket
Speculation already is raging about an Obama-Clinton ticket for the Democrats in the general election but one veteran Ohio political operative - and key Clinton supporter - isn’t sure it’s going to happen.
“I don’t know that the chemistry is right,” Jim Ruvolo, former Ohio Democratic chairman and Sen. Hillary Clinton’s Ohio designated representative for delegates, said on Wednesday, June 4.
“If he offers and she accepts, great, wonderful…This is the longest process ever and they went toe to toe for months…I think it’s very difficult for all of that to be forgotten.”
TweetBennett blasts Obama “publicity stunt” in St. Paul
Ohio Republican Chairman Bob Bennett took note of where Democrat Barack Obama was on Tuesday, June 3, when Obama claimed the Democratic presidential nomination - St. Paul, Minn., site of this year’s GOP convention.
“Obama continues to tout a new brand of politics, but his publicity stunt tonight at the site of the Republican National Convention will do nothing to convince Ohioans that he is qualified to bring change to Washington,” Bennett said in a press release.
Bennett also questioned whether Obama, who lost the Ohio Democratic primary to Sen. Hillary Clinton, knows much about Ohio, a key state in the general election.
“Barack Obama doesn’t understand what is important to the people of Ohio and that showed when he won only 5 of 88 counties in the primary,” Bennett said.
TweetOhio voters gloomy about economy; still like Strickland
Although Gov. Ted Strickland’s approval rating remain high, Ohio voters overwhelmingly believe the state’s economy has continued to deteriorate since Strickland took over state government in 2007 with a plan to “turn around” Ohio.
A new Quinnipiac University Poll released Wednesday, June 4, found that Strickland has a 55 percent approval rating, compared to a 61 percent approval rating in July of 2007, about a year ago.
The poll also found that 65 percent think the economy is worse than it was in 2006 when Strickland was elected, while just 3 percent say it is better.
Republican President Bush and the Democratically-controlled Congress get the blame for the worsening economy, not Democrat Strickland.
In the poll, 58 percent of those who say the economy is worse blame Bush and Congress, while 8 percent blame the state legislature, 4 percent blame Strickland and 22 percent blame “economic forces beyond control.”
Also, 28 percent say it’s “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that the or a family member would leave the state in the next year for better opportunities. In addition, 33 percent say it’s “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that they or a family member would leave Ohio “eventually.”
Among voters 18-29 years old, 54 percent say they expect to leave in the next year and 69 percent expect to leave “eventually”.
Release of the poll comes just a day after General Motors announced its decision to close its Moraine plant, where more than 2,000 are employed.
“Gov. Ted Strickland must be wearing Teflon underwear. Voters think the state and thier lives have deteriorated since he took office; expect things to get worse, not better and a quarter of them think they might have to move out of the state in the next year for economic reasons,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Polling Institute said in a press release.
“But they don’t blame him. They blame President Bush, Congress and ‘economic forces beyond control.’”
Other findings in the poll:
Just 10 percent of voters say Ohio is a better place to live than when Strickland took office.
57 percent of the voters say Democrat Marc Dann’s resignation is about the same kind of scandal as those surrounding former Republican Gov. Bob Taft while 20 percent say the Dann scandal is less serious and 12 percent say it’s more serious.
71 percent support a proposal that could be on the November ballot requiring Ohio companies with 25 or more employees to give workers seven paid sick days a year.
The poll surveyed 1,738 Ohio voters from Thursday, May 29, through Monday, June 2, and as a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.
TweetObama links GM plant closings to Bush, McCain
Sen. Barack Obama, scrambling to wrap up the Democratic presidential nomination, has linked the announced closing of GM plants, including GM-Moraine, to President Bush’s economic policies.
“My heart goes out to the workers and families affected by the closing of these GM plants, including the Janesville (Wisc.) plant that I visited a few months ago,” Obama said in a prepared statement on Tuesday, June. 3.
“Today’s news is a painful reminder not only of the challenges America faces in our global economy, but of George Bush’s failed economic policies.
“For eight long years, we’ve had an energy policy that funds both sides in the war on terror without promoting fuel efficiency or helping make our auto companies more competitive.
“That’s part of the reason thousands of more Americans in Wisconsin and Ohio will no longer be able to count on a paycheck at a time when they’re already being pinched by rising costs.
“Unlike John McCain, I’m not in this race to extend the failed Bush economic policies; I’m in this race to end them. I’ve proposed investing $150 billion over ten years in green energy and creating up to five million new green jobs.
“We’ll finally provide domestic automakers with the funding they need to retool their factories and make fuel-efficient and alternative fuel cars. And we’ll invest in efforts to make sure that the cars of the future are made where they always have been — in the United States. Because the fight for American manufacturing is the fight for America’s future - and I believe that’s a fight this country will win,” Obama said.
Besides the Ohio and Wisconsin plants, GM announced closings in Canada and Mexico.
Obama lost the Ohio Democratic presidential primary to Sen. Hillary Clinton but is expected to make the state a priority if, as expected, he wins the Democratic nomination.
TweetSuperdelegate Beatty endorses Obama
Ohio superdelegate Joyce Beatty, a Dayton native and Ohio House minority leader, has endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Her endorsement comes with Obama making a final push to line up enough support from superdelegates to claim the nomination
Beatty’s endorsement gives Obama backing from seven of the state’s 21 superdelegates to the Democratic National Convention, compared to eight backing Sen. Hillary Clinton. Six were undecided as of Tuesday, June 3.
“I have spoken to Sen. Obama several times about his ideas for moving our nation past the failed policies of the Bush administration,” Beatty, now of Columbus, said in a press release. “I like Sen. Obama’s stances on issues important to all Americans, and I am proud that an African-American has the trust and the support of people across all cross-sections of our society in this historic campaign.
“He has brought energy and an excitement to this race that inspires people, and he is the right person for the job.”
While Ohio voted for Clinton in the state’s Democratic primary, Beatty represents an Ohio House district that backed Obama.
Beatty also applauded Clinton.
“Especially as a female, I respect the strength she has shown the nation in her historic run for the highest office in the land,” Beatty said.
TweetStrickland: “Clinton has every right to stay in the race”
Gov. Ted Strickland, Hillary Clinton’s leading Ohio supporter, isn’t about to tell his candidate to get out of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.
“I think that’s totally her decision but I think she has every right to remain in the race if she chooses to do so,” Strickland said on Monday, June 2.
What if she asked him what to do?
“I will say to her what I have said to her in the past that I think she should do what she perceives to be best for her and whatever her decision is will have the strong support of Ted Strickland,” Strickland said.
What if what is best for her is not best for the Democratic party?
“I guess that’s possible but I do not believe the party has been injured. If I can just remind you of what’s happened. More people are registering as Democrats than ever before. More people are voting as Democrats than ever before. More people are giving money to Democrats than every before.
“What’s wrong with this picture? ….I think we’ll have a smashing Democratic victory on Nov. 4 at every level…,” Strickland said.
Tweet“Go Run” training program for women set for Columbus
As Hillary Clinton continues to battle for the Democratic presidential nomination, more than 80 women from across Ohio are expected in Columbus on Friday, June 6, through Sunday, June 8, for The White House Project’s “Go Run” political training program for women.
While Ohio has five female U.S. House members - out of 18 - and Jennifer Brunner (pictured) is the first female secretary of state, the state’s “bleak rating” for women’s political leadership is a “dismal 41st”, a press release said.
Democrat Brunner and Jennette Bradley, a Republican and the first black woman lieutenant governor, are among the speakers. Jane Campbell, a Democrat and Cleveland’s first woman mayor, also is scheduled to speak.
The White House Project is a national, nonpartisan organization that works to “advance a richly diverse, critical mass of women into leadership positions, up to and including the presidency,” the press release said.
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