Thursday, May 18, 2006

Ohio Republicans: Masters of Disasters

You don't have to go too far to look for corruption and mismanagement stories here in Ohio. Republicans are on the march to rob, cheat, and generally mess up anything they can get their hands on. The Columbus Dispatch has several stories today that illustrate the Republican stranglehold on Ohio:

Dispatch: A business venture involving four Perry County officials, including former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder (Republican), is facing scrutiny because public employees are working on the enterprise on taxpayers’ time...
...State law prohibits public officials from using on-duty employees or other public resources to benefit a private business....
Is anyone surprised that Larry Householder is involved in this?

Dispatch: More than 30 families who rely on the Morrow County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities to help their children will soon have to turn elsewhere.

The board’s vote Tuesday to suspend therapy and classes for children younger than 3 came in response to the failure of two tax levies this month, MRDD Board Superintendent Jerome Manuel said yesterday.....

You may wonder how Republicans figure into this. Several years ago, the Republican controlled state legislature was told to work out a fair plan for school funding for Ohio. However, the Republicans were too busy passing laws like the Defense of Marriage Act, and raising money for their re-election campaigns to put in the hard work to fix school funding. As a result of the Republicans' lack of effort, school funding has never been solved. Ohio school districts have to hold levy elections to raise money. Some poorer districts can't pass levies and therefore, have cut transportation, the purchase of new books, building maintenance, classes, athletics, and special programs. With the additional pressure of the unfunded federal mandate, No Child Left Behind Act, Ohio school districts are cutting to the bare bone. All this while the Republican controlled state government sits on their hands.

Isn't it time for a change in leadership???????

THIS JUST IN:
RASMUSSEN REPORTS HAS STRICKLAND AHEAD OF BLACKWELL BY 16 POINTS AND BROWN IN FRONT OF DEWINE.