We have additional proof that John Kasich's incoming administration is already showing signs of a lack of fresh ideas. Kasich has once again chosen a former department head from a previous Republican administration.
Dispatch:
Gov.-elect John Kasich tapped Jerry Wray yesterday to return to his old job as director of the Ohio Department of Transportation, promising "no games, no politics, no train."
....Wray was ODOT director from 1991 to 1999 under Gov. George V. Voinovich and is a former Licking County engineer. He had been working as a marketing engineer for U.S. Bridge in Cambridge, in eastern Ohio, but said he has been retired since 2008. ODOT said it has invested nearly $883,000 with the company since March 2009.
Wray also was a lobbyist for the trade association representing asphalt manufacturers and highway contractors and faced criticism in 2003 - including from former state Rep. Kevin DeWine, now Ohio Republican chairman - that he had too much influence in ODOT decisions on using concrete or asphalt in pavement projects....
All those Republican donors who are in road construction are already reminiscing about those jobs they got under the Voinovich administration and hoping that their pal Wray will toss them some new work.
As far as the Republican Neanderthals who are unable and unwilling to visualize traveling by train, they need to see how Europe travels. In the interactive map at RailEurope, you'll be able to see the train routes in Europe that provide easy access to every part of the continent. I personally have traveled on trains in Europe and I can tell you that it is safe, convenient, relaxing, and an important mode of transportation. The fact that the backward-thinking Republicans cannot get their brains around the idea of passenger trains, demonstrates their pathetic, unimaginative brain power.
* Out of work? Have your unemployment benefits lapsed? If you are looking for assistance, don't call the offices of the following members of the House of Representatives. These Ohio Republicans voted against an emergency extension of unemployment benefits (Roll Call Vote 579): Austria, Boehner, Jordan, Latta, Schmidt, Tiberi. You might want to contact their offices and offer your opinion (see list of Ohio delegation), but they are probably too, too, too busy trying to figure out how they can give more unfunded tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires.