News Summary

WASHINGTON — The political beat this year was dominated, obviously, by the presidential election between Barack Obama and John McCain, but that was by no means the only political news affecting Ohio. Here's a look back at a few stories that dominated last year that could have an impact on our state in 2009:

DHL leaves:

This seems like a Wilmington story, but a proposal by DHL to use UPS for its domestic air freight and the company's eventual decision to pull out of the United States entirely became a symbol of what was at stake in the presidential election, as both John McCain and Barack Obama fought over who would best represent the working people devastated by DHL's decision. The Ohio congressional delegation, too, rallied around Wilmington, but for naught: When DHL announced it was pulling out of the U.S. market, there was little they could do. One congressional aide put it best: The search and rescue mission had become a recovery mission. In 2009, the focus will be on finding new jobs for the region.

Bailout fever:

The area's delegation faced two tough votes at the end of this year: One to bail out a financial industry in deep trouble from the credit crisis and the other to bail out the auto industry. In the House, U.S. Reps. Mike Turner and Jim Jordan voted against the financial bailout and the auto bailout. U.S. Reps. John Boehner, Jean Schmidt, and David Hobson all supported the financial bailout, but couldn't bring themselves to vote for the auto bailout.

The Senate was more interesting: It couldn't even get a vote on the auto bailout. So they punted, and the Bush administration wound up using financial bailout money for the auto makers, leading cynical minds to wonder if the whole thing was just an elaborate farce and whether the Senate knew this would be the outcome all along.

Mary Lauterbach speaks for Maria

Mary Lauterbach comes across as a mild-mannered, sweet woman. But the Vandalia woman has become a lioness as she fights to make sure other women in the military aren't treated the way her daughter was after she reported being raped by a Marine colleague.

Maria Lauterbach's pregnant body was found in January in the backyard of the man she'd accused of raping her. That man, Cesar Laurean, awaits extradition from Mexico, where he fled after her body was found.

In the aftermath of that gruesome discovery, Mary Lauterbach has become an advocate for better treatment of those who report rape in the military. She's testified before Congress about her experience, and Turner, R-Centerville, paired up with U.S. Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., for legislation calling for the Defense Department to scrutinize how it handles such cases.

Mary Lauterbach never wanted to be a symbol, but in the aftermath of her loss, she's not afraid to serve as one.

"There needs to be a fundamental change in military culture that gives greater urgency to the crime of sexual assault," she said.