Friday, February 26, 2010

Another Snowy Afternoon in Central Ohio....

* If you are hoping that your unemployment benefits get an extension, Republican Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky is blocking the vote.

RawStory:

Republican Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) on Thursday night expressed his opposition to renewing unemployment benefits on the Senate floor with an unusually harsh message for its backers: "Tough s--t."

Bunning repeatedly and single-handedly objected to an effort by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) to attain unanimous consent among senators for extending COBRA and other benefits to out-of-work individuals across America.

"I don't think it's fair to do what you are proposing to do," he said to Durbin. "And I'll be here as long as you're here, and as long as all those other senators are here, and I'm going to object every time."


Bunning obviously doesn't care about his own constituents in Kentucky where the unemployment rate is 10.7%. It might be a good idea for the unemployed in Kentucky to show up at Bunning's home and ask for rent and grocery money.

*** We all remember that John Kasich, Republican candidate for Ohio governor, had launched his plan to eliminate the Ohio income tax. ABCNews had this on January 15, 2010:

Republican gubernatorial candidate John Kasich said Thursday that he has picked a running mate in state Auditor Mary Taylor who shares his commitment to phase out Ohio's income tax to help the state's economy.....

However, here is a story from FOX59 from today, February 26, 2010:

Republican gubernatorial candidate John Kasich (KAY'-sick) praised a northwest Ohio lawmaker last February for a plan to repeal Ohio's income tax over 10 years.

But Kasich was careful not to embrace the timeline laid out in the tax plan pushed by state Rep. John Adams once he announced his candidacy in June. And now that the bill is under fire at the Statehouse, both men are taking pains to distance Kasich from it.

Repealing the income tax is still central to Kasich's platform in the race to unseat Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland. He says he doesn't know how long it will take....

Despite all his cockiness, we've seen Kasich collapse under the pressure of people and the press asking questions. Amazing. Just as I've written before, Kasich has refused to detail how he plans to fix the state, but assures us he'll let us know after he is elected. Is Kasich offering us a pig in a poke?

>>>> DaytonDailyNews has an item about a Republican candidate who was arrested----

A former Butler Township trustee and Republican candidate for a state representative seat is facing a misdemeanor after he allegedly punched a man in the face during a bar fight.

Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies responded to Shiloh Athletic Club, 5515 N. Main St., about 9:15 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24, after a man said Joseph Ellis punched him in the face during an argument at the bar, according to a sheriff’s incident report.

Ellis, 58, is a candidate to fill Seth Morgan’s (R-Huber Heights) seat. He is running against Michael E. Henne of Clayton in the May primary.....

Nice job.