...State Sen. Joy Padgett (R-Coshocton) said she had no doubts about Ney's innocence.
"I looked him in the eye," she said. "We've talked. If he says to me that he is going to be cleared of all of this, then I believe him."
She has no intention of giving back the $5,000 she received from Ney in 2004.
"I think that was a good-faith donation," Padgett said. "I don't think it's an Abramoff donation...."
From Sunday's Columbus Dispatch:
A former aide to Gov. Bob Taft has admitted that he improperly funneled campaign cash from former Maumee coin dealer Thomas W. Noe to three Ohio Supreme Court justices, according to documents filed with the state Elections Commission.
H. Douglas Talbott, who was Taft’s head of boards and commissions, divided $3,000 equally among Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer and Justices Terrence O’Donnell and Judith Ann Lanzinger at a 2004 fundraiser in Noe’s Catawba Island home. However, $1,960 of the money actually came from Noe, who already had given the maximum legal contributions, the complaint said....
...There is no evidence that the justices knew about the arrangement, Richter said, even though Noe was Lanzinger’s campaign manager. All three Republicans won their elections in 2004...
The behavior of these Republicans is awful. It seems they were passing out money like they were handing out cookies. Is anyone else bothered by the fact that these Republicans have lots of money just sitting around waiting for the next bribe or "contribution" for someone? Was the following story about Justice Terrence O'Donnell related? Here
Justice Terrence O'Donnell, 59, told police the theft occurred Feb. 16 (2005) in the Flats riverfront entertainment district, where he parked his car for the St. Edward High School event.
O'Donnell, 59, received the school's 2004 Alumnus of the Year honor. When he returned to the car, a window was smashed and the money and a briefcase were missing, according to a police report.
"There's so many ways that this could have been avoided or fixed," O'Donnell said Thursday. "I've rethought this, and re-examined myself and second-guessed myself hourly since this occurred."
O'Donnell said he keeps large amounts of cash at home and had planned to deposit the money in a checking account to pay for home repairs...
PRYCE
Deborah Pryce has brought some money for projects to the 15th congressional district of Ohio. The Akron Beacon Journal has published a list assembled by Citizens Against Government Waste. As her power/influence increased in the Republican Party, the amount of 'pork' increased for the district. Unfortunately, it is hard to determine if these projects did anything to improve the economy of the district. They did not increase employment.
I found this interesting letter to the editor in the Times Reporter about Bob Ney. The writer makes a good point. I hope that the federal prosecutor investigating Ney follows up on this information.
I would like to thank the Young Democrats for calling to our attention that a local Republican candidate received a check from Congressman Bob Ney for more than $10,000.
Regardless of where you are from, that is a lot of money. For a politician in Tuscarawas County to take more than $10,000 from one person is indeed “obscene.”
Ney’s check to Commissioner Kerry Metzger was nearly five times as much as any person can contribute to a congressional candidate ($2,100) but it is OK for a member of Congress to place that kind of influence on a local election? The Times Reporter says “the Ney-to-Metzger contribution is a non-issue?”
There is something inherently wrong when a small-town politician can accept a check worth five times more than what the federal government allows any individual to give to a member of Congress. There is also something wrong when a candidate for local office is willing to take checks with more than $10,000. Winning is more important than ethics?